P.M. Edition for Feb. 2. Even as home sales remain stuck at a 30-year low, people that are buying are finding big discounts. WSJ reporter Nicole Friedman discusses the changing dynamics in the market. Plus, the partial government shutdown means Friday’s jobs report will be delayed. We hear from Journal economics reporter Matt Grossman about what that means for investors. And a Michigan pension fund lost millions on an investment in a coffee farm. As reporter Heather Gillers tells us, what happened there highlights the risks that come with investing in private markets. Alex Ossola hosts.
The Rafah crossing reopens between Gaza and Egypt. Are enough Palestinians in urgent need of medical treatment able to use it? We hear from the family of one injured boy.
Also on the programme: the detention of a five-year-old in an immigration raid in Minnesota enrages a judge; and why seeing the iconic Trevi Fountain in Rome is now going to cost you.
(Photo: A Palestinian patient, accompanied by relatives, waits to leave Gaza for treatment abroad through the Rafah border crossing between Gaza and Egypt. Credit: Reuters)
The Justice Department says their review into convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein is done, with the release of millions of documents and thousands of images and videos last Friday.
Annie Farmer is one of many people who testified in court about Epstein, and Ghislaine Maxwell. She says they sexually abused her when she was 16 years old.
She's also been a leading voice in calling on the DOJ to release all records related to Epstein.
The release included pictures of nude women, or possibly girls, and the names of victims, all of which should have been redacted. A DOJ spokeswoman subsequently told the New York Times the department was addressing victim concerns and making additional redactions.
Farmer tells NPR she's "really upset," saying the release of victims' names and images is "really disgusting." However she adds that, "what I do feel clear about is the fact we still believe transparency is important."
For sponsor-free episodes of Consider This, sign up for Consider This+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org. Email us at considerthis@npr.org.
This episode was produced by Jonaki Mehta and Karen Zamora, with audio engineering by Ted Mebane. It was edited by Sarah Handel.
Plus: The Trump administration is preparing a $12 billion rare earth stockpile. And Saks Fifth Avenue’s parent company to wind down its partnership with Amazon. Julie Chang hosts.
An artificial-intelligence tool assisted in the making of this episode by creating summaries that were based on Wall Street Journal reporting and reviewed and adapted by an editor.
Big pharma and biotech take the earnings stage this week with reports from Eli Lilly (NYSE: LLNY) and Novo Nordisk (NYSE: NVO) leading the lineup. Will they help the industry once again outperform AI champ NVIDIA (NASDAQ: NVDA), as the industry did in 2025?
Karl Thiel, Tom King, and Tim Beyers discuss:
- Slow rolling chaos at FDA and its effects on drug approvals.
- How to think about risk when investing in biotech.
- Earnings predictions for Lilly and Novo as well as a review of results from DNA researcher Twist Bioscience (NASDAQ: TWST).
Don’t wait! Be sure to get to your local bookstore and pick up a copy of David’s Gardner’s new book — Rule Breaker Investing: How to Pick the Best Stocks of the Future and Build Lasting Wealth. It’s on shelves now; get it before it’s gone!
Companies discussed: RGNX, LLY, NVO, TWST
Host: Tim Beyers
Guests: Karl Thiel, Tom King
Producer: Anand Chokkavelu
Engineer: Dan Boyd
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JD originally made a name for himself as an economic populist but now spends all his time lying and ignoring the woes of the white working class. Stephen Miller is far more interested in authoritarianism than the American worker. And the biggest MAGA warrior of all, Steve Bannon, was downright smitten with Jeffrey Epstein. Meanwhile, the Trump administration is busy trying to hide the identities of other co-conspirators in the Epstein documents. Plus, the CBP has no business being deployed on the streets of American cities, Tulsi wants foreign election interference, the good news in a Texas special election result, Trump is flailing at another business—the Kennedy Center—and Bad Bunny previews his message for the Super Bowl Halftime show.
Kraft macaroni and cheese has been a household staple for decades. But owing to shifting consumer tastes towards healthier options and a tumultuous corporate shakeup, Kraft’s status as the big cheese is slipping. WSJ’s Jesse Newman reports on how Kraft lost its dominance in the mac and cheese aisle, and what the company plans on doing about it. Jessica Mendoza hosts.
Protests in Iran have been ongoing for over a month and according to one human rights group, over 6000 people have died. As the internet blackout begins to lift, we’re learning more about what has happened. Our correspondent brings us the experiences of three Iranian women.
Online retail behemoth Amazon is closing all of its branded grocery stores — but already has the greenlight to experiment with a new retail idea: a “first-of-its-kind Amazon superstore” that is coming to south suburban Orland Park. Is this the future of retail, and what does it mean for local businesses and residents?
In The Loop finds out more about the approved plan and if it could be a potential blueprint for more “superstores.” We hear from Jim Dodge, mayor of Orland Park, and Steve Caine, partner and retail expert with Bain & Company.
For a full archive of In the Loop interviews, head over to wbez.org/intheloop.
