Banking

The Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta recently launched The Fed Explained, a new feature on the Bank's website. The Fed Explained highlights a broad range of new and existing resources that have been aggregated on one web page for general audiences to learn about the work of the Federal Reserve, the nation's central bank.

The Atlanta Fed's dual purposes in developing The Fed Explained are to provide a convenient online source for information on a wide variety of economic issues and to aid the Atlanta Fed's communication by making information about the work of the Fed more accessible.

The Fed gets animated
The Fed Explained kicks off with an animated video, part of series that uses engaging graphics to illustrate economic topics and the Fed's role in the economy. The format is geared to the general public, students, and teachers. The first in the video series is a primer on inflation, which features straightforward examples to help explain the Federal Reserve's role in managing inflation.

In addition, The Fed Explained also highlights "Econ 101," a brief analysis of current economic issues. "Econ 101" is also a regular column in EconSouth, the Atlanta Fed's quarterly online and print magazine on the Southeast economy. Adding to The Fed Explained content, the new feature also offers a FedFAQ, which allows users to look for information about the Fed by searching key words or categories.

The new feature page can be found under the frbatlanta.org website tab titled "About the Fed." Original and aggregated content will be continually added to The Fed Explained. New videos will include such topics as gross domestic product (GDP), the role of the central bank, aspects of monetary policy, economic growth, and issues around employment.

April 25, 2012