Two Statistical Nightmares: Unraveling the Consequences of Data Manipulation in Argentina and Greece

In the aftermath of President Trump dismissing the head of the Bureau of Labor Statistics, economists and statisticians expressed widespread concern. The termination has sparked fears of potential data manipulation, raising doubts about the reliability of future statistics.

To delve into this issue, we’ve examined two countries with a history of data manipulation, investigating the consequences when governments resort to such practices and the challenges in rectifying the altered data.

First, we uncover Argentina’s attempt to conceal its actual inflation rate, revealing the repercussions of such deception. Subsequently, we explore Greece’s struggle to clean up after data manipulation, a process fraught with difficulties.

This episode was skillfully produced by Sam Yellowhorse Kesler, meticulously edited by Jess Jiang, expertly engineered by Jimmy Keeley with assistance from Kwesi Lee, and thoroughly fact-checked by Sierra Juarez. Alex Goldmark serves as Planet Money’s executive producer.