POPULARITY
TikTok is back in the U.S. but its future is still uncertain. WSJ tech reporter Sarah Needleman tells host Julie Chang about the role that TikTok plays in the U.S. economy and what's at stake for creators and businesses. Plus, why WSJ's Heard on the Street columnist Dan Gallagher says Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg can afford to take a page out of Elon Musk's playbook at X. Sign up for the WSJ's free Technology newsletter. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
It's official: the U.S. Supreme Court upheld a law banning the popular social media app TikTok over national security concerns unless its Chinese owners sell it by Sunday (Jan 19). Our guests today help explain what a TikTok ban might actually look like, what its 170 million American users can expect next, and more. First, The Wall Street Journal tech reporter Sarah Needleman shares more about what will happen with the app starting tomorrow, and whether TikTok may still be saved. Then, constitutional law expert Jessica Levinson talks about the Supreme Court justices' decision, and what the options are, legally, for President-elect Trump moving forward. Join us again for our 10-minute daily news roundups every Mon-Fri! Learn more about our guests: https://www.theNewsWorthy.com/shownotes Become an INSIDER and get ad-free episodes here: https://www.theNewsWorthy.com/insider Sign-up for our weekly EMAIL: https://www.theNewsWorthy.com/email Get The NewsWorthy MERCH here: https://www.theNewsWorthy.com/merch Sponsors: Control Body Odor ANYWHERE with @lumedeodorant and get 15% off with promo code NEWSWORTHY at Lumepodcast.com/NEWSWORTHY! #lumepod Take control of your data and keep your private life private. Get 20% off your DeleteMe plan by texting NEWSWORTHY to 64000 To advertise on our podcast, please reach out to libsynads@libsyn.com #tiktok #tiktokban #supremecourt
Social-media company Reddit profits from feeding artificial-intelligence companies' insatiable appetite for conversational text. WSJ reporter Sarah Needleman joins host Belle Lin to talk about why Reddit's posts are so valuable and interesting to AI companies. Plus, why Amazon's new robotic warehouse still relies heavily on humans. Sign up for the WSJ's free Technology newsletter. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Mass layoffs in the videogame industry are making it hard for workers to find new roles, even those with decades of experience. WSJ reporter Sarah Needleman joins host Zoe Thomas to explain what's behind the industry's downsizing and what that's meant for people who thought they found their dream careers. Plus, in-flight Wi-Fi can be so slow, but new technology could soon make it much faster. Sign up for the WSJ's free Technology newsletter. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Online actors linked to the Chinese government are targeting voters in the U.S. and elsewhere with disinformation. Now, new research from Microsoft shows they're using artificial intelligence tools in their campaigns. WSJ reporter Dustin Volz joins host Alex Ossola to discuss the operations and their goals. Plus, online-entertainment company Roblox is adding video advertising to its platform. WSJ reporter Sarah Needleman talks about what those new ads may look like and what they mean for the company's future. Listening on Google Podcasts? Here's our guide for switching to a different podcast player. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
The biggest social-media platforms have tens of millions of teen users in the U.S., according to a Pew Research Center survey in October. But newly signed legislation in Florida prohibits people under the age of 14 from having social-media accounts, regardless of parental consent. It's set to take effect on Jan. 1, 2025. WSJ reporter Sarah Needleman tells host Alex Ossola about how the new law would work and some of the challenges of implementing it. Listening on Google Podcasts? Here's our guide for switching to a different podcast player. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Since its founding in 2005, social-media platform Reddit has built a business as a free online hub where users talk about things that interest them within user-led communities. Now, as the company goes public, its leadership will see if investors are as enthusiastic as its users. WSJ reporters Sarah Needleman and Hannah Miao tell host Alex Ossola about Reddit's background, what makes this IPO unique and what it could mean for the market. Listening on Google Podcasts? Here's our guide for switching to a different podcast player. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Music has long been a part of videogames. Now, a growing number of artists from Lady Gaga to Metallica are making videogames a priority. Artists are signing deals with game companies to debut new songs through interactive events and as background music for games themselves. In some cases, they're releasing new music in videogames before anywhere else and reaching millions of players. WSJ tech reporter Sarah Needleman tells host Cordilia James what's behind the shift and why videogames are becoming a powerful promotional tool for artists. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Videogame company Epic Games has been waging a legal battle against Google and Apple, alleging that their app stores have monopolistic control over mobile game transactions. After a recent victory against Google, Epic and its founder and CEO Tim Sweeney are casting an eye towards the future. WSJ tech reporter Sarah Needleman joins host Alex Ossola to talk about Epic's lawsuit and what these legal challenges mean for the videogame industry. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
The gaming platform Roblox is working to expand its base of older users and is turning to artificial intelligence and traditional gaming consoles to do it. At WSJ's Tech Live, Roblox CEO Dave Baszucki spoke with reporter Sarah Needleman about the company's evolution and challenges. Zoe Thomas hosts. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
P.M. Edition for July 11. A federal judge has ruled that Microsoft can close its $75 billion deal to buy videogame publisher Activision Blizzard, clearing a major hurdle in the U.S. Tech reporter Sarah Needleman has more on what's next. Plus, NATO agrees to pull Ukraine closer, but fails to offer a timeline for membership, disappointing Kyiv. National security reporter Vivian Salama reports from the NATO summit in Lithuania. Annmarie Fertoli hosts. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Global regulators are concerned that if Microsoft acquires games publisher Activision Blizzard it could have an unfair advantage in the videogame industry, partly due to the popularity of Call of Duty. WSJ tech reporter Sarah Needleman joins host Zoe Thomas to explain what makes the Call of Duty franchise so successful. Plus, WSJ Pro reporter Brian Gormley discusses why patches that can deliver vaccines are attracting more investors. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Elon Musk is trying to run his social media company, Twitter, like his rocket company, SpaceX. WSJ aerospace reporter Micah Maidenberg joins host Zoe Thomas to explain the leadership structure and management choices at both operations. Plus, tech reporter Sarah Needleman discusses what the EU approval of Microsoft's plan to buy Activision Blizzard means for the deal. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
A growing number of young people are being hit by online shopping scams that originated on social media. WSJ family and tech columnist Julie Jargon joins host Zoe Thomas to explain what victims have gone through and how to protect yourself. Plus, WSJ gaming reporter Sarah Needleman explains why designing for avatars may be the next style trend. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Microsoft has been expanding where and how its customers engage with its game offerings, looking to acquire video game company Activision Blizzard as part of that plan. Microsoft's gaming chief Phil Spencer spoke with WSJ reporter Sarah Needleman about the deal and more at The Wall Street Journal's Tech Live conference last week. Julie Chang hosts. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Twitter's former head of security has filed a whistleblower complaint with regulators, claiming the social-media company is failing to protect sensitive user data and lying about security problems. WSJ tech reporter Sarah Needleman joins host Zoe Thomas to discuss the accusations and why they come at a problematic time for Twitter. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Hour 3: Missouri Governor Mike Parson joins Mark Reardon to discuss why he called a special session next month and his views on legalizing marijuana in Missouri. Then, Sarah Needleman, a tech reporter for the Wall Street Journal shares on Twitter ex-security head filing a whistleblower complaint. Later, Mark brings you the Audio Cut of the Day.
Rising prices are affecting consumers almost everywhere across the globe. But the response from governments and central banks has varied greatly. So is there a common solution? As inflation in the UK tops 10%, nursery owner Sharon Birch tells us how tough it's been to manage. We're also joined by Walid Koudmani from X-Trade Brokers, who explains the policy challenges facing lawmakers from country to country. Sophie Lund-Yates from Hargreaves Landsdown has the day's market update. We go to Cuba, where the government has announced a drastic move aimed at reinvigorating the island's economy. Also, talking football: it's less than 100 days until the World Cup kicks off in Qatar; and is Elon Musk really joking about buying Manchester United? We're joined by The Athletic's Joey D'Urso, and Sarah Needleman from the Wall Street Journal.
Twitter is now suing Elon Musk seeking to enforce the $44 billion deal he made to buy the company after he said he wanted out. Musk says his decision to drop out has to do with Twitter not providing him enough info to be able to verify how many accounts on the platform are fake and that could be tough to decide as data scientists say isn't easy to determine. Sarah Needleman, tech reporter at the WSJ, joins us for the complex metric this legal battle will be centered on. Next, CA Gov. Gavin Newsom took to Washington DC while President Biden is out of the country on a trip to Israel and the Middle East. It seems that Newsom has been trying to raise his national profile on issues such as abortion, climate change and guns and even pushing back on his own party for not being strong enough on those issues. All that movement has sparked discussion on whether he has presidential ambitions. Hannah Knowles, campaign reporter at The Washington Post, joins us for more. Finally, Americans are cancelling homebuying deals at the highest rates since the start of the pandemic. A new report from Redfin says 15% of deals are being cancelled and even homebuilders are seeing cancellations. Inflation and higher mortgage rates are mostly to blame with some borrowers no longer qualifying for the loans they want. Diana Olick, real estate correspondent at CNBC, joins us for what to know. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Elon Musk says he put his $40 billion acquisition of Twitter on hold over bots on the platform, and he demanded to see the social-media company's data on fake or spam accounts. In recent weeks, Twitter complied, sending over a massive data dump. Now the billionaire and his team need to sort through it. WSJ tech reporter Sarah Needleman joins host Julie Chang to explain why that won't be easy. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Police and other investigators walked the silent streets of ruined towns around Ukraine's capital, documenting widespread killings of unarmed civilians and other alleged war crimes by Russian forces that could draw tough new Western sanctions as soon as Wednesday. Clayton Neville has that in our correspondent close-up. A wounded man arrested in connection with a Sacramento shooting that killed six people and injured a dozen more had been released from prison weeks earlier and was rejected for even earlier release after prosecutors argued he “clearly has little regard for human life,” documents show. Jim Roope reports on that for us. Tiger Woods says, for now anyway, he's planning to play this week in the Masters, a little more than a year after nearly losing a leg in a car crash. John Stolnis reports on this remarkable comeback. Illinois could become the first state to restore voting rights to people while they serve a felony sentence. Eric Ferkenhoff of USA Today joins us to discuss. And Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla, is now a member of the board of directors for Twitter. What does it mean for the future of the social media platform? We talk with Sarah Needleman of the Wall Street Journal. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Wall Street Journal reporter Kirsten Grind helped expose Activision Blizzard’s troubled corporate culture in a bombshell article in November, co-written with her colleagues Ben Fritz and Sarah Needleman. The article revealed that Activision CEO Bobby Kotick knew about the company’s sexual misconduct problems, including an alleged rape, and, in some cases, did not report the incidents to Activision’s board of directors. Then in January Microsoft moved to pay $75 billion in cash to buy the video games company — a 45% premium over Activision depressed share price. The acquisition could help Activision respond to a slew of investigations and legal challenges over its corporate culture. The deal gives Kotick a graceful exit from the gaming giant that he helped build. Tom Dotan, Katie Benner, and I talked to Grind about her investigation into Activision for this week’s Dead Cat podcast. Then we weigh the merits of Microsoft’s bid. Spoiler: We think it’s a steal for Microsoft. Give it a listen. Get full access to Newcomer at www.newcomer.co/subscribe
Wall Street Journal reporter Kirsten Grind helped expose Activision Blizzard's troubled corporate culture in a bombshell article in November, co-written with her colleagues Ben Fritz and Sarah Needleman. The article revealed that Activision CEO Bobby Kotick knew about the company's sexual misconduct problems, including an alleged rape, and, in some cases, did not report the incidents to Activision's board of directors. Then in January Microsoft moved to pay $75 billion in cash to buy the video games company — a 45% premium over Activision depressed share price. The acquisition could help Activision respond to a slew of investigations and legal challenges over its corporate culture. The deal gives Kotick a graceful exit from the gaming giant that he helped build. Tom Dotan, Katie Benner, and I talked to Grind about her investigation into Activision for this week's Dead Cat podcast. Then we weigh the merits of Microsoft's bid. Spoiler: We think it's a steal for Microsoft. Give it a listen. Get full access to Newcomer at www.newcomer.co/subscribe
Microsoft said it plans to acquire Activision Blizzard, the publisher of games such as World of Warcraft and Candy Crush. Since last year, Activision has been rocked by accusations that its workplace culture led to gender discrimination and sexual harassment. WSJ tech reporter Sarah Needleman joins host Zoe Thomas to discuss why Microsoft is interested in Activision and what the deal could mean for consolidation and cultural issues in the gaming industry. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
FTW with Imad Khan: An Esports And Competitive Gaming Podcast
On Nov. 16, Kirsten Grind, Ben Fritz and Sarah Needleman of The Wall Street Journal put out a bombshell report regarding Bobby Kotick, CEO of Activision Blizzard. Earlier this year, California's Department of Fair Housing and Employment sued Activision Blizzard over multiple allegations of employee harassment and abuse. The company has been since been combative, fighting back at the allegations and appealing to the public that it is a safe place to work that's inclusive of all types of people. Kotick himself made a similar statement, and reportedly downplayed the severity of the multiple situations to the board of directors, and wasn't aware of others. The report said that Kotick was aware of a rape that occurred between a female employee and her male supervisor in 2016 and 2017 at Sledgehammer Games. Kotick reportedly did not inform the board regarding the assault. This week, Imad is joined by Shannon Liao of The Washington Post for more insight into the latest chapter in an already exhausting saga.
Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg says his company will now be called Meta, in line with its goal to focus more on the metaverse. But the shift comes amid scrutiny from lawmakers and regulators, and it carries considerable risks. WSJ tech reporter Sarah Needleman joins host Zoe Thomas to discuss the changes and what's at stake for the company. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
On Wednesday, hundreds of employees of video game company Activision Blizzard walked out. The protest followed a lawsuit from California regulators accusing the maker of World of Warcraft and Call of Duty of unfair pay and lack of advancement for women and a “frat boy drinking culture” at the company. Management eventually apologized for its initial, dismissive response to the lawsuit and promised to investigate. Sarah Needleman covers video games and technology for The Wall Street Journal. She said men have dominated the video game industry for years, despite a roughly 50-50 split among players.
On Wednesday, hundreds of employees of video game company Activision Blizzard walked out. The protest followed a lawsuit from California regulators accusing the maker of World of Warcraft and Call of Duty of unfair pay and lack of advancement for women and a “frat boy drinking culture” at the company. Management eventually apologized for its initial, dismissive response to the lawsuit and promised to investigate. Sarah Needleman covers video games and technology for The Wall Street Journal. She said men have dominated the video game industry for years, despite a roughly 50-50 split among players.
On Wednesday, hundreds of employees of video game company Activision Blizzard walked out. The protest followed a lawsuit from California regulators accusing the maker of World of Warcraft and Call of Duty of unfair pay and lack of advancement for women and a “frat boy drinking culture” at the company. Management eventually apologized for its initial, dismissive response to the lawsuit and promised to investigate. Sarah Needleman covers video games and technology for The Wall Street Journal. She said men have dominated the video game industry for years, despite a roughly 50-50 split among players.
On Wednesday, hundreds of employees of video game company Activision Blizzard walked out. The protest followed a lawsuit from California regulators accusing the maker of World of Warcraft and Call of Duty of unfair pay and lack of advancement for women and a “frat boy drinking culture” at the company. Management eventually apologized for its initial, dismissive response to the lawsuit and promised to investigate. Sarah Needleman covers video games and technology for The Wall Street Journal. She said men have dominated the video game industry for years, despite a roughly 50-50 split among players.
Several big tech companies blocked access to the social-media app Parler in the aftermath of the Jan. 6 Capitol riot, saying it hadn't done enough to address threats of violence. Now Parler has returned to Apple's App Store. Tech reporter Sarah Needleman joins host Amanda Lewellyn to discuss what the platform looks like now, and how its new CEO could shape the company's way forward. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Gamestop has posted its 9th consecutive quarter sales loss. However its e-commerce sales jumped 175% in the last quarter. Wall Street Journal’s technology reporter Sarah Needleman talks us through the rise of Gamestop and why the company has not lived up to expectations. Sixteen black families living in a suburb of Chicago are to be given twenty-five thousand dollars each, in the first reparation for housing discrimination ever carried out in the United States. The families live in Evanston – an area that has pledged to distribute ten million dollars over a decade. Robin Rue Simmons, the Alderman of Evanston’s Fifth Ward led the campaign. She discusses how this is just the beginning of a broader reparations movement for African Americans as restitution for centuries of slavery and discrimination. Also in the programme, the BBC's Justin Rowlatt explores whether China is on the verge of taking a tougher stance against coal, both at home and abroad. Plus from Delhi, the BBC's Arunoday Mukharji reports on the rise of the electric motorbike. Joining us to discuss these stories and more is Jyoti Malhotra, Editor of National & Strategic Affairs website, The Print in Delhi and Marketplace reporter Andy Uhler in Austin, Texas. (Picture: Gamestop store in Jackson Heights, New York. Picture credit: Reuters.)
Fueled by Reddit and other online forums, retail investors drove shares of GameStop to new heights earlier this year. Even now, at nearly $200, the price of a share of GameStop is more than 10 times what it was at the start of the year, though that is down considerably from its peak of $483 in late January. Now the company is set to release its first earnings report since the frenzy. Videogames reporter Sarah Needleman joins host Amanda Lewellyn with what to expect. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Meme stock trading has changed the trajectory of GameStop, now pushing its own e-commerce transformation, but the trend may also change the game for legacy brands like Discovery and Disney. Sarah Needleman, reporter at the Wall Street Journal, and Nigel Vaz, CEO of one of the world’s largest advertising firms Publicis Sapient, consider which companies can ride the digital wave. Suitsupply CEO Fokke de Jong is betting that post-pandemic, we may finally turn our backs on our sweatsuit wardrobes. The company’s steamy head-turning ad campaign centered closeness in an optimistic vision of the future. Other post-pandemic hopes include: imminent stimulus checks, air travel, and pills for Covid-19 patients.
Apple is moving ahead with plans to introduce a new privacy feature that would give users more control over who has access to their data. While some are cheering the move, some businesses, including Facebook, are pushing back. Reporters Tim Higgins and Sarah Needleman join host Amanda Lewellyn to explain Facebook's concerns, and how this clash of tech giants could play out. Christopher Zinsli is our supervising producer. Kateri Jochum is the executive producer of WSJ Podcasts. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
DLA Piper's Tom Ara, co-chair of the firm's Entertainment Finance and Transactions Practice, speaks with Mike Sepso, co-founder and CEO of Vindex, and Sarah Needleman, reporter for the Wall Street Journal, about the history and evolution of esports and ways the pandemic has affected the industry.
Fortnite, one the most popular video games in the world, kicked off a fight with Apple and Google over their app store fees. WSJ's Sarah Needleman explains what led the video game's maker to take on Big Tech.
Before she was the Democratic Party's presumptive vice presidential candidate, Senator Kamala Harris built her career in the Bay Area. She has a long history with Silicon Valley. So what does her candidacy mean for tech companies, and how are they reacting? Our reporter Sarah Needleman joins us to explain. Amanda Lewellyn hosts. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
IRacing Executive Producer Steve Myers talks about the platform being used as a full broadcast SIM race in lieu of Nascar races due to the coronavirus forcing the shut down of live sporting events. Drone Racing League CEO Nicholas Horbaczewski discusses the opportunity for his league to introduce new competitors virtually and eventually in live competition. Sarah Needleman from the Wall Street Journal on how the gaming content may shape sports content when everything goes back to the world we knew.
On our 10th episode for 2019, the WitzEnd Podcast had the pleasure of interviewing a fellow word nerd, Sarah Needleman, of the Wall Street Journal! We cover her experience as a videogame reporter, her favorite part of being a journalist and the best way to reach her for breaking news.
Joanna and David didn't want to talk about Facebook, but they had to: Facebook launched a new digital currency, Libra, that could upend the way we pay for things. With the help of WSJ reporter AnnaMaria Andriotis, Joanna and David pick apart what that means for normal people. Next they chat with WSJ reporter Sarah Needleman, who recently wrote a profile of Tim Sweeney, chief executive at Epic Games, the company that created "Fortnite" and changed gaming forever. In this week's Today I Learned, David explains the strange world of waterproofing standards. Last, David interviews Kyle Wiens, the CEO of iFixit, about the so-called "Right to Repair" movement, and why there's a war over who gets to fix your gadgets.
We are about a month away before the race for the Democratic nomination really starts to heat up. The first debates are happening at the end of June and it is going to be a packed stage. We will tell you who has qualified so far and also how the candidates are handling Fox News, some are refusing to go on the network and others are doing town halls. Ginger Gibson, political reporter for Reuters, joins us for a 2020 update including how Dems plan on paying for all their proposals. Next, similar to a “Do Not Call” registry, momentum is growing for a “Do Not Track” registry. A bill was just introduced by Sen. Josh Hawley which would legally require companies to stop collecting data on users who opt out of certain kinds of “non-essential “tracking. Emily Birnbaum, tech policy reporter at The Hill, joins us for the effort to limit the collection of your data. Finally, as more households are installing smart doorbells, some are using them as nature cameras, checking the video all day long and obsessing over the wildlife at their doors. Some are even checking these doorbell streams about 30 times in a day saying it's better that TV or social media. Sarah Needleman, tech reporter at the WSJ, joins us for the new nature cams. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com
In today's podcast, we hear that British police think ISIS not-so-lone wolves may have been howling over WhatsApp. WikiLeaks still disgruntled over its disclosure offer's cool reception. March-Madness is also phishing season. How and why online gamers cheat. GiftGhostBot drains gift-card balances. States mull next steps after the America's JobLink breach. CrowdStrike walks back some claims in its Ukrainian artillery hacking report, but insists the hack was real, and that signs point to Fancy Bear. Lancaster University's Awais Rashid warns of the use of open source intel in social engineering. Wall Street Journal tech reporter Sarah Needleman explains the esports cheating arms race. April 7 marks two deadlines for cyber actions; observers hope for two fizzles.
Sarah Needleman, a reporter for CareerJournal.com talks about life as a reporter, her own career path and offers her advice for aspiring journalists.