Mark G. Sheppard
@markgsheppard.com
Inequality/Mobility/Design.
Econ PhD Candidate, The Graduate Center.
Researcher @NBER.org.
2nd Lt., U.S. National Guard.
Former Congressional Staff.
Econ PhD Candidate, The Graduate Center.
Researcher @NBER.org.
2nd Lt., U.S. National Guard.
Former Congressional Staff.
Pinned
Mark G. Sheppard
@markgsheppard.com
· Dec 13
New WP "The Inequality of Recession" uses @claudia-sahm.bsky.social like rules, with thousands of subseries of unemployment, tells a consistent empirical story: recessions consistently hit some folks first.
papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers....
#EconSky #Recession
papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers....
#EconSky #Recession
This year I’ve been building a beta project: the Economic Well-Being Index.
Choose the metrics you care about and get a transparent, holistic read of the economy—useful for comparing perspectives and grounding discussion in data. Public-facing by design.
#EconSky #Economics #DataViz
Choose the metrics you care about and get a transparent, holistic read of the economy—useful for comparing perspectives and grounding discussion in data. Public-facing by design.
#EconSky #Economics #DataViz
January 17, 2026 at 11:39 PM
This year I’ve been building a beta project: the Economic Well-Being Index.
Choose the metrics you care about and get a transparent, holistic read of the economy—useful for comparing perspectives and grounding discussion in data. Public-facing by design.
#EconSky #Economics #DataViz
Choose the metrics you care about and get a transparent, holistic read of the economy—useful for comparing perspectives and grounding discussion in data. Public-facing by design.
#EconSky #Economics #DataViz
Reposted by Mark G. Sheppard
“What concerned Plato… was that inequality drove citizens apart and made their mutual friendship virtually impossible”
– @laywilliams.bsky.social on why arguments against inequality do not boil down to mere “envy” of the rich
#LSEInequalitiesBlog
– @laywilliams.bsky.social on why arguments against inequality do not boil down to mere “envy” of the rich
#LSEInequalitiesBlog
Concern about inequality is not mere envy
Are those who object to inequality simply voicing their envy of the richl? If so, we must dismiss the principled arguments of Plato, Jesus, Hobbes, Mill and Marx
buff.ly
January 17, 2026 at 12:15 PM
“What concerned Plato… was that inequality drove citizens apart and made their mutual friendship virtually impossible”
– @laywilliams.bsky.social on why arguments against inequality do not boil down to mere “envy” of the rich
#LSEInequalitiesBlog
– @laywilliams.bsky.social on why arguments against inequality do not boil down to mere “envy” of the rich
#LSEInequalitiesBlog
This is peak John List, solo authored paper about education, that’s also about how to scale programs, and it’s in Chicago.
This is a @johnlist.bsky.social trifecta. 10/10 no notes
This is a @johnlist.bsky.social trifecta. 10/10 no notes
January 16, 2026 at 10:06 PM
This is peak John List, solo authored paper about education, that’s also about how to scale programs, and it’s in Chicago.
This is a @johnlist.bsky.social trifecta. 10/10 no notes
This is a @johnlist.bsky.social trifecta. 10/10 no notes
Reposted by Mark G. Sheppard
Real average hourly earnings for frontline employees decreased 0.2% from Nov to Dec, seasonally adjusted.
This stems from a 0.1-percent increase in average
hourly earnings combined with an increase of 0.2 percent in consumer prices.
Frontline = 4 in 5 employees who are production & nonsupervisory
This stems from a 0.1-percent increase in average
hourly earnings combined with an increase of 0.2 percent in consumer prices.
Frontline = 4 in 5 employees who are production & nonsupervisory
January 16, 2026 at 9:56 PM
Real average hourly earnings for frontline employees decreased 0.2% from Nov to Dec, seasonally adjusted.
This stems from a 0.1-percent increase in average
hourly earnings combined with an increase of 0.2 percent in consumer prices.
Frontline = 4 in 5 employees who are production & nonsupervisory
This stems from a 0.1-percent increase in average
hourly earnings combined with an increase of 0.2 percent in consumer prices.
Frontline = 4 in 5 employees who are production & nonsupervisory
Reposted by Mark G. Sheppard
Of those unemployment, *one in four* has been unemployed for at least 6 months! This is the highest level of long term unemployment since Feb 2022.
January 9, 2026 at 2:18 PM
Of those unemployment, *one in four* has been unemployed for at least 6 months! This is the highest level of long term unemployment since Feb 2022.
The data shows recessions hit vulnerable groups first.
#EconSky
#EconSky
The Inequality of Recessions: Who Gets Hit First
YouTube video by Mark G. Sheppard
www.youtube.com
January 16, 2026 at 9:04 PM
The data shows recessions hit vulnerable groups first.
#EconSky
#EconSky
Reposted by Mark G. Sheppard
Building your 2026 reading list? 📚
@durlauf.bsky.social shares five books guaranteed to shape your economic thinking → bit.ly/3Lu5XGl
@durlauf.bsky.social shares five books guaranteed to shape your economic thinking → bit.ly/3Lu5XGl
Steven Durlauf’s 2025 Reading List: Five Books to Shape Your Economic Thinking - Stone Center
As we enter a new year, it’s worth pausing to reflect on the literary contributions shaping how scholars and practitioners understand economic life today. Stone Center Director Steven Durlauf has […]
bit.ly
January 16, 2026 at 6:00 PM
Building your 2026 reading list? 📚
@durlauf.bsky.social shares five books guaranteed to shape your economic thinking → bit.ly/3Lu5XGl
@durlauf.bsky.social shares five books guaranteed to shape your economic thinking → bit.ly/3Lu5XGl
Recessions aren’t uniform events. Decomposing the labor market by race, education, and underemployment, using @claudia-sahm.bsky.social-style turning points, the cyclical sensitivities differ sharply—because some people experience recessions first.
There’s an inequality to recession.
#EconSky
There’s an inequality to recession.
#EconSky
January 16, 2026 at 12:34 AM
Recessions aren’t uniform events. Decomposing the labor market by race, education, and underemployment, using @claudia-sahm.bsky.social-style turning points, the cyclical sensitivities differ sharply—because some people experience recessions first.
There’s an inequality to recession.
#EconSky
There’s an inequality to recession.
#EconSky
In FEB, I’m giving a public workshop, organized by @dariia.bsky.social, called “The Art of Research" discussing practical design + data viz principles to make research clearer and more impactful—plus responsible AI workflows.
Register: sites.google.com/view/dariia-...
#EconSky
Register: sites.google.com/view/dariia-...
#EconSky
January 15, 2026 at 5:03 PM
In FEB, I’m giving a public workshop, organized by @dariia.bsky.social, called “The Art of Research" discussing practical design + data viz principles to make research clearer and more impactful—plus responsible AI workflows.
Register: sites.google.com/view/dariia-...
#EconSky
Register: sites.google.com/view/dariia-...
#EconSky
Reposted by Mark G. Sheppard
Reposted by Mark G. Sheppard
Listen to the inaugural episode of the @econfip.bsky.social podcast featuring @harvardkennedy.bsky.social and @harvardrte.bsky.social's @drodrik.bsky.social with @columbiauniversity.bsky.social's Suresh Naidu, released today: inclusive-prosperity.simplecast.com/episodes/wel...
Welcome to Economics for Inclusive Prosperity | Economics for Inclusive Prosperity
Neoliberalism and economic nationalism are the two dominant meta-models for the global economy today. Proponents call them pathways to prosperity, but both have been blamed for exacerbating ongoing cl...
inclusive-prosperity.simplecast.com
January 14, 2026 at 9:08 PM
Listen to the inaugural episode of the @econfip.bsky.social podcast featuring @harvardkennedy.bsky.social and @harvardrte.bsky.social's @drodrik.bsky.social with @columbiauniversity.bsky.social's Suresh Naidu, released today: inclusive-prosperity.simplecast.com/episodes/wel...
Reposted by Mark G. Sheppard
Trump just announced a 25% tariff on advanced chips, but not on chips that are used within the United States. So it's a tariff on chips used an input into exports. Yes, effectively an export tariff.
www.whitehouse.gov/fact-sheets/...
www.whitehouse.gov/fact-sheets/...
January 14, 2026 at 9:51 PM
Trump just announced a 25% tariff on advanced chips, but not on chips that are used within the United States. So it's a tariff on chips used an input into exports. Yes, effectively an export tariff.
www.whitehouse.gov/fact-sheets/...
www.whitehouse.gov/fact-sheets/...
This is not bad. In general I think academics need to follow the lead set by data journalist and create more research products.
I built this for fun. Not really sure what to do with it. Maybe it will be useful to people trying to understand polling. Might even be a decent teaching example. (Feedback welcome. I am not a web designer, please be kind.)
poll-simulator.netlify.app
poll-simulator.netlify.app
Polling Simulator - How do polls work?
Explore how random error and methodological choices shape the results of political polls.
poll-simulator.netlify.app
January 14, 2026 at 4:08 PM
This is not bad. In general I think academics need to follow the lead set by data journalist and create more research products.
Reposted by Mark G. Sheppard
The 47th president has made life less affordable for everyone but himself & his billionaire backers
Trump has
😠 slowed job growth,
😡 undercut incomes for workers
🤬 enriched the ultrawealthy
The latest from @joshbivens-econ.bsky.social , @cmcnich.bsky.social, and Margaret Poydock.
Trump has
😠 slowed job growth,
😡 undercut incomes for workers
🤬 enriched the ultrawealthy
The latest from @joshbivens-econ.bsky.social , @cmcnich.bsky.social, and Margaret Poydock.
47 ways Trump has made life less affordable in the last year
In the first year of his second term, President Trump has actively made life less affordable for working people. Affordability has two sides—prices and pay. While public debate fixates on rising costs...
www.epi.org
January 13, 2026 at 1:20 PM
The 47th president has made life less affordable for everyone but himself & his billionaire backers
Trump has
😠 slowed job growth,
😡 undercut incomes for workers
🤬 enriched the ultrawealthy
The latest from @joshbivens-econ.bsky.social , @cmcnich.bsky.social, and Margaret Poydock.
Trump has
😠 slowed job growth,
😡 undercut incomes for workers
🤬 enriched the ultrawealthy
The latest from @joshbivens-econ.bsky.social , @cmcnich.bsky.social, and Margaret Poydock.
It’d only like to have a Substack so I can make fun data visualizations and fun cover arts like this.
January 14, 2026 at 12:12 AM
It’d only like to have a Substack so I can make fun data visualizations and fun cover arts like this.
Reposted by Mark G. Sheppard
A new online database includes comparable estimates of inequality of opportunity for 72 countries that cover 2/3 of the world population. The share of total inequality that is due to inherited circumstances ranges from 19% (Denmark) to 77% (South Africa).
stonecenter.gc.cuny.edu/publications...
stonecenter.gc.cuny.edu/publications...
January 13, 2026 at 6:43 PM
A new online database includes comparable estimates of inequality of opportunity for 72 countries that cover 2/3 of the world population. The share of total inequality that is due to inherited circumstances ranges from 19% (Denmark) to 77% (South Africa).
stonecenter.gc.cuny.edu/publications...
stonecenter.gc.cuny.edu/publications...
Reposted by Mark G. Sheppard
I get this question a lot (not always in such polite language), so worth addressing directly. (Short thread)
Sincere, non-rhetorical question: what agency is the source of these numbers? And how fully do you trust them?
January 13, 2026 at 3:32 PM
I get this question a lot (not always in such polite language), so worth addressing directly. (Short thread)
January 13, 2026 at 3:48 PM
Data shows majority think the death of #ReneeNicoleGood was not justified.
January 13, 2026 at 2:51 AM
Data shows majority think the death of #ReneeNicoleGood was not justified.
I feel like someone should start an open letter of support for Powell.
I’d be willing to help, in any way i can. cc: @tderyugina.bsky.social
I’d be willing to help, in any way i can. cc: @tderyugina.bsky.social
January 12, 2026 at 5:13 PM
I feel like someone should start an open letter of support for Powell.
I’d be willing to help, in any way i can. cc: @tderyugina.bsky.social
I’d be willing to help, in any way i can. cc: @tderyugina.bsky.social
Reposted by Mark G. Sheppard
The public has supported raising taxes on the ultrarich and corporations for years, but policymakers have failed to act.
→ Raising taxes on the rich makes good economic and political sense.
EPI’s latest report from @joshbivens-econ.bsky.social 1/
→ Raising taxes on the rich makes good economic and political sense.
EPI’s latest report from @joshbivens-econ.bsky.social 1/
Raising taxes on the ultrarich: A necessary first step to restore faith in American democracy and the public sector
Summary The public has supported raising taxes on the ultrarich and corporations for years, but policymakers have not responded. Small increases in taxes on the rich that were instituted during time...
www.epi.org
November 17, 2025 at 4:23 PM
The public has supported raising taxes on the ultrarich and corporations for years, but policymakers have failed to act.
→ Raising taxes on the rich makes good economic and political sense.
EPI’s latest report from @joshbivens-econ.bsky.social 1/
→ Raising taxes on the rich makes good economic and political sense.
EPI’s latest report from @joshbivens-econ.bsky.social 1/
Reposted by Mark G. Sheppard
Breaking news: Every former Federal Reserve chief attacked the Department of Justice’s probe into US central bank head Jay Powell, accusing the Trump administration of behaving like an emerging market. ft.trib.al/aJHxEQx
January 12, 2026 at 4:28 PM
Breaking news: Every former Federal Reserve chief attacked the Department of Justice’s probe into US central bank head Jay Powell, accusing the Trump administration of behaving like an emerging market. ft.trib.al/aJHxEQx
@benzipperer.org GOAT status
You may know him as EPI's Senior Economist specializing in minimum wage, inequality, and low-wage labor markets, and mastermind behind your favorite EPI tools.
🎉 Now you can congratulate @benzipperer.org on being (a back-to-back) Siegel Research Fellow!
🎉 Now you can congratulate @benzipperer.org on being (a back-to-back) Siegel Research Fellow!
Fellows - Siegel Family Endowment
www.siegelendowment.org
January 12, 2026 at 5:07 PM
@benzipperer.org GOAT status
Reposted by Mark G. Sheppard
Some countries that have prosecuted or threatened to prosecute central bankers for the purpose of political intimidation or punishment for monetary policy decisions: Argentina, Russia, Turkey, Venezuela and Zimbabwe.
January 12, 2026 at 2:01 AM
Some countries that have prosecuted or threatened to prosecute central bankers for the purpose of political intimidation or punishment for monetary policy decisions: Argentina, Russia, Turkey, Venezuela and Zimbabwe.
#FederalReserve Chairman #JeromePowell says the Department of Justice served grand jury subpoenas tied to Senate Banking Committee testimony, and argues the threat is aimed at central bank independence. #EconSky
January 12, 2026 at 2:30 AM
#FederalReserve Chairman #JeromePowell says the Department of Justice served grand jury subpoenas tied to Senate Banking Committee testimony, and argues the threat is aimed at central bank independence. #EconSky