Secret History

The skinny on the credit card business will be available to you tonight when PBS airs the “Secret History of the Credit Card” on FRONTLINE. The 60-minute commercial-free documentary reveals how banks developed the credit card business into an industry with $30 billion in annual profits. The thoroughly researched documentary interviewed many top experts, bank officials, and government regulators over the past six months. It is hosted by Lowell Bergman. The production suggests that the profitability of credit cards began twenty-five years ago, when the banking industry successfully eliminated the limit on the interest rate a lender can charge a borrower. The program also looks at modern business practices such as universal default and punitive pricing. The show airs nationally at 9 P.M. on Tuesday, November 23rd. For more information visit: “http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/credit/”:http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/credit/