Throughline

The lightbulb conspiracy is both real and everywhere

Share this episode
Anyone with this link can open it.
Share Link
Start at 0:00

This episode isn’t summarized yet

Create a free account and summarize it. In a few minutes you’ll have the key takeaways and a section-by-section summary.

Show notes

Over the next few episodes, we present Hidden Histories: stories that will make you rethink how the world works. First up, the conspiracy behind the lightbulb—and how it came to shape the entire consumer economy. If you ever wondered why your tech outdates so quickly or just plain fails, you can thank the lightbulb. (This episode originally aired in 2019.)

Guests: 

Sally Helm, former NPR Planet Money correspondent

Markus Krajewski, author of The Great Lightbulb Conspiracy

Giles Slade,author of Made to Break: Technology and Obsolescence in America

Support shows like Throughline with NPR+. Sign up today atplus.npr.org.


See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.

NPR Privacy Policy
Couldn't load the audio. A blocker may be stopping the show's tracking links. Open the file