Index funds were scorned for many years. The first index fund was started by John Bogle in 1976, but he had a difficult time attracting investors. They didn't r

Index funds were scorned for many years. The first index fund was started by John Bogle in 1976, but he had a difficult time attracting investors. They didn't really become popular until the nineties. This Planet Money episode talks about it in detail. http://www.npr.org/sections/money/2016/03/04/469247400/episode-688-brilliant-vs-boring http://www.npr.org/sections/money/2016/03/04/469247400/episo...