The Journal. - The Wall Street Journal & Spotify Studios

Latest Episodes:

Meta Is Struggling to Boot Pedophiles Off Facebook and Instagram Dec 07, 2023

Show notes

Meta has spent months trying to fix child-safety problems on Instagram and Facebook. But as WSJ's Jeff Horwitz explains, the social media giant is still struggling to prevent its own systems from enabling and promoting a vast network of pedophile accounts.

Further Reading:

- Meta Is Struggling to Boot Pedophiles Off Facebook and Instagram

- Instagram’s Algorithm Delivers Toxic Video Mix to Adults Who Follow Children

- Instagram Connects Vast Pedophile Network

Further Listening:

- He Thought Instagram Was Safe. Then His Daughter Got an Account.

- The Facebook Files, Part 1: The Whitelist

- The Facebook Files, Part 2: 'We Make Body Image Issues Worse'

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Why Goldman Sachs and Apple Weren't Happily Ever After Dec 06, 2023

Show notes

Apple has filed for divorce from its partnership with Goldman Sachs.. It also marks a swift about-face for a partnership that, just last year, was extended through 2029. WSJ’s AnnaMaria Andriotis discusses the messy details she’s learned about the breakup.

Further Reading and Watching:

- A Divorce With Apple, Internal Strife: How Goldman’s Main Street Bet Failed

- Apple Pulls Plug on Goldman Credit-Card Partnership

- How Goldman Sachs Fumbled Its Consumer Business

Further Listening:

-The War Inside Goldman Sachs

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Why Some Opioid Victims Are Challenging Purdue’s Settlement Dec 05, 2023

Show notes

The Supreme Court is weighing an $8-billion settlement between opioid victims, Purdue Pharma and the Sackler family. Two claimants explain their views on the deal and WSJ’s Alexander Gladstone reports.

Further Reading:

-The Opioid Victims Who Won’t Sign Off on Purdue’s $6 Billion Settlement

-Supreme Court Weighs Purdue Pharma’s $6 Billion Opioid Settlement

Further Listening:

-How a Drug Maker Plans to Cut Off Money for Opioid Victims

-Purdue’s $4.5 Billion Opioid Settlement Got Thrown Out. Now What?

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She Tried to Get Sober. She Got Scammed Instead. Dec 04, 2023

Show notes

For months, state and federal law-enforcement officials have been investigating a Medicaid scam in which hundreds of fraudulent sober-living homes in the Phoenix area have recruited Native Americans from across the West. Raquel Moody shares her experience in what she believes were fraudulent sober homes, and WSJ's Dan Frosch unpacks how the scam worked.

Further Reading:

- Fraudulent Sober Homes Exploited Native Americans, Say Authorities

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Artificial: Episode 1, The Dream Dec 03, 2023

Show notes

In 2015, a group of Silicon Valley heavy-hitters met for a dinner that would change tech history. They believed that the time had come to build a super-intelligent AI, and they founded a non-profit lab to try to do it. In part 1 of our series, Artificial: The OpenAI Story, we explore the company’s idealistic origins and speak with early employees about the struggle to make their AI dream a reality.

Further Reading:

- Elon Musk Tries to Direct AI—Again

- The Contradictions of Sam Altman, AI Crusader

Further Listening:

- The Company Behind ChatGPT

- The Hidden Workforce That Helped Filter Violence and Abuse Out of ChatGPT

- OpenAI’s Weekend of Absolute Chaos

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Charlie Munger: Curmudgeon, Sage and Investing Legend Dec 01, 2023

Show notes

Billionaire investor Charlie Munger died Tuesday, just weeks short of his 100th birthday. Munger was vice-chairman of Berkshire Hathaway, and he was best known for his close partnership with CEO Warren Buffett. As WSJ’s Jason Zweig explains, Munger often played Buffett’s sidekick, but his investing expertise made him a celebrity in his own right.

Further Reading:

- Charlie Munger’s Life Was About Way More Than Money

- The Secrets to Charlie Munger’s Success

- Charlie Munger, Warren Buffett’s Partner and ‘Abominable No-Man,’ Dies at 99

Journal Swag:

- ‘The Journal’ Merch shop

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The Oil Giant Hosting This Year’s U.N. Climate Summit Nov 30, 2023

Show notes

Dubai, a city known for private jets, giant yachts and other symbols of carbon-heavy living, is an awkward location for a conference on climate change. The man organizing the COP28 summit also runs the country’s national oil company. WSJ’s Ed Ballard digs into the contradictions at the heart of this month’s climate summit and why they may not be that unusual.

Further Reading:

- Welcome to COP28, the U.N. Climate Conference Hosted by an Oil Giant

- What’s at Stake at COP28 in Dubai

Further Listening:

- The Fight Over Climate Change's Price Tag

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Lewd Photos, Booze and Bullying: Inside the FDIC’s Toxic Culture Nov 29, 2023

Show notes

A Journal investigation reveals a years-long culture of sexual harassment and intimidation at the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, a government agency that regulates banks. WSJ's Rebecca Ballhaus on the allegations and how some of the problems went all the way to the top.

Further Reading:

- Strip Clubs, Lewd Photos and a Boozy Hotel: The Toxic Atmosphere at Bank Regulator FDIC

- FDIC Chair, Known for Temper, Ignored Bad Behavior in Workplace

Further Listening:

- Can the Government Contain a Banking Crisis?

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Introducing - Artificial: The OpenAI Story Nov 29, 2023

Show notes

OpenAI was founded in 2015 as an idealistic nonprofit. Its goal was to build artificial general intelligence or AGI — an AI that could do most jobs better than a human could.

In the years that followed, OpenAI’s pursuit of AGI led them to develop the viral chatbot ChatGPT. The company became one of the top AI labs in the world.

But to get there, OpenAI’s leaders would compromise nearly every one of their founding ideals. Over four episodes, we explore how a little-known startup built one of the world’s most viral tech products … and nearly tore itself apart in the process.

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The Family Drama Inside Estée Lauder Nov 28, 2023

Show notes

Shares of Estée Lauder, the beauty giant, have plunged about 50% this year. And the members of the Lauder family are at odds about what to do. WSJ's Emily Glazer reports on the company's business mistakes and its rumblings of succession.

Further Listening:

- The World’s Richest Person Is Planning for Succession

Further Reading:

- The Estée Lauder Family Built a Beauty Empire. A Succession Rift Threatens It

- Estée Lauder Stock Plunges After Another Profit Warning

- Estée Lauder’s Big Bet on China Is Looking Not So Pretty

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