Big Take

Microdramas — mini soap operas designed to be watched on your phone — have become one of the fastest-growing forms of entertainment in the world.

On today’s Big Take Asia podcast, host K. Oanh Ha speaks with Bloomberg’s Yang Yang and Bloomberg Businessweek’s Christopher Beam about how millions got hooked on the medium, the challenges studios face as they try to reach new audiences and how AI could transform it all.

Read more: China Has the World Hooked on Two-Minute Microdramas
China Brought 90-Second Microdramas to the US. Now Hollywood Wants In

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Hosted by K. Oanh Ha; Produced by Naomi Ng and Victor Swezey; Reported by Yang Yang and Christopher Beam; Edited by Paddy Hirsch and Crispina Robert.

Fact-checking by Victor Swezey; Engineering by Alex Sugiura and Sean Carter.

Senior Producer: Naomi Shavin. Deputy Executive Producer: Julia Weaver. Executive Producer: Nicole Beemsterboer.

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After amassing US land for more than a century, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has recently started turning unused tracts into big suburban housing developments.

On today’s Big Take podcast, commercial real estate reporter Natalie Wong and data journalist Ann Choi tell host Sarah Holder about the development plans of the church’s real estate arm, Property Reserve. They also introduce their exclusive tally of the church’s holdings — at least 2.4 million acres across the US, according to a Bloomberg News review of property records compiled by real estate data provider Reonomy.

Read more: The Mormon Church Is Quietly Expanding Its Real Estate Empire Across the US

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Hosted by Sarah Holder; Produced by Julia Press; Reported by Natalie Wong and Ann Choi; Edited by Jeffrey Grocott.

Fact-checking by Laura Newcombe; Engineering by Emma Munger.

Senior Producer: Naomi Shavin; Deputy Executive Producer: Julia Weaver. Executive Producer: Nicole Beemsterboer.

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On today’s Big Take podcast, Bloomberg’s Amanda Gordon and Emily Birnbaum join host Sarah Holder to discuss how political spending is shaping the US midterm elections, who is funding candidates behind the scenes and what’s at stake for both Republicans and Democrats.

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Hosted by Sarah Holder; Produced by Rachael Lewis-Krisky; Guests: Amanda Gordon and Emily Birnbaum; Edited by Nicole Beemsterboer. Fact-checking by Big Take team; Engineering by Sean Carter. Senior Producer: Naomi Shavin; Deputy Executive Producer: Julia Weaver. Executive Producer: Nicole Beemsterboer.

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Backers of the venture are big fans of a town in Idaho where a preacher with a flamethrower tells our reporters how much he hates feminism.

Today on The Big Take: Chapter 3 of Our Town, a limited-run series from Bloomberg and The Big Take, hosted by Meribah Knight with Bloomberg’s Susan Berfield.

Our Town tells the story of a battle over identity fought on one small town’s soil, where acreage, heritage, and what it means to be an American are all up for grabs.

New episodes of Our Town publish on Mondays, but you can listen early on Fridays right here in The Big Take feed. We have a special Bloomberg subscription offer for podcast listeners at Bloomberg.com/podcastoffer. 

Hosted by Meribah Knight with Susan Berfield Produced by: Rebecca Laks with Julia Weaver and David Fox and help from Laura Newcombe Edited by: Ken Armstrong with Rebecca Laks Original Score and Mixing by: Alex Sugiura Fact-checking by: Annika Robbins Executive Producer: Nicole Beemsterboer 

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On today’s Big Take podcast, economy reporter Shawn Donnan walks David Gura through what eight years of tariffs have meant for steel mills, can manufacturers, food growers and consumers. And as the second Trump administration continues to pursue tariffs – see this week’s 11th-hour negotiations with Canada over the US’s latest proposed duties – Donnan looks at how manufacturers have tried to adapt.

Read more: What the American Tin Can Reveals About Trump’s Volatile Tariff Policy

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Hosted by David Gura; Produced by Rachael Lewis-Krisky; Reported by Shawn Donnan; Edited by Jeffrey Grocott. Fact-checking by Brunella Tipismana Urbano; Engineering by Emma Munger. Senior Producer: Naomi Shavin; Deputy Executive Producer: Julia Weaver. Executive Producer: Nicole Beemsterboer.

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On today’s Big Take podcast, Stacey Vanek Smith and Bloomberg Opinion’s John Authers unpack the bond market rollercoaster: a sell-off, the highest US 30-year bond yields since the financial crisis — and a sudden intervention.

Read more: The 30-Year Itch Comes for Bonds — and Brazi

Further listening: What Higher Bond Yields Mean for Markets and Everyday Borrowers (Big Take Podcast)

We have a special Bloomberg subscription offer for podcast listeners at Bloomberg.com/podcastoffer.

Hosted by Stacey Vanek Smith; Produced by Rachael Lewis-Krisky and Victor Swezey; Guest: John Authers; Fact-checking by the Big Take team; Engineering by Zoltan Sindhu and Alex Sugiura. Senior Producer and editor: Naomi Shavin; Deputy Executive Producer: Julia Weaver. Executive Producer: Nicole Beemsterboer.

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North Korea was supposed to be broke and isolated. Now, it’s enjoying an unexpected economic boom.

On today’s Big Take Asia podcast, Bloomberg’s Cat Barton and host K. Oanh Ha unpack North Korea’s shift from pandemic-era hardship to a multibillion-dollar windfall, and discuss how the country’s newfound wealth is reshaping geopolitical alliances.

Read more: Kim Jong Un Flouted Sanctions to Amass $22 Billion Windfall

Further listening: North Korea’s Nuclear Program Reaches Tipping Point for the US

Watch, from Originals: Why Sanctions Aren’t Stopping North Korea

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New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani is backing a bill that would challenge the subcontractor model Amazon relies on for last-mile deliveries, and the company is spending millions to fight it.

On today’s Big Take podcast, reporters Spencer Soper and Josh Eidelson unpack what this bill could mean for the delivery drivers — and corporate America’s reliance on subcontractors more broadly.

Read more:

• Amazon Is in the Crosshairs of Mamdani’s Worker Agenda
• What Trump Delivered for Amazon

We have a special Bloomberg subscription offer for podcast listeners at Bloomberg.com/podcastoffer.

Hosted by Sarah Holder; Produced by Rachael Lewis-Krisky and Julia Press; Reported by Josh Eidelson and Spencer Soper; Edited by Naomi Shavin and Julia Weaver. Fact-checking by Victor Swezey and Brunella Tipismana Urbano; Engineering by Sean Carter. Senior Producer: Naomi Shavin; Deputy Executive Producer: Julia Weaver. Executive Producer: Nicole Beemsterboer.

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Diana looks into the town’s newest arrivals: What’s their deal — and who are their friends?

Today on The Big Take: Chapter 2 of Our Town, a limited-run series from Bloomberg and The Big Take, hosted by Meribah Knight with Bloomberg’s Susan Berfield.

Our Town tells the story of a battle over identity fought on one small town’s soil, where acreage, heritage, and what it means to be an American are all up for grabs.

New episodes of Our Town publish on Mondays, but you can listen early on Fridays right here in The Big Take feed. We have a special Bloomberg subscription offer for podcast listeners at Bloomberg.com/podcastoffer. 

Hosted by Meribah Knight with Susan Berfield Produced by: Rebecca Laks with Julia Weaver and David Fox and help from Laura Newcombe Edited by: Ken Armstrong with Rebecca Laks Original Score and Mixing by: Alex Sugiura Fact-checking by: Annika Robbins Executive Producer: Nicole Beemsterboer

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The 7.4-magnitude earthquake that devastated Colombia this week was also an immediate test for the country’s new Trump-aligned president. Abelardo de la Espriella, who campaigned on slashing Colombia's deficit and cracking down on armed rebel groups, now faces the prospect of  stalling coffee shipments and a costly relief effort, in his first week in office.

On today’s Big Take podcast, host David Gura talks to Bloomberg’s Oscar Medina in Bogotá, Colombia, and Travis Waldron in Brasília, Brazil, about what this moment could mean for a divided Colombia — and for Latin America’s tilt to the right.

Read more: 

• ‘Waiting for Any Sign of Life’: Colombia Reels After Quake
• Colombia Quake Toll Tops 260, Prompting Economic Emergency
• Colombia Earthquake Pressures President Right From the Get-Go

We have a special Bloomberg subscription offer for podcast listeners at Bloomberg.com/podcastoffer.

Hosted by David Gura; Produced by Rachael Lewis-Krisky and Victor Swezey; Reported by Travis Waldron and Oscar Medina; Edited by Jeffrey Grocott. Fact-checking by Laura Newcombe and Brunella Tipismana Urbano; Engineering by Emma Munger. Senior Producer: Naomi Shavin; Deputy Executive Producer: Julia Weaver. Executive Producer: Nicole Beemsterboer.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.