In November 2022, Kavita Fischer downloaded a casino app from DraftKings, one of the top online betting companies in the U.S. Kavita was looking for relief from the stress of a recent divorce and the isolation of working from home during the pandemic. In less than a year, Kavita gambled away hundreds of thousands of dollars. We speak to Kavita and to WSJ’s Katherine Sayre about how online betting companies keep customers coming back by giving them bonus credits and VIP treatment. 

Further Reading:

- A Psychiatrist Tried to Quit Gambling. Betting Apps Kept Her Hooked. 

Further Listening:

- Disney Gets Into Gambling  

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Hospitals, pharmacies and medical groups have been reeling in the wake of last month’s ransomware attack on a company widely used for insurance billing and payments. WSJ's James Rundle unpacks how the cyberattack on Change Healthcare has left thousands of providers scrambling to pay their bills and some wondering if they can keep their doors open.

Further Reading:

- Change Healthcare Rival Onboards Hundreds of Thousands of Customers During Hack Crisis 

- U.S. Health Department Intervenes in Change Healthcare Hack Crisis 

- UnitedHealth Aims to Restore Change Healthcare Systems Within Two Weeks 

Further Listening:

- The Ruthless Group Behind Ransomware Attacks on Hospitals 

- Ransomware, a Pipeline and a Gas Shortage 

- Why Crypto is Key to Stopping Ransomware 

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Today the House voted overwhelmingly to approve a bill that would ban TikTok from operating in the U.S. or force a sale. For years politicians have threatened a ban, but this latest attempt finally gained traction. WSJ's Georgia Wells on the long push to ban the Chinese-controlled platform and how the company is fighting back.

Further Listening:

-The Billionaire Keeping TikTok on Your Phone 

-Exclusive: TikTok’s CEO on the App’s Future in the U.S. 

-What's Up With All the TikTok Bans? 

Further Reading:

-How TikTok Was Blindsided by U.S. Bill That Could Ban It 

-TikTok Crackdown Shifts Into Overdrive, With Sale or Shutdown on Table 

-The Billionaire Keeping TikTok on Phones in the U.S. 

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About a year after a major train derailment in East Palestine, Ohio, an activist investor is trying to oust Norfolk Southern’s CEO, Alan Shaw. But as WSJ’s Esther Fung explains, the CEO has some unlikely allies in his corner.

Further Reading:

-Railroad Workers Were Ready to Strike. Now They’re Fighting to Save Their CEO. 

Further Listening:

-What Caused a Train to Derail in East Palestine, Ohio? 

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Nearly 80% of ship-to-shore cranes at U.S. ports are made by ZPMC, a Chinese state-owned company. In recent years, U.S. officials have grown concerned that these giant cranes could be used for spying on the U.S. China says these concerns are “paranoia-driven.” WSJ’s Aruna Viswanatha reports on why cranes have become the latest point of contention in U.S.-China relations. 

Further Reading:

- Pentagon Sees Giant Cargo Cranes as Possible Chinese Spying Tools 

- Espionage Probe Finds Communications Device on Chinese Cranes at U.S. Ports 

Further Listening:

- The Billionaire Keeping TikTok on Your Phone 

- How a Balloon Burst U.S.-China Relations 

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This week the Dartmouth men’s basketball team voted to unionize, setting up a fight with the school over whether its athletes are students or employees. WSJ’s Laine Higgins talks about how this move upends decades of NCAA precedent and could change college sports forever.

Further Listening:

- A League of Champions Implodes 

- A Tipping Point for Paying College Athletes? 

Further Reading:

- Dartmouth Basketball Players Vote to Unionize in New Challenge to NCAA’s Amateurism Model 

- Dartmouth Men’s Basketball Team Makes Latest Bid for Unionization by College Athletes 

- College Sports Powers Stall Bid to Share Revenue With Athletes in California 

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Sam Altman once called Elon Musk, one of his OpenAI co-founders, his hero. Now Musk is suing Altman, accusing him of abandoning OpenAI’s founding mission in pursuit of profit, which OpenAI denies. WSJ’s Berber Jin reports on the highs and lows of a Silicon Valley’s bromance. 

Further Reading:

- How the Bromance Between Elon Musk and Sam Altman Turned Toxic 

- Elon Musk Sues OpenAI, Sam Altman, Saying They Abandoned Founding Mission 

Further Listening:

- Artificial: The OpenAI Story 

- Money, Drugs, Elon Musk and Tesla’s Board 

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Former South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley suspended her bid for the Republican presidential nomination.That sets the stage for another matchup between President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump in November. WSJ’s Eliza Collins looks at the new shape of this old rivalry.

Further Reading:

- Biden vs. Trump: A Familiar Matchup in an Unprecedented Election  

- Nikki Haley Exits Republican Presidential Race 

Further Listening:

- Does Nikki Haley Have a Chance At Beating Trump? 

- A Messy Start to the 2024 Presidential Election 

- The Deepfake Election Has Arrived 

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In 2017 Bill Shufelt was desperate. He’d quit his job at a hedge fund to start a business that sounded absolutely nuts: a non-alcoholic beer that people would actually want to drink. WSJ’s Ben Cohen uncovers how Shufelt’s idea has led to one of the fastest-growing movements in the beer industry.  

Further Listening:

-Canned or Homemade? America’s Biggest Cranberry Company Wins Either Way 

Further Reading: 

-The Hottest Beer in America Doesn’t Have Alcohol 

-Bud Light Missed Out on the Super Bowl Party 

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When Russian troops invaded his hometown in 2022, Ukrainian teenager Denys Kostev filmed TikTok videos cursing Vladimir Putin and praising Ukrainian courage. But a few months later, Kostev suddenly began appearing in Russian propaganda videos. WSJ’s Matthew Luxmoore spoke to the Ukrainian teenager about how he became part of the Kremlin's propaganda machine. 

Further Reading:

-A Ukrainian Teen’s Dark Transformation Into Russian Propaganda Star 

Further Listening:

-The Grim Story of a Russian Prisoner Turned Recruit 

-Actors Recorded Videos for ‘Vladimir.’ It Turned Into Russian Propaganda. 

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