J.C. Bradbury
@jcbradbury.com
Economist, Georgian, Gadfly
Stadium Subsidies, Film Incentives, Local Economic Development, Sports Economics
Tariffs bad. Vaccines good.
*If I block you, you deserved it.*
jcbradbury.com
Stadium Subsidies, Film Incentives, Local Economic Development, Sports Economics
Tariffs bad. Vaccines good.
*If I block you, you deserved it.*
jcbradbury.com
Pinned
J.C. Bradbury
@jcbradbury.com
· Nov 6
Cover just dropped. Coming in 2026 from Oxford University Press.
Who are these "scholars" adding references as filler? An academic article isn't a high school term paper with a minimum reference count. Citations should only be added if they need to be there. The problem with missing references is there's missing information. Cosmetic citation doesn't solve this.
Closing out my year with a journal editor shocker 🧵
Checking new manuscripts today I reviewed a paper attributing 2 papers to me I did not write. A daft thing for an author to do of course. But intrigued I web searched up one of the titles and that's when it got real weird...
Checking new manuscripts today I reviewed a paper attributing 2 papers to me I did not write. A daft thing for an author to do of course. But intrigued I web searched up one of the titles and that's when it got real weird...
December 20, 2025 at 3:36 PM
Who are these "scholars" adding references as filler? An academic article isn't a high school term paper with a minimum reference count. Citations should only be added if they need to be there. The problem with missing references is there's missing information. Cosmetic citation doesn't solve this.
Having spent many years following pro sports team operations, this doesn't surprise me. These organizations are run by proud competitive men, who view their success as preordained. They will not tolerate losses. Hubris flourishes.
The Angels dragging Tyler Skaggs and so many others through the mud of that trial — while also coming out of it looking awful — and then settling is the biggest Angels thing I have ever seen.
December 19, 2025 at 8:31 PM
Having spent many years following pro sports team operations, this doesn't surprise me. These organizations are run by proud competitive men, who view their success as preordained. They will not tolerate losses. Hubris flourishes.
Reposted by J.C. Bradbury
Read my latest piece about the Royals stadium, where I channel a little bit of @jcbradbury.com in swatting some financial claims down (and complain, in general, that it would be an unfun mess of a location)
The Royals are reportedly considering moving to the former Sprint campus in Overland Park, but is that such a great idea?
The Overland Park stadium location would be a terrible idea
Worse than an urban stadium in every way
www.royalsreview.com
December 19, 2025 at 5:12 PM
Read my latest piece about the Royals stadium, where I channel a little bit of @jcbradbury.com in swatting some financial claims down (and complain, in general, that it would be an unfun mess of a location)
Would it be so bad if the Chicago Bears just continued to play at Soldier Field, which was essentially re-built for the team just 23 years ago? Just thinking about this as a legitimate public policy issue is a waste of everyone's time. We've all got better things to do.
December 18, 2025 at 10:34 PM
Would it be so bad if the Chicago Bears just continued to play at Soldier Field, which was essentially re-built for the team just 23 years ago? Just thinking about this as a legitimate public policy issue is a waste of everyone's time. We've all got better things to do.
Who could have predicted? The pro sports team tenants of Rocket Arena and Progressive Field demand $150 million in capital repairs that the public landlord Gateway must cover. Well, Gateway doesn't have any resources to pay for them. www.cleveland.com/news/2025/12...
Assessment calls for millions in ballpark, arena repairs. Gateway still has no way to pay
Assessments outline hundreds of millions in needed repairs at Cleveland’s major sports venues. Gateway still doesn’t have a way to pay for them.
www.cleveland.com
December 18, 2025 at 1:39 PM
Who could have predicted? The pro sports team tenants of Rocket Arena and Progressive Field demand $150 million in capital repairs that the public landlord Gateway must cover. Well, Gateway doesn't have any resources to pay for them. www.cleveland.com/news/2025/12...
Can we please stop the charade that the Cobb "development authority" does anything but give handouts to connected insiders? Development incentives to Home Depot...again?! This is indefensible. Economic development policy in Georgia is totally broken.
Cobb authority OKs $7M tax break for Home Depot office expansion
CUMBERLAND — The Development Authority of Cobb County this week gave final approval for bonds to help The Home Depot finance a major expansion across its Cobb campuses, providing the
buff.ly
December 18, 2025 at 12:08 AM
Can we please stop the charade that the Cobb "development authority" does anything but give handouts to connected insiders? Development incentives to Home Depot...again?! This is indefensible. Economic development policy in Georgia is totally broken.
Oh yeah, building a venue that will be vacant for 2/3 of the year, and highly disruptive to the surrounding area when it's open, sounds like just what downtown needs.
Downtown Minneapolis continues to struggle since the pandemic. More than a third of offices are still vacant. Would a new arena for the Timberwolves and Lynx really bring life back to downtown?
Downtown Minneapolis is struggling. Would a new Wolves and Lynx arena help?
Downtown Minneapolis continues to struggle since the pandemic. More than a third of offices are still vacant. Would a new arena for the Timberwolves and Lynx really bring life back to downtown?
www.mprnews.org
December 17, 2025 at 7:23 PM
Oh yeah, building a venue that will be vacant for 2/3 of the year, and highly disruptive to the surrounding area when it's open, sounds like just what downtown needs.
Oh joy, a peek inside the clown car.
Susie Wiles Talks About the First Year of Trump’s Second Term (Part 1 of 2)
In the first half of Vanity Fair’s interview with Susie Wiles, the chief of staff discusses Elon Musk’s DOGE disaster, the FBI’s “incredible job” investigating January 6, and how Trump once berated he...
www.vanityfair.com
December 17, 2025 at 12:54 PM
Oh joy, a peek inside the clown car.
Ah, renderings....🎶 Imagine🎶
December 17, 2025 at 12:38 PM
Ah, renderings....🎶 Imagine🎶
Another locality realizing that it doesn't want to host a pro sports team. It's like a pool or a boat. It's better to have a neighbor with one.
fox4kc.com/news/city-of...
fox4kc.com/news/city-of...
December 16, 2025 at 10:36 PM
Another locality realizing that it doesn't want to host a pro sports team. It's like a pool or a boat. It's better to have a neighbor with one.
fox4kc.com/news/city-of...
fox4kc.com/news/city-of...
DePaul cutting staff in response to loss of international enrollment. chicago.suntimes.com/education/20...
DePaul University lays off 114 staff members
The Lincoln Park-based school said it's facing financial headwinds due to a significant drop in enrollment among international graduate students, an increased demand for financial aid and the rising c...
chicago.suntimes.com
December 16, 2025 at 1:06 PM
DePaul cutting staff in response to loss of international enrollment. chicago.suntimes.com/education/20...
Hey look, State Farm Arena sits vacant 230 days a year. 41 Hawks games + 94 ticketed events = 135. It's no wonder sports venues aren't development catalysts, when even the busiest ones are empty 2/3 of the year.
Where State Farm Arena ranks for attendance. Hint, it’s near the top.
There weren’t many evenings when the lights were dim at Atlanta's State Farm Arena during the past year.
buff.ly
December 16, 2025 at 12:48 PM
Hey look, State Farm Arena sits vacant 230 days a year. 41 Hawks games + 94 ticketed events = 135. It's no wonder sports venues aren't development catalysts, when even the busiest ones are empty 2/3 of the year.
I think we've reached the point where journalists shouldn't be allowed to use the word "could" anymore. www.cbc.ca/news/canada/...
ANALYSIS | How the City of Vancouver's deal with the Whitecaps could transform the Hastings Park area | CBC News
The City of Vancouver’s history began with a land deal between a government desperate for a product and a private corporation with plenty of perceived leverage.
www.cbc.ca
December 13, 2025 at 11:30 PM
I think we've reached the point where journalists shouldn't be allowed to use the word "could" anymore. www.cbc.ca/news/canada/...
Vancouver Whitecaps are officially seeking a new publicly funded stadium, and they want public money to help pay for it.
Whitecaps and City of Vancouver to explore possible new stadium at Hastings Park
The agreement gives team to the end of 2026 to work on a potential new stadium at the former Hastings Racecourse site. Find out more.
vancouversun.com
December 13, 2025 at 2:35 PM
Vancouver Whitecaps are officially seeking a new publicly funded stadium, and they want public money to help pay for it.
So, no worse than normal Atlanta drivers.
Waymo cars ignored stopped school buses in Atlanta. What happens now?
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration opened an investigation. The autonomous vehicle company has issued a software recall.
buff.ly
December 12, 2025 at 1:09 PM
So, no worse than normal Atlanta drivers.
This story made it into the Plain Dealer's morning newsletter. It seems that today's newsrooms are incapable of understanding basic economics issues, yet feature reporting on them. This creates a media environment that is ripe for abuse, which interested parties freely exploit.
December 12, 2025 at 1:06 PM
This story made it into the Plain Dealer's morning newsletter. It seems that today's newsrooms are incapable of understanding basic economics issues, yet feature reporting on them. This creates a media environment that is ripe for abuse, which interested parties freely exploit.
For the love of all that is holy, STOP reporting industry commissioned marketing reports as "studies." This is purchased propaganda, and you're not even charging them a fee for advertising.
Cleveland’s Independent Music and Comedy Venues Drive $742.5 Million in Economic Impact, New Study Finds
A kernel from the study: The city’s venues account for nearly 50 percent of the indie live entertainment GDP of the Buckeye State, more than 28 states.
buff.ly
December 12, 2025 at 3:25 AM
For the love of all that is holy, STOP reporting industry commissioned marketing reports as "studies." This is purchased propaganda, and you're not even charging them a fee for advertising.
Reposted by J.C. Bradbury
FIFA, in the most FIFA-y way possible, told cities that bearing all the World Cup costs while getting no direct revenue (not even sales taxes!) would be fine, because they could sell their own sponsorships — then made it nearly impossible to find sponsors.
FIFA’s bait-and-switch on sponsorships could cost US cities $250m during 2026 World Cup
I was on a stadium panel at Baruch College yesterday — video evidence to be available shortly, I hope — and one of the points I tried to make was that both elected officials and voters need to closely...
www.fieldofschemes.com
December 11, 2025 at 2:21 PM
FIFA, in the most FIFA-y way possible, told cities that bearing all the World Cup costs while getting no direct revenue (not even sales taxes!) would be fine, because they could sell their own sponsorships — then made it nearly impossible to find sponsors.
Nice to see elected representatives pushing back against a commissioned "Fiscal Impact Analysis" as "not supported by credible evidence." It's certainly not. www.wsav.com/news/local-n...
December 11, 2025 at 2:28 PM
Nice to see elected representatives pushing back against a commissioned "Fiscal Impact Analysis" as "not supported by credible evidence." It's certainly not. www.wsav.com/news/local-n...
Bradbury's Iron Law of Stadium Finance: The public cost of a stadium always goes up.
Michelle Wu promised an updated cost estimate for White Stadium ‘this calendar year.’ Now it’s looking like 2026. - The Boston Globe
City officials last gave a cost estimate for the hotly debated project more than a year ago, when they said it would cost $91 million.
buff.ly
December 11, 2025 at 12:21 PM
Bradbury's Iron Law of Stadium Finance: The public cost of a stadium always goes up.
Reposted by J.C. Bradbury
Trump will leave this nation not only poorer but, in nearly every way, smaller
Canada is the latest country to roll out the welcome mat to highly skilled workers and scientists as the United States restricts immigration and cuts research funding under President Trump.
Canada eyes H-1B workers, top global talent as U.S. limits immigration
The recruitment drive targets the kind of highly skilled foreign workers facing increased scrutiny under the Trump administration’s immigration restrictions.
wapo.st
December 10, 2025 at 3:06 PM
Trump will leave this nation not only poorer but, in nearly every way, smaller