Freakonomics Radio

Whaling was, in the words of one scholar, “early capitalism unleashed on the high seas.” How did the U.S. come to dominate the whale market? Why did whale hunting die out here — and continue to grow elsewhere? And is that whale vomit in your perfume? (Part 1 of “Everything You Never Knew About Whaling.”) SOURCES:Eric Hilt, professor of economics at Wellesley College.Nathaniel Philbrick, writer and historian.Paul Watson, environmental activist and founder of the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society. RESOURCES:“Calls From the Deep: Do We Need to Save the Whales All Over Again?” by Sophy Grimshaw (The Guardian, 2020).“The Very Small World of V.C.,” by Avi Asher-Schapiro (The New Republic, 2019).“How Nantucket Came to Be the Whaling Capital of the World,” by Nathaniel Philbrick (Smithsonian Magazine, 2015).“Fin-tech,” (The Economist, 2015).“The Spectacular Rise and Fall of U.S. Whaling: An Innovation Story,” by Derek Thompson (The Atlantic, 2012).Leviathan: The History of Whaling in America, by Eric Jay Dolin (2007)