Xi’s Big Challenge Is Getting People to Spend, Spend, Spend
A crippling property crisis, mounting debt, weak consumer spending… and now a trade war. Despite the headwinds, China has set an ambitious economic growth goal of about 5% this year. On today’s Big Take Asia podcast, host K. Oanh Ha speaks to Bloomberg’s John Liu about how Xi Jinping intends to meet the target, and how Trump’s tariff war might sabotage his plans. Read more: Trump’s Tariffs Push Xi to Overhaul China’s Ailing Growth Model Further listening: China’s New Game Plan For Dealing With Trump TariffsXi Has Embraced China’s Tech Titans Once Again. Will It Last? Watch, from Originals: Can China Avoid Japan’s Lost Decades?See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
7 Maalis 13min
A Warming Planet vs. Trump
Since taking office in January, President Trump has set in motion a series of sweeping rollbacks on US climate policy. This comes at a time when governments around the world have lagged behind their stated environmental goals. On today’s episode of the Big Take, host Sarah Holder is joined by Akshat Rathi, host of the Zero podcast, to talk through the Trump administration’s key climate actions, how they could impact investment in green energy, and what it all means for the global fight to stop the warming of the planet. Read more: Trump's Climate Pullback Endangers Crucial Funds for Poor NationsFurther listening: Global Leaders Wrestle With Costs of Climate Change in the Wake of the US ElectionSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
6 Maalis 16min
What Trump’s Address Reveals About the Path Ahead
On Tuesday night, President Donald Trump appeared before a joint session of Congress for the first time since the start of his second term. It was his fifth such appearance, and he celebrated what he saw as early wins in his first 43 days back in office — and spoke about what’s next on his agenda. Bloomberg Businessweek national correspondent Josh Green and Big Take DC host Saleha Mohsin explore what the speech reveals about Trump’s vision for trade, the US economy and America’s role in geopolitics.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
5 Maalis 15min
Why Harvard Law Is Losing Black Students
The data is in: The number of Black first-year students at Harvard Law fell dramatically after the Supreme Court’s decision to ban the consideration of race in admissions. On today’s Big Take podcast, Bloomberg higher education reporter Janet Lorin shares what she’s learned about how Harvard has changed its application process and what the institution has historically meant for generations of Black leaders. Plus, we hear from a Harvard Law student who’s involved in efforts to recruit more Black students. Read more: Harvard Law’s Fast Track to the American Elite Is Losing Black StudentsSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
4 Maalis 13min
How Facebook, Tinder and Airbnb Are Being Used for Sex Trafficking in Colombia
In January 2024, the US Embassy issued a warning to all American travelers: Be careful using dating apps in Colombia. Eight men had been killed in two months — several of them after traveling to Medellin and using apps to connect with women online. Bloomberg’s Natalie Lung and Antonia Mufarech investigated and found an even darker situation. On today’s Big Take podcast, they join host Sarah Holder to explain how apps from US-based tech companies are being used for sex trafficking and child exploitation in Colombia — and why it’s so hard for the companies to keep criminals off their platforms.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
3 Maalis 17min
What’s Behind All of the US Air Travel Accidents?
Over the last few months, a spate of high-profile air travel incidents in North America have captured public attention. And it’s raised concerns about whether air travel is as safe as it used to be. On today’s Big Take podcast, Bloomberg’s global aviation editor Benedikt Kammel joins host David Gura to discuss how recent accidents — especially the fatal collision between American Airlines Flight 5342 and a military helicopter and, weeks later, the crash landing of Delta Flight 4819 — have undermined public trust in flying. And they examine what’s going on inside the FAA in the midst of mass government lay-offs. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
28 Helmi 15min
When a Small Town Gets a Big Data Center
The Hopeful Primitive Baptist Church in Fayetteville, Georgia, has been standing for two hundred years. Now, with a huge, private equity-backed data center coming to town, it will soon be surrounded by towering power poles — and power lines will run through the yards of more than a hundred homes and private properties. Today on the show, energy reporter Josh Saul reports on the AI boom, the demand it’s creating for data centers, and what it looks like on the ground in the communities where those are being built. Plus, the pastor from Hopeful Primitive Baptist talks about the community’s response. Read more: Blackstone’s Data-Center Ambitions School a City on AI Power StrainsSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
27 Helmi 16min
Xi Has Embraced China’s Tech Titans Once Again. Will It Last?
Four years after launching a regulatory crackdown that plunged the tech sector into turmoil, China’s President Xi Jinping sat down publicly with Alibaba Group’s co-founder Jack Ma, whose firm bore the brunt of that campaign, and a number of other tech titans. On today's Big Take Asia Podcast, host K. Oanh Ha talks to Bloomberg’s Lucille Liu and Opinion columnist Catherine Thorbecke about Xi’s shifting stance and where the tech industry goes from here. Read more: Xi’s Embrace of China Tech CEOs Spurs Hope of Big Economic Shift - Bloomberg Further listening: China’s New Game Plan For Dealing with Trump Tariffs See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
26 Helmi 15min
