The Journal. - The Wall Street Journal & Spotify Studios

Latest Episodes:

Can Reddit’s IPO Survive Its Own Users? Mar 20, 2024

Show notes

The social-media platform Reddit is making its stock-market debut Thursday and is offering a chunk of shares in its initial public offering to users, who are the lifeblood of its operations. But those same passionate users could cause trouble for the company. WSJ's Corrie Driebusch explains, and a moderator for the popular Reddit forum WallStreetBets weighs in.

Further Reading:

- Reddit Fueled Meme-Stock Mania. Now Its CEO Is Overseeing His Own Company’s IPO.

- They’re Reddit Die-Hards. Do They Want to Be Shareholders, Too?

- Reddit Eyes Valuation of Up to $6.5 Billion in IPO

Further Listening:

- ‘To the Moon’

- An Oral History of WallStreetBets

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Why Women Are Leaving Goldman Sachs Mar 19, 2024

Show notes

When David Solomon became CEO of Goldman Sachs just over five years ago, he made promoting women to senior levels of the firm a priority. But female executives are heading for the door—among them, Stephanie Cohen, one of the most senior executives at the company, who announced her departure Monday. WSJ’s AnnaMaria Andriotis unpacks what’s happening at the Wall Street giant.

Further Reading:

-Women Aren’t Getting the Big Jobs at Goldman Sachs, and They’re Heading for the Exits

-Stephanie Cohen Is Latest Senior Goldman Executive to Depart

-Goldman Sachs to Pay $215 Million to Settle Female Employees’ Discrimination Case

Further Listening:

-The War Inside Goldman Sachs

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How Two Binance Employees Ended Up Detained in Nigeria Mar 18, 2024

Show notes

Two Binance employees, Tigran Gambaryan and Nadeem Anjarwalla, are being held by Nigerian authorities in a guarded house. According to their families, they haven’t been charged with any crimes. WSJ’s Caitlin Ostroff explains how the two men ended up there and why crypto is being blamed for a country’s currency collapse.

Further Listening:

- The Fall of (Another) Crypto King

- A Crypto Exchange Crackdown

- The Rise of Binance – And the Effort to Reel It In

Further Reading:

- Crypto Gets Blamed for a Real-Life Currency Crisis

- Binance Employees to Remain in Custody in Nigeria

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How a Psychiatrist Lost $400,000 on Gambling Apps Mar 15, 2024

Show notes

In November 2022, Kavita Fischer downloaded a casino app from DraftKings, one of the top online betting companies in the U.S. Kavita was looking for relief from the stress of a recent divorce and the isolation of working from home during the pandemic. In less than a year, Kavita gambled away hundreds of thousands of dollars. We speak to Kavita and to WSJ’s Katherine Sayre about how online betting companies keep customers coming back by giving them bonus credits and VIP treatment.

Further Reading:

- A Psychiatrist Tried to Quit Gambling. Betting Apps Kept Her Hooked.

Further Listening:

- Disney Gets Into Gambling

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The Cyberattack That’s Roiling Healthcare Mar 14, 2024

Show notes

Hospitals, pharmacies and medical groups have been reeling in the wake of last month’s ransomware attack on a company widely used for insurance billing and payments. WSJ's James Rundle unpacks how the cyberattack on Change Healthcare has left thousands of providers scrambling to pay their bills and some wondering if they can keep their doors open.

Further Reading:

- Change Healthcare Rival Onboards Hundreds of Thousands of Customers During Hack Crisis

- U.S. Health Department Intervenes in Change Healthcare Hack Crisis

- UnitedHealth Aims to Restore Change Healthcare Systems Within Two Weeks

Further Listening:

- The Ruthless Group Behind Ransomware Attacks on Hospitals

- Ransomware, a Pipeline and a Gas Shortage

- Why Crypto is Key to Stopping Ransomware

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House Passes Bill to Ban TikTok Mar 13, 2024

Show notes

Today the House voted overwhelmingly to approve a bill that would ban TikTok from operating in the U.S. or force a sale. For years politicians have threatened a ban, but this latest attempt finally gained traction. WSJ's Georgia Wells on the long push to ban the Chinese-controlled platform and how the company is fighting back.

Further Listening:

-The Billionaire Keeping TikTok on Your Phone

-Exclusive: TikTok’s CEO on the App’s Future in the U.S.

-What's Up With All the TikTok Bans?

Further Reading:

-How TikTok Was Blindsided by U.S. Bill That Could Ban It

-TikTok Crackdown Shifts Into Overdrive, With Sale or Shutdown on Table

-The Billionaire Keeping TikTok on Phones in the U.S.

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Rail Unions Normally Hate CEOs. Now They Are Trying to Save One. Mar 12, 2024

Show notes

About a year after a major train derailment in East Palestine, Ohio, an activist investor is trying to oust Norfolk Southern’s CEO, Alan Shaw. But as WSJ’s Esther Fung explains, the CEO has some unlikely allies in his corner.

Further Reading:

-Railroad Workers Were Ready to Strike. Now They’re Fighting to Save Their CEO.

Further Listening:

-What Caused a Train to Derail in East Palestine, Ohio?

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Chinese-Made Cranes at U.S. Ports: A New Trojan Horse? Mar 11, 2024

Show notes

Nearly 80% of ship-to-shore cranes at U.S. ports are made by ZPMC, a Chinese state-owned company. In recent years, U.S. officials have grown concerned that these giant cranes could be used for spying on the U.S. China says these concerns are “paranoia-driven.” WSJ’s Aruna Viswanatha reports on why cranes have become the latest point of contention in U.S.-China relations.

Further Reading:

- Pentagon Sees Giant Cargo Cranes as Possible Chinese Spying Tools

- Espionage Probe Finds Communications Device on Chinese Cranes at U.S. Ports

Further Listening:

- The Billionaire Keeping TikTok on Your Phone

- How a Balloon Burst U.S.-China Relations

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Why an Ivy League Basketball Team Voted to Unionize Mar 08, 2024

Show notes

This week the Dartmouth men’s basketball team voted to unionize, setting up a fight with the school over whether its athletes are students or employees. WSJ’s Laine Higgins talks about how this move upends decades of NCAA precedent and could change college sports forever.

Further Listening:

- A League of Champions Implodes

- A Tipping Point for Paying College Athletes?

Further Reading:

- Dartmouth Basketball Players Vote to Unionize in New Challenge to NCAA’s Amateurism Model

- Dartmouth Men’s Basketball Team Makes Latest Bid for Unionization by College Athletes

- College Sports Powers Stall Bid to Share Revenue With Athletes in California

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How Sam Altman’s Bromance With Elon Musk Turned Toxic Mar 07, 2024

Show notes

Sam Altman once called Elon Musk, one of his OpenAI co-founders, his hero. Now Musk is suing Altman, accusing him of abandoning OpenAI’s founding mission in pursuit of profit, which OpenAI denies. WSJ’s Berber Jin reports on the highs and lows of a Silicon Valley’s bromance.

Further Reading:

- How the Bromance Between Elon Musk and Sam Altman Turned Toxic

- Elon Musk Sues OpenAI, Sam Altman, Saying They Abandoned Founding Mission

Further Listening:

- Artificial: The OpenAI Story

- Money, Drugs, Elon Musk and Tesla’s Board

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