Why Does Everyone Hate Rats? (Update)
4/22/202641 min
New York City’s mayor called them “public enemy number one.” History books say they caused the Black Death — although recent scientific evidence disputes that claim. In an updated episode from 2025, we ask: Is the rat a scapegoat? And what does our rat hatred say about us?
-
SOURCES:
- Bethany Brookshire, author of Pests: How Humans Create Animal Villains.
- Kathy Corradi, senior vice president of resident services, partnerships, and initiatives at the New York City Housing Authority.
- Ed Glaeser, professor of economics at Harvard University.
- Nils Stenseth, professor of ecology and evolution at the University of Oslo.
-
RESOURCES:
- "On Patrol With the Rat Czar," by Mark Chiusano (Intelligencer, 2024).
- "How Rats Took Over North America," by Allison Parshall (Scientific American, 2024).
- "Where Are the Rats in New York City," by Matt Yan (New York Times, 2024).
- Pests: How Humans Create Animal Villains by Bethany Brookshire (2022).
- "Human ectoparasites and the spread of plague in Europe during the Second Pandemic," by Nils Stenseth, Katharine Dean, Fabienne Krauer, Lars Walløe, Ole Christian Lingjærde, Barbara Bramanti, and Boris Schmid (Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 2018).
-
EXTRAS:
- "Freakonomics Radio Live: 'Jesus Could Have Been a Pigeon.'" by Freakonomics Radio (2018).
Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
Clips
Transcript preview
First 90 secondsStephen Dubner· Host0:00
Freakonomics Radio is sponsored by LinkedIn Ads. Ever invested in something that didn't live up to the hype? Marketers know that feeling. They optimize for the numbers that look great, like impressions, but then they don't see revenue. LinkedIn has a word for that, bullspend. Instead, you can get the highest ROAS of major ad networks with LinkedIn. Cut the bullspend, advertise on LinkedIn. Spend two hundred and fifty dollars and get a two hundred and fifty dollar credit. Go to linkedin.com/freakonomics. Terms apply. [upbeat music] Freakonomics Radio is sponsored by Mint Mobile. Stop overpaying for wireless just because that's how it's always been. Mint Mobile exists purely to fix that. All plans come with high-speed data and unlimited talk and text delivered on the nation's largest 5G network. Shop plans at mintmobile.com/freak. Upfront payment of forty-five dollars for three-month, five gigabyte plan required, equivalent to fifteen dollars per month. New customer offer for first three months only, then full price plan options available. Taxes and fees extra. See Mint Mobile for details. [upbeat music] Hey there, it's Stephen Dubner, and it is springtime in New York City, which means the trees are greening up, the sidewalk cafes are crowded, and the rats are coming out. So we figured this was the moment to bring you an update of