The Daily Dive

It’s the FBI’s biggest investigation ever.  Looking into who was in Washington on Jan.6 and who stormed the Capitol.  It has also included the biggest ever request of phone data from geofence warrants.  Google has provided data from over 5,000 devices as the FBI has tried to narrow their search to pinpoint suspects.  Google also has a three-step process for these types of warrants to help protect as much privacy as possible and only provide info on those most likely to have commit a crime.  We are only learning more about this now as lawyers for one suspect are looking to throw out the geofence evidence in court.  Mark Harris, contributor to Wired, joins us for what to know.

Next, if you weathered the pandemic storm and stuck with your employer over the last couple of years, then you very well could be underpaid.  The tight labor market has led to a lot of movement and forced employers to try and lure new candidates with bigger paychecks and more work benefits.  That has led to a divide with current employees as salaries for new hires are on average 7% higher than existing workers.  Aki Ito, senior correspondent at Business Insider, joins us for more.

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This is a compilation of some of the most compelling stories of the week.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This is a compilation of some of the most compelling stories of the week.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The word of the year for 2022 is gaslighting.  Merriam-Webster chooses the word of the year based only on data from lookups and in 2022, lookups for gaslighting increased 1,740%.  Most interestingly, there was not a particular news event that drove the lookups, it was a word that had interest every single day of the year.  Peter Sokolowski, editor at large for Merriam-Webster joins us for a definition of this year’s top word and a look at some more including oligarch, codify, sentient, and loamy.

Next, Elon Musk has been under a lot of scrutiny since he took over Twitter, but another one of his companies is being looked at for ghosting cities across America.  Musk’s Boring company, which has teased cities with plans to dig out underground tunnels to help relieve what he called “soul-destroying” traffic, has had a lot of big ideas but rarely followed through after being confronted with the realities of building public infrastructure.  The only place where Musk has been able to showcase a finished project has been a 1.6 mile “loop experience” under the Las Vegas Convention Center.  Ted Mann, reporter at the WSJ, joins us for how many cities still want to work with the Boring Co. despite its uneven record.

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As the labor market remains tight, employers have begun to rethink whether a college degree is needed to work for them.  Google, Delta Air Lines, and IBM have all relaxed requirements so they can open up the pool of possible candidates.  The shift helps employers focus more on skills and experience and is a pathway for some to higher-paying jobs.  Austen Hufford, economics reporter at the WSJ, joins us for how a higher education degree is no longer needed in some cases.

Next, in a hopeful sign for the Fed, job openings have fallen to 10.3 million.  While there continues to be a higher demand for workers, it shows that it is starting too cool which helps the Fed in fighting inflation.  The ratio of openings to unemployed workers has now dropped to 1.7.  Molly Smith, U.S. economy editor at Bloomberg News, joins us for what to know.

Finally, as inflation is making people keep an eye on their pocketbooks, daters out there on the scene are beginning to embrace frugality.  Currently, the average date night costs $98 as we see restaurant prices up 17% and alcoholic beverages away from home up 12%.  Many are also opting for lower cost dates until they decide they want to make a bigger investment in a partner.  Rachel Wolfe, consumer trends reporter at the WSJ. Joins us for why being a cheap date can be a plus.

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NASA’s successful launch of the Artemis 1 mission looks like it will be a boon for private space companies.  More than halfway over, the Orion spacecraft has already reached its max distance from the Earth of 270,000 miles.  At least 22 companies specifically focused on the Moon have raised money to travel there, develop tech to mine for resources and even build habitats there.  Miriam Kramer, space reporter at Axios, joins us for the coming Moon economy.

Next, middle-aged men have a problem with suicide.  Overall, men have a suicide rate between three and four times higher than women.  To fight this mental health problem, researchers are studying new approaches to get them help which include participation in “meaning-centered” groups, “hope kits,” and videos on how men can speak with their doctors about suicidal thoughts.  Andrea Peterson, reporter at the WSJ, joins us for what to know.

Finally, insiders say that President Biden is gearing up to run for office again and this week we have a seen a preview of a possible campaign strategy, one that will try to leverage the power of the White House.  Advisers will want to keep the President out of every item in the news cycle, but keep up diplomatic engagements, quick trips to swing states, and ramp up the fundraising efforts.  Hans Nichols, reporter at Axios, joins us for how Biden will run.

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China’s zero-Covid policies is causing a wave of protests that are getting hard to ignore.  Recent protests all have their own reasons for sparking, but the underlying issue seems to revolve around the policy which has seen residents unable to access food, medicine, and medical care in some cases.  Some changes have been made to the zero-Covid policy, but frustrations have boiled over.  Ellen Ioanes, foreign affairs reporter at Vox, joins us for what to know.

Next, the money transfer service Zelle, saw some 1.8 billion transactions in 2021that totaled $490 billion dollars.  Now, the banks behind Zelle are standardizing the methods with which to reimburse scammed customers.  Popular scams include messages that seem to come from customer support and tricks users into sending money into what appears to be your own account, but it’s linked to a fraudulent one.  David Benoit, reporter at the WSJ, joins us for more.

Finally, restaurants are getting a small reprieve from chicken.  As they have been battered by high inflation, and rising labor and operational costs, chicken has begun to drop in price.  Prices for chicken breast has dropped about 70% since the first week of June.  During this time restaurants have kept up their promotions to keep people coming back.  Patrick Thomas, reporter at the WSJ, joins us for how dropping poultry prices will hopefully be giving you a break soon.

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With the economy slowing and many companies beginning to layoff workers, small businesses are in a tight spot as they continue to face staff shortages but are having a hard time competing with larger companies when it comes to offering higher wages.  Small businesses are also reporting that about 90% of open positions are seeing few to no qualified applicants.  Cheryl Winokur Munk, contributor to CNBC, joins us for how they can attract top talent by highlighting more than just wages.

Next, a look at what the latest news surrounding Taylor Swift fans and the huge demand for her concert tickets says about the economy.  Despite uneven economic times, these turbocharged consumers are willing to pay almost anything to see their favorite artist, for them, there is no substitute.  The pent-up demand over the pandemic and limited supply sent die-hard fans to crash the Ticketmaster website.  Augusta Saraiva, economics reporter at Bloomberg News, joins us for what to know about “Swiftonomics.”  

Finally, it was once a given at many live concerts, the band would end their show and spend a couple of minutes off-stage before coming back for a roaring encore.  Now, some artists are doing away with them saying they just feel forced.  They’d rather just play out a whole set, and not waste anyone’s time leaving a potential encore only for something memorable and not expected.  Travis Andrews, features writer at The Washington Post, joins us for what to know.

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This is a compilation of some of the most compelling stories of the week.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This is a compilation of some of the most compelling stories of the week.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.