The rising popularity of GLP-1 drugs could cause all kinds of ripple effects. According to one estimate, 9% of the U.S. population could be on Ozempic or similar medications by 2030. Meanwhile, drugmakers are already developing the next generation of weight-loss drugs and researchers are studying the possible health benefits beyond weight loss and diabetes, including addiction. In the final episode of our series we ask: What could all this development mean for businesses, from the food sector to...
Jun 09, 2024•42 min•Transcript available on Metacast There is a new contender in the cola wars, and it isn’t a cola. It’s Dr Pepper. WSJ’s Jennifer Maloney unpacks how after decades as a distant competitor, Dr Pepper has climbed the soda ranks with help from hefty marketing, novel flavors and TikTok videos. Further Reading: - Dr Pepper Ties Pepsi as America’s No. 2 Soda Further Listening: - The Agony and Ecstasy of Tab Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Jun 07, 2024•21 min•Transcript available on Metacast President Biden unveiled a last-ditch effort to lower illegal crossings at the southern border this week. The move focuses on asylum seekers, and the policy is similar to one that former President Trump tried in 2018. WSJ’s Michelle Hackman describes the policy and tries to answer the question: why now? Further Reading: -Biden Issues Executive Actions on Immigration: What to Know Further Listening: -What the End of Title 42 Means for U.S. Immigration Policy -What Trump's Immigration Restrictions...
Jun 06, 2024•19 min•Transcript available on Metacast For much of his career, Biden built a reputation as a master negotiator. He’s known for his detailed knowledge of issues—and for hitting his stride when the pressure was on. Now, 81-year-old Biden is the oldest person to hold the presidency. WSJ's Annie Linskey and Siobhan Hughes go behind closed doors where some who have worked with him describe a president who appears slower. Further Reading: - Behind Closed Doors, Biden Shows Signs of Slipping Further Listening: - Inside the White House's Scr...
Jun 05, 2024•23 min•Transcript available on Metacast Astro Teller, the CEO of Aphabet’s X, runs a lab dedicated to solving some of the world’s most pressing problems while also coming up with viable businesses. After he spoke at the WSJ’s Future of Everything festival, we sat down with him to talk about A.I., self-driving cars, and the changing economy of tech. Further Watching: -Astro Teller’s Meaning of Life Further Listening: -Google CEO Sundar Pichai on How AI Could Change Search -The Future of Self-Driving Cars Is Here Learn more about your a...
Jun 04, 2024•21 min•Transcript available on Metacast Claudia Sheinbaum, the former mayor of Mexico City, will become Mexico’s first female president. Sheinbaum has pledged to be a continuation of her predecessor, Andrés Manuel López Obrador. WSJ’s José de Córdoba explains the two politicians’ close ties, and what her administration could mean for Mexico-U.S. relations. Further Reading: - Claudia Sheinbaum Elected as Mexico’s First Female President - The Most Dangerous Job in Mexican Politics: Running for Mayor Further Listening: - Texas Took On Bo...
Jun 03, 2024•20 min•Transcript available on Metacast Bradley Olson has tried a lot of different diets over his 20-year weight-loss journey, including popular programs like WeightWatchers. But nothing was as successful for him as Mounjaro, one in a new class of drugs that people are taking for weight loss. In this episode, Brad talks about his experience on the medicine and grapples with everything the drug couldn’t fix, from his self image to our food system. He confronts the ghosts of diets past and wades into the larger cultural conversation aro...
Jun 02, 2024•48 min•Transcript available on Metacast A New York jury has found former President Donald Trump guilty on 34 charges. WSJ reporter Joe Palazzolo recalls the original investigation that eventually led to Thursday's conviction, and legal reporter Corinne Ramey describes the scene as the verdict came down. Further Reading: - Nine Memorable Moments From Donald Trump’s Hush-Money Trial - A History of WSJ’s Hush-Money Investigation Further Listening: - Donald Trump’s First Criminal Trial Is Underway Learn more about your ad choices. Visit m...
May 31, 2024•24 min•Transcript available on Metacast For years, China’s real estate market was booming. Developers, home buyers and Western banks rushed to invest. But the boom turned into a bubble, which eventually burst. WSJ’s Rebecca Feng reports on the warning signs that were ignored and we speak to two people who saw the collapse coming. Further Reading: -The Folly of China’s Real-Estate Boom Was Easy to See, but No One Wanted to Stop It-Evergrande Was Once China’s Biggest Property Developer. Now, It Has Been Ordered to Liquidate. Further Lis...
May 30, 2024•24 min•Transcript available on Metacast Assistant Attorney General Jonathan Kanter heads the Department of Justice’s Antitrust Division. He speaks with Ryan Knutson about the DOJ’s lawsuit against Live Nation and Ticketmaster, and why the government says the business is an illegal monopoly which the company denies. Further Reading: - Justice Department to Sue Live Nation, Seek Breakup of Concert and Ticketing Giant - Justice Department Sues to Break Up Live Nation-Ticketmaster Further Listening: - The Taylor Swift Ticketmaster Debacle...
May 29, 2024•22 min•Transcript available on Metacast For over a century, the NCAA has refused to pay athletes. After a recent settlement, that’s going to change. The organization has agreed to set aside $2.8 billion in back payments for some student athletes and moving forward, allow players to get a cut of television revenue. WSJ’s Jared Diamond explains what it might mean for the future of college athletics. Further Reading: -NCAA Agrees to Share Revenue With Athletes in Landmark $2.8 Billion Settlement -He Was the $13 Million QB Recruit. Now He...
May 28, 2024•19 min•Transcript available on Metacast Trillion Dollar Shot, our new series about drugs like Ozempic, will be back next week. Until then, we think you’d enjoy a show from our friends over at Science Vs, a podcast that takes on fads, trends and the opinionated mob to find out what’s fact, what’s not and what’s somewhere in between. This episode examines the fears around the new class of blockbuster weight-loss drugs. This episode does deal with depression and suicidal thoughts. If you are in the U.S. and need help, dial 988. Full list...
May 26, 2024•42 min•Transcript available on Metacast Elon Musk’s Neuralink is on a mission to enable humans to communicate with computers using their thoughts. Now they have successfully implanted their device in a human.. WSJ's Rolfe Winkler explores the new technology and speaks to Noland Arbaugh, Neuralink's first participant. Further Reading: - Elon Musk’s Neuralink Shows First Patient Using Its Brain Implant - Elon Musk’s Neuralink Gets FDA Green Light for Second Patient, as First Describes His Emotional Journey Further Listening: - Elon Musk...
May 24, 2024•21 min•Transcript available on Metacast Paris Hilton and her husband, VC investor Carter Reum, talk about "strict" parenting, the importance of A.I. and the huge economic value of her spoiled airhead persona. Ryan Knutson sat down with the couple at The Wall Street Journal’s Future of Everything Festival. To watch the video, check out the episode on Spotify. Further Reading: -Paris Hilton’s Business Empire Is Getting a Makeover Further Listening: -The Business of Dua Lipa Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices...
May 23, 2024•28 min•Transcript available on Metacast Florida condominium buildings are undergoing inspections after the state set new requirements for how often the structures are put to the test. WSJ's Deborah Acosta explores how costs in one building have climbed to over $134,000. Further Reading: - New Florida Law Roils Its Condo Market Three Years After Surfside Collapse - Florida Condo Owners Brace for New Inspection, Reserve Requirements Further Listening: - Who's in Charge of Fixing Miami's Aging Condos? - The Mixed Signals from the Collaps...
May 22, 2024•22 min•Transcript available on Metacast Seven months into the war, Hamas is far from defeated. The Islamist militant group is using guerrilla tactics and a vast underground tunnel network to evade Israeli forces. WSJ’s Jared Malsin reports on how the group’s resilience is stoking fears in Israel that it is walking into a forever war. Further Reading: -Hamas Shift to Guerrilla Tactics Raises Specter of Forever War for Israel -ICC Prosecutor Seeks Arrest Warrants for Netanyahu, Hamas Leader Sinwar -Israel War Cabinet Member Sets Ultimat...
May 21, 2024•20 min•Transcript available on Metacast Meme stocks took off last week after an unexpected tweet appeared from “Roaring Kitty,” a social media account associated with former financial consultant Keith Gill. He's credited with igniting the meme stock movement in 2021. WSJ’s Jon Sindreu explains the re-emergence of Roaring Kitty and what it means for the meme stock movement. Further Reading: - ‘Roaring Kitty’ Came Out of Hibernation. Is the Meme Stock Craze Bac k? - Is Roaring Kitty the Internet’s Warren Buffett? Further Listening: - To...
May 20, 2024•19 min•Transcript available on Metacast As demand for the new class of GLP-1 weight-loss drugs skyrockets, one thing has stood in the way of many people trying to access them: cost. With a price tag around $1,000 a month for U.S. patients and many insurance companies refusing to cover these drugs for weight loss, patients are often turning to alternatives. In episode two of “Trillion Dollar Shot,” we look at the roadblocks to making these drugs more affordable, concerns that their high cost will negatively impact U.S. insurance system...
May 19, 2024•41 min•Transcript available on Metacast The Pacific Surfliner train in Southern California runs along some of the most beautiful coastlines in America. But some fear it might soon fall into the ocean. WSJ’s Jim Carlton reports on how coastal erosion is impacting an iconic train route and the controversial plans to move parts of the line inland. Further Reading: - The Race to Keep an Amtrak Train From Falling Into the Pacific Further Listening: - What Caused a Train to Derail in East Palestine, Ohio? Learn more about your ad choices. V...
May 17, 2024•22 min•Transcript available on Metacast Jim Simons pioneered a revolution in financial trading, embracing a computer-oriented, quantitative style in the 1980s well ahead of Wall Street. Following Simons’ recent death, WSJ’s Gregory Zuckerman unpacks his legacy from financial algorithms to philanthropy. Further Reading: -How Did Jim Simons’s Firm Make $100 Billion? He Told His Secrets to Our Reporter -Jim Simons, a Pioneer of Quantitative Trading, Dies at 86 -The Man Who Solved the Market: How Jim Simons Launched the Quant Revolution F...
May 16, 2024•20 min•Transcript available on Metacast If the upcoming presidential election could be summed up by a song, what would it be? And will voters cast their ballots based on a bright future or a gloomy one? In a live-taping before an audience at the Cascade PBS Ideas Festival, Kate Linebaugh and Ryan Knutson sat down with WSJ political reporter Molly Ball to discuss these topics and more. To watch the video, check out the episode on Spotify. Further Reading: -Biden and Trump, In Two Speeches, Speak to Two Visions of America -Arizona is Bo...
May 15, 2024•25 min•Transcript available on Metacast For six decades, one man has been largely responsible for creating North Korea’s propaganda machine: Kim Ki Nam. He served all three North Korean dictators and is the architect of many of the myths that have helped to keep the Kim family in power. Last week, Kim Ki Nam died at the age of 94. WSJ’s Timothy Martin reports on his controversial legacy. Further Reading: -The Original Mastermind Behind North Korea’s Cult-of-Personality Propaganda Dies -Kim Jong Un’s New Look Is More Man Than Superhuma...
May 14, 2024•19 min•Transcript available on Metacast When FTX collapsed into bankruptcy in 2022, many customers never thought they'd see their money again. But FTX's assets have rebounded. WSJ’s Andrew Scurria unpacks why FTX will have more than enough money to fully repay customers and many creditors. Further Reading: - Crypto Exchange FTX Is the Rare Financial Blowup That Will Repay Victims in Full Further Listening: - The Trial of Crypto’s Golden Boy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
May 13, 2024•20 min•Transcript available on Metacast Before Ozempic, Wegovy, Mounjaro and Zepbound, there was Lotte Bjerre Knudsen. In the 1990s, the young scientist at the Danish drug company Novo Nordisk was trying to unlock the key to a new technology for treating Type 2 diabetes. To her bosses, Lotte’s project, which focused on a hormone called GLP-1, looked like a distraction. But as Lotte fought to save her diabetes project from the chopping block, she couldn’t have imagined how much of an impact her breakthrough would have. Her work would p...
May 13, 2024•41 min•Transcript available on Metacast WSJ’s Julie Wernau wanted to test a hypothesis: are there more mentally ill homeless people now, compared to before the pandemic? That question led her to Rob Dart. Once a successful lawyer, in 2022 he went into a downward spiral, which his family has not been able to stop despite their best efforts. Further Reading: - A Lawyer Abandoned Family and Career to Follow the Voices in His Head - A Lawyer’s Slide Into Psychosis Was Captured in a WSJ Profile. He Tells Us His Story. Further Listening: - ...
May 10, 2024•28 min•Transcript available on Metacast Starbucks has a problem: Sales at U.S. stores have fallen sharply and now the company is looking to China, its second biggest market, to boost its revenue. But as WSJ’s Spencer Jakab explains, increased competition there is making that a tall order. Further Reading: -Starbucks Is Running Out of Americans to Drink Its Expensive Coffee -The Furious Race for the Future of Coffee Further Listening: -The Underdog Coffee Bean That’s Making a Comeback Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.f...
May 09, 2024•18 min•Transcript available on Metacast London and Dubai's international airports have become conduits for billions of dollars of illicit funds, potentially linked to corruption, drug trafficking and other crimes. WSJ's Margot Patrick explains how couriers in one money-laundering operation transported millions in dirty money on flights. Further Reading: - Billions in Dirty Money Flies Under the Radar at World’s Busiest Airports Further Listening: - How The Government Tied One Couple to Billions in Stolen Bitcoin Learn more about your ...
May 08, 2024•26 min•Transcript available on Metacast Tesla announced last week that it’s laying off the team responsible for the biggest electric-vehicle charging network in the U.S. The move comes as consumer demand for EVs is dwindling. WSJ’s Jennifer Hiller reports on how the layoffs shocked the industry and how the change will impact efforts to build out a national EV charging network. Further Reading: -Tesla Is Pulling Back From EV Charging, and People Are Freaking Out -As Electric-Vehicle Shoppers Hesitate, Hybrid Sales Surge Further Listeni...
May 07, 2024•18 min•Transcript available on Metacast Walmart is offering higher pay, bonuses and more stock options this year to retain and attract managers. WSJ’s Sarah Nassauer spent a day with one manager, Nichole Hart, to understand why the job is commanding such a high salary these days, and why Hart logs about 20,000 steps a day. Further Reading: - A Day in the Life of a Walmart Manager Who Makes $240,000 a Year - Walmart Takes On Trader Joe’s and Whole Foods With New Premium Brand Further Listening: - What Walmart’s Aisles Say About the Ame...
May 06, 2024•19 min•Transcript available on Metacast The high price of baby eels has triggered an upsurge in illegal fishing and criminal activity in Canada. Earlier this year, the country announced a ban on baby-eel fishing in an attempt to contain the violence and to protect dwindling fish stocks. We speak to WSJ’s Paul Vieira and to a baby-eel fisherman about how a tiny fish has created a turf war in a remote Canadian community. Further Reading: -Guns and Death Threats Spur Canada to Reel in Baby-Eel Fishing Further Listening: -Will Florida’s P...
May 03, 2024•21 min•Transcript available on Metacast 
