What are think tanks all about?

# Stuff You Should Know: Think Tanks

Josh Clark and Chuck Bryant break down the fascinating world of think tanks—those research organizations that have quietly shaped American policy for over a century. Starting from Plato's academy all the way through modern institutions like Brookings and RAND Corporation, they explore how these groups went from producing objective, evidence-based research to increasingly serving corporate interests and political agendas. The hosts dive into how think tanks have become something closer to unregistered lobbying organizations, revealing the troubling shift from philanthropic funding to donor-directed corporate influence that's threatening the very credibility that made them valuable in the first place.