Shopping online can be creepy. Suggested products, targeted ads...it feels like your phone is listening to you. You might be tempted to hit the mall instead. But actually, AI is tracking you there too.

Many brick-and-mortar stores depend on holiday sales to stay alive. And increasingly they’re borrowing tricks from the online world to get us to buy stuff – lots of stuff. So in the age of Artificial Intelligence, is there any way to stop being tracked when you shop?

Thank you to the supporters of KUOW, you help make this show possible! If you want to help out, go to kuow.org/donate/boomingnotes. 

Booming is a production of KUOW in Seattle, a proud member of the NPR Network. Our editor is Carol Smith. Our producers are Lucy Soucek and Whitney Henry-Lester. Our hosts are Joshua McNichols and Monica Nickelsburg. 

Shopping online can be creepy. Suggested products, targeted ads...it feels like your phone is listening to you. You might be tempted to hit the mall instead. But actually, AI is tracking you there too.
Many brick-and-mortar stores depend on holiday sales to stay alive. And increasingly they&rsquo;re borrowing tricks from the online world to get us to buy stuff &ndash; lots of stuff. So in the age of Artificial Intelligence, is there any way to stop being tracked when you shop?
Thank you to the supporters of KUOW, you help make this show possible! If you want to help out, go to&nbsp;<a href="https://www.kuow.org/donate/booming">kuow.org/donate/boomingnotes.</a>&nbsp;
Booming is a production of KUOW in Seattle, a proud member of the NPR Network. Our editor is&nbsp;<a href="https://www.kuow.org/authors/carol-smith">Carol Smith</a>. Our producers are&nbsp;<a href="https://www.kuow.org/authors/lucy-soucek">Lucy Soucek</a> and <a href="https://www.kuow.org/authors/whitney-henry-lester">Whitney Henry-Lester</a>. Our hosts are&nbsp;<a href="https://www.kuow.org/authors/joshua-mcnichols">Joshua McNichols</a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a href="https://www.kuow.org/authors/monica-nickelsburg">Monica Nickelsburg</a>.&nbsp;

Booming is an economy podcast from a city that (almost) never stops growing. The Seattle area's been home to many booms over the years. It’s brought jobs, people and wealth to the region, but also real growing pains that people here feel every day. In Booming, KUOW economy reporters Joshua McNichols and Monica Nickelsburg explore hidden connections between technology, cities, work and our day-to-day experiences. We’ll ask the important question: how can more of us benefit from the booms and weather the busts?

Booming is an economy podcast from a city that (almost) never stops growing. The Seattle area's been home to many booms over the years. It’s brought jobs, people and wealth to the region, but also real growing pains that people here feel every day. In Booming, KUOW economy reporters Joshua McNichols and Monica Nickelsburg explore hidden connections between technology, cities, work and our day-to-day experiences. We’ll ask the important question: how can more of us benefit from the booms and weather the busts?

Booming

How stores are spying on you

Tickets to pro sports in Seattle will put a dent in your budget. A seat at a Seahawks game could cost you $260. So why do they cost so much? The ticket selling business is a complex system with lots of players driving up the prices.

On this episode of Booming, we’ll find out how the pricing works and hear about ways to see sports games without breaking the bank.

Thank you to the supporters of KUOW, you help make this show possible! If you want to help out, go to kuow.org/donate/boomingnotes.

Booming is a production of KUOW in Seattle, a proud member of the NPR Network. Our editor is Carol Smith. Our producers are Jennie Cecil Moore and Lucy Soucek. Our hosts are Joshua McNichols and Monica Nickelsburg. 

Tickets to pro sports in Seattle will put a dent in your budget. A seat at a Seahawks game could cost you $260. So why do they cost so much? The ticket selling business is a complex system with lots of players driving up the prices.
On this episode of Booming, we’ll find out how the pricing works and hear about ways to see sports games without breaking the bank.
Thank you to the supporters of KUOW, you help make this show possible! If you want to help out, go to <a href="https://www.kuow.org/donate/booming">kuow.org/donate/boomingnotes.</a> 
Booming is a production of KUOW in Seattle, a proud member of the NPR Network. Our editor is <a href="https://www.kuow.org/authors/carol-smith">Carol Smith</a>. Our producers are <a href="https://www.kuow.org/authors/jennie-cecil-moore">Jennie Cecil Moore</a> and <a href="https://www.kuow.org/authors/lucy-soucek">Lucy Soucek</a>. Our hosts are <a href="https://www.kuow.org/authors/joshua-mcnichols">Joshua McNichols</a> and <a href="https://www.kuow.org/authors/monica-nickelsburg">Monica Nickelsburg</a>.

Sports ticket prices have skyrocketed. Here's why

The free trade era that has defined the U.S. economy for decades made clear winners and losers. It tanked the Rust Belt, but sent the Pacific Northwest’s global economy to new heights. Washington state has always benefited from its international companies and the free flow of talent across borders. So what does the potential end of the free trade era mean for our economy?

Monica sat down with University of Washington historian Margaret O'Mara to talk about her predictions for how a second Trump term will affect Washington's economy - and the people who live here.

Thank you to the supporters of KUOW, you help make this show possible! If you want to help out, go to kuow.org/donate/boomingnotes.

Booming is a production of KUOW in Seattle, a proud member of the NPR Network. Our editor is Carol Smith. Our producers are Jennie Cecil Moore and Lucy Soucek. Our hosts are Joshua McNichols and Monica Nickelsburg.

The free trade era that has defined the U.S. economy for decades made clear winners and losers. It tanked the Rust Belt, but sent the Pacific Northwest’s global economy to new heights. Washington state has always benefited from its international companies and the free flow of talent across borders. So what does the potential end of the free trade era mean for our economy?
Monica sat down with University of Washington historian Margaret O'Mara to talk about her predictions for how a second Trump term will affect Washington's economy - and the people who live here.
Thank you to the supporters of KUOW, you help make this show possible! If you want to help out, go to <a href="https://www.kuow.org/donate/booming">kuow.org/donate/boomingnotes.</a>
Booming is a production of KUOW in Seattle, a proud member of the NPR Network. Our editor is <a href="https://www.kuow.org/authors/carol-smith">Carol Smith</a>. Our producers are <a href="https://www.kuow.org/authors/jennie-cecil-moore">Jennie Cecil Moore</a> and <a href="https://www.kuow.org/authors/lucy-soucek">Lucy Soucek</a>. Our hosts are <a href="https://www.kuow.org/authors/joshua-mcnichols">Joshua McNichols</a> and <a href="https://www.kuow.org/authors/monica-nickelsburg">Monica Nickelsburg</a>.

If free trade isn't free, what's next for Washington's economy?

Washington is a wealthy state.... that needs more money. So a couple years ago, it tried a new way to tax rich people. It’s called the capital gains tax, but an initiative on the ballot could kill it this November.

On this week’s episode of Booming, we dig into Initiative 2109. Is the capital gains tax doing what it's supposed to do?What would a fair tax system actually look like here in Washington?

Thank you to the supporters of KUOW, you help make this show possible! If you want to help out, go to kuow.org/donate/boomingnotes.

Booming is a production of KUOW in Seattle, a proud member of the NPR Network. Our editor is Carol Smith. Our producer is Jennie Cecil Moore. Our hosts are Joshua McNichols and Lucy Soucek, filling in for Monica Nickelsburg.

Washington is a wealthy state.... that needs more money. So a couple years ago, it tried a new way to tax rich people. It’s called the capital gains tax, but an initiative on the ballot could kill it this November.
On this week’s episode of Booming, we dig into Initiative 2109. Is the capital gains tax doing what it's supposed to do? What would a fair tax system actually look like here in Washington?
Thank you to the supporters of KUOW, you help make this show possible! If you want to help out, go to <a href="https://www.kuow.org/donate/booming">kuow.org/donate/boomingnotes.</a>
Booming is a production of KUOW in Seattle, a proud member of the NPR Network. Our editor is <a href="https://www.kuow.org/authors/carol-smith">Carol Smith</a>. Our producer is <a href="https://www.kuow.org/authors/jennie-cecil-moore">Jennie Cecil Moore</a>. Our hosts are <a href="https://www.kuow.org/authors/joshua-mcnichols">Joshua McNichols</a> and <a href="https://www.kuow.org/authors/lucy-soucek">Lucy Soucek</a>, filling in for <a href="https://www.kuow.org/authors/monica-nickelsburg">Monica Nickelsburg</a>.

How stores are spying on you

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