Conclusion

I sincerely hope that this brief introduction to economics blogging has been in some way useful. Please continue the forum by submitting your comments and questions to each topic. To conclude I would like to provide a few other useful sources for connecting to our increasingly globalized world through the field of economics.

Professor’s Web Pages

There are many professors out there who do not post a blog per say, but do maintain thorough homepages for use by their students. Most of these homepages are open to the public and can be great resources for students.

Alan Deardorff: http://www-personal.umich.edu/~alandear/

For the study of international economics Alan Deardorff’s homepage is a great resources. The materials he uses to teach his international economics courses are readily available as is an excellent glossary of terms and more supplemental reading materials than you could reasonably get through in your college career.

Other Sites

The Economist: http://www.economist.com/

The Economist is published weekly, and more frequently on-line and highlights economic and international affairs issues. It is a form of advocacy journalism rather than simply a news source and is ideologically based on free trade, and classical liberalism. As will all other sources mentioned the slant of the articles must me taken into account.
Another noteworthy factor is that the articles do not list an author; rather each article is published with a title only. This can be somewhat misleading in saying that these are the views of the entire paper, or the only views that exist because they are published under this overarching authority of “The Economist”. This aside, the articles in The Economist are for the most part well written and resourceful.

“Dani Rodrik’s weblog”
John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University
[Unconventional thoughts on economic development and globalization]
http://rodrik.typepad.com/

Dani Rodrik has published many articles, papers and books in the areas of international economics, economic development, and political economy. He focuses on what good economic policy, as well as on economic development and globalization in general. While is blog is not one of the better-developed blogs, he is an important player in the world of international economics. His papers, specifically "The Global Governance of Trade As If Development Really Mattered”, are frequently used in classes focusing on international economics.
Besides providing his own commentary on current affairs and the publishing of other economists Rodrik also does an excellent job highlighting some of the major events in international economic news and providing links to the stories, everything from credible news sources to random blogs and articles.
Rodrik is a must read for anyone studying international affairs or economics.

“Freakonomics”-The Blog
The New York Times
http://freakonomics.blogs.nytimes.com/

I’m sure you’ve heard of Freakonomics: A Rogue Economist Explores the Hidden Side of Everything, the non-fiction book written by University of Chicago economist Steven Levitt and New York Times Journalist Stephen J. Dubner. The book was praised for its creative fusion of pop culture and economic principles. As an international studies major who before her senior year of high school had never taken an economics course, I accredit this book with helping me make that leap between economic principles and the real world…a leap that takes many people ages to make.
The basic premises behind the book is the study of incentives through interesting theoretical questions, such as what are the negligible effects of good parenting on education? The authors wanted to “continue the conversation” by creating their own blog in conjunction with the New York Times, and now you can find a multitude of daily posts to expand the parameters of what you though fell under economics.
For example, did you know that the Zimbabwean dollar is now worth more on eBay as a novelty item than it is in a currency exchange? This blog is a great credible source to find those extra tidbits of information and to find a way to connect what you’re learning in class to something you’ll actually remember!
Remember to pick up the book as well-it is an easy, and fascinating read!