Monetary Policy Debate to be held at USC Annenberg

Money talks, and the topic of discussion will be the Federal Reserve on Wednesday morning. Richard Fisher, president of the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas, is scheduled to speak about U.S. monetary policy at 8:30 a.m. on July 16, in Annenberg Room 204.

Dean Ernest Wilson and Willow Bay, new director of the School of Journalism, are hosting the event — the first under Bay. The event will focus on the Federal Reserve’s “punchbowl,” a term made famous by William McChesney Martin, the longest serving chairman of the Fed, when he said it was the Fed’s job "to take away the punch bowl just as the party gets going."

As the U.S. is still recovering from the economic downturn of 2008, raising interest rates at peak economic activity post-recession is increasingly relevant. Fisher, who is a member of the Federal Open Market Committee — the people responsible for the punch bowl — will comment on the punch bowl’s effects on the economy and why he advocates for taking it away when the party gets going. “I look forward to sharing my comments on the current state of U.S. monetary policy,” Fisher said. “I plan to address concerns about the Fed’s role maintaining the stability of the financial system.”

A previous discussion about the Federal Reserve was held at USC Annenberg in 2013. Read more about it: "Prof. Mitchel Y. Abolafia Offers Further Remarks on Central Bank Transparency"