Communication starts with telling good stories. Stories start with characters.

In the 9/28 episode of This American Life, some economy-wonk-ish journalists update us on the housing crunch story they first told a year and a half ago. They told the stories of people that got ridiculous loans, brokers that almost lied to sell these loans, and the brilliantly near-sighted financiers that connected the dots on some monumentally bad deals. The economic update stood out from the 2 minute news stories we hear every day because they told it through these characters.

But the character that made the biggest impression on me was the "big pool of money," as the journalists dubbed the world's total liquid, investable wealth. By taking this macroeconomic concept and giving it a clever label and almost human emotions, they painted an effective picture of how the market, in a macro sense, works. I remember the big pool of money. And I remember its story, and thus theirs.

Memorable communication starts with characters and stories.

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The 9/28 episode in iTunes.