Capitalism: A Six Part Series

CAPITALISM is an ambitious and accessible six-part documentary series that looks at both the history of ideas and the social forces that have shaped the capitalist world.

Episode 1: Adam Smith: The Birth of the Free Market
Capitalism is much more complicated than the vision laid out by Adam Smith. Indeed, it predates Smith by centuries and took root in the practices of colonialism and the slave trade.

Episode 2: The Wealth of Nations: A New Gospel?
Adam Smith was an economist and moral philosopher. But his work on morality is largely forgotten, leading to tragic distortions that have shaped our global economic system.

Episode 3: Ricardo and Malthus: Did You Say Freedom?
The roots of today's global trade agreements lie in the work of stockbroker David Ricardo and demographer Thomas Malthus. Together, they would restructure society in the image of the market.

Episode 4: What if Marx Was Right?
Have we gotten Marx wrong by focusing on the Communist Manifesto instead of on his critique of capitalism?

Episode 5: Keynes vs Halyet: A Fake Debate?
The ideological divide between the philosophies of John Maynard Keynes and Friedrich Hayek has dominated economics for nearly a century. Is it time for the pendulum to swing back to Keynes?

Episode 6: Karl Polanyi, the Human Factor
An exploration of the life and work of Karl Polanyi, who sought to reintegrate society and economy. Could the commodification of labor and money ultimately be as disastrous as floods, drought and earthquakes?