Big Take

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Latest Episodes:

A Pause Holds In the Israel-Hamas War Nov 29, 2023

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Bloomberg’s Israel Bureau Chief Ethan Bronner and contributor Fadwa Hodali join host Rosalind Matheison for the latest on the truce between Israel and Hamas as negotiations continue over the release of hostages in Gaza and Palestinian prisoners in Israel.

Listen to The Big Take podcast every weekday and subscribe to our daily newsletter: https://bloom.bg/3F3EJAK

Have questions or comments for Wes and the team? Reach us at bigtake@bloomberg.net.

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What Comes Next in China's Property Crisis Nov 28, 2023

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China's real estate market was once valued at more than $50 trillion. It made up a full quarter of the country's entire economy and made millions of people really rich. Now, it's in tatters, and upending hundreds of thousands of lives.
In this episode, Bloomberg's Lulu Chen and Janet Paskin zoom in on the story of Huailan - a 35-year-old mother of two in North East China - and how her life took a sharp turn when Country Garden, China's biggest developer, defaulted.
Read more:
China Drafts List of 50 Property Firms Eligible for Funding
China’s Property Crisis Is Upending Tens of Thousands of Lives
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The Economy Is Up But The Middle Class Is Down Nov 27, 2023

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Bloomberg reporters Shawn Donnan and Claire Ballentine join this episode to discuss the results of a new Harris Poll for Bloomberg News, which found that the US Federal Reserve’s rapid increase in interest rates—aimed at fighting inflation—have more middle-class Americans worried about the economy than a year ago, even amid near-record employment.

Listen to The Big Take podcast every weekday and subscribe to our daily newsletter: https://bloom.bg/3F3EJAK

Have questions or comments for Wes and the team? Reach us at bigtake@bloomberg.net.

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Team Favorite: Massive Wind Turbines Are Rising From The Atlantic Ocean Nov 24, 2023

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We’re taking a break today for the Thanksgiving holiday. Here’s a favorite episode from August that you might have missed. We’ll be back on Monday with a new episode. Have a great weekend. And thanks for listening!

America’s first major offshore wind farm in the Atlantic Ocean is now under construction 15 miles south of Nantucket, off the coast of Massachusetts. Once complete, the 800-megawatt project is expected to generate enough electricity to power 400,000 homes. But with inflation and rising interest rates stifling progress on some other wind projects, will the Biden administration reach its 2030 goal of generating 30 gigawatts of power from offshore turbines?

Bloomberg’s Will Wade went out to see the Massachusetts project, and he joins this episode to explain the promise–and the problems–of erecting wind power on such a large scale. And Nick Schulz, a commercial diver working on the project, describes what it's like to build a massive turbine installation in deep water.

Listen to The Big Take podcast every weekday and subscribe to our daily newsletter: https://bloom.bg/3F3EJAK

Have questions or comments for Wes and the team? Reach us at bigtake@bloomberg.net.

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Team Favorite: The K-Pop Mogul Behind BTS Brings His Winning Formula To The US Nov 23, 2023

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We’re taking a break today for the Thanksgiving holiday. Here’s a favorite episode from October that you might have missed. We’ll be back on Monday. Thanks for listening!

Bloomberg’s Lucas Shaw and Sohee Kim join this episode to talk about Bang Si-Hyuk, South Korea’s enormously successful music mogul. The billionaire has built a K-pop empire with bands like BTS and New Jeans, and he’s now looking to expand on that model with a new, global act based in the US.

Listen to The Big Take podcast every weekday and subscribe to our daily newsletter: https://bloom.bg/3F3EJAK

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Team Favorite: There’s A Lot You Don’t Know About The US Space Force Nov 22, 2023

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We're taking a break this week for the Thanksgiving holiday, so here's an episode you might have missed. We'll be back on Monday with a new episode.

The US Space Force, established in 2019, is the first new branch of the military to be created since 1947, and its mission is vast: defend US interests in space. But what exactly is the Space Force? And what does defending US interests in space mean or look like practically?

As the nearly $900 billion defense spending bill winds its way through Congress, Wes went to the Pentagon to sit down with General David Thompson, the Vice Chief of Space Operations to learn what US interests in space are, and how the branch is developing.
Bloomberg cybersecurity reporter Katrina Manson joins later to describe her visit to Space Command in Colorado and the importance of the US keeping a watch on its adversaries in zero gravity.

Listen to The Big Take podcast every weekday and subscribe to our daily newsletter: https://bloom.bg/3F3EJAK

Have questions or comments for Wes and the team? Reach us at bigtake@bloomberg.net.

This episode originally aired on 7/26/23.

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Team Favorite: NYC Tries Supervised Release Instead Of Jail. Other Cities Are Watching Nov 21, 2023

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We're taking a break this week for the Thanksgiving holiday, so here's an episode you might have missed. We'll be back on Monday with a new episode.

Hundreds of thousands of people charged with crimes in the US each year are incarcerated while they await trial. Often it’s because they can’t afford to pay bail. New York City’s pretrial supervised release program aims to change that. A judge can opt to release some defendants under the supervision of a caseworker, who monitors their progress as they await their day in court. Bloomberg’s Fola Akinnibi and Sarah Holder join this episode to talk about how the program works, the fraught politics around it–and why it may become a blueprint for other cities and states.

Listen to The Big Take podcast every weekday and subscribe to our daily newsletter: https://bloom.bg/3F3EJAK

Have questions or comments for Wes and the team? Reach us at bigtake@bloomberg.net.

This episode originally aired 9/25/23.

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Team Favorite: Despite Recession Fears, Small Businesses Keep Opening. Can They Survive? Nov 20, 2023

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We're taking a break this week for the Thanksgiving holiday, so here's an episode you might have missed. We'll be back on Monday with a new episode.

Even with a looming recession, high interest rates and a tight labor market, small businesses have been opening at record rates over the last few years, surpassing pre-pandemic levels. They’ve also been the primary driver of job creation in the US. Bloomberg reporter Enda Curran dug into why small businesses are having a moment—and the challenges owners are facing in this uncertain economy. Plus, meet the owners of a bakery and a microbrewery who discuss how they’ve been keeping their businesses afloat.

Listen to The Big Take podcast every weekday and subscribe to our daily newsletter: https://bloom.bg/3F3EJAK

Have questions or comments for Wes and the team? Reach us at bigtake@bloomberg.net.

This episode originally aired on 10/2/23.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Big Take News Wrap: Shutdown Averted. Trump Legal Battles. 2024 Race Nov 17, 2023

Show notes

Catch up on some of the week’s biggest US stories. Bloomberg’s Mario Parker, Megan Scully and Zoe Tillman join this episode to talk about the Congressional stopgap bill that has temporarily averted a government shutdown; the latest on Donald Trump’s legal battles; and the narrowing Republican presidential field.

Listen to The Big Take podcast every weekday and subscribe to our daily newsletter: https://bloom.bg/3F3EJAK

Have questions or comments for the team? Reach us at bigtake@bloomberg.net.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

How Two-Party Politics Drives Out Moderates Nov 16, 2023

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Congress averted a government shutdown with days to spare. The way lawmakers did it — by leaving out deep spending cuts and relying on a bipartisan coalition to pass the bill — has already put House Speaker Mike Johnson on thin ice with some hardliners in his party. 

That disdain for compromise among members of the right flank of the GOP is one of the factors that cost the previous speaker his job.

None of the infighting came as a surprise to former Representative Denver Riggleman, who served one term in Congress as a Republican for Virginia’s fifth congressional district before losing a primary challenge from a more conservative candidate.  

Like many in his party, Riggleman supported small government, the Second Amendment, and border security — but he also supported legalizing marijuana and providing some exceptions for abortion. 

“I was told I was a new type of Republican,” Riggleman said on the Big Take podcast. 

On this episode, Riggleman shares the story of his brief and explosive tenure in congress.

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