What is the best way to tell a climate story? This week on Zero, Akshat Rathi speaks with Booker Prize-winning novelist George Saunders. His new novel Vigil is an exploration of guilt, told on the deathbed of an oil executive haunted by ghosts. Rathi asks Saunders what he learned about climate change, his thoughts on whether AI complements or compromises human creativity, and why literature still matters in the era of TikTok.

Listen now, and subscribe on Apple, Spotify or YouTube to get new episodes of Zero every Thursday.

What is the best way to tell a climate story? This week on Zero, Akshat Rathi speaks with Booker Prize-winning novelist George Saunders. His new novel&nbsp;Vigil is an exploration of guilt, told on the deathbed of an oil executive haunted by ghosts. Rathi asks Saunders what he learned about climate change, his thoughts on whether AI complements or compromises human creativity, and why literature still matters in the era of TikTok.
Listen now, and subscribe on&nbsp;<a href="https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/zero/id1621556928">Apple</a>, <a href="https://open.spotify.com/show/5rHwnJEjFRnivIdpWwnZyZ?si=985034d7e76a47a0">Spotify</a> or <a href="https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLe4PRejZgr0MtnA98Xp8igGT9S3Na_zDD">YouTube</a> to get new episodes of Zero every Thursday.

The Big Take from Bloomberg News brings you inside what’s shaping the world's economies with the smartest and most informed business reporters around the world. The context you need on the stories that can move markets. Every afternoon.

The Big Take from Bloomberg News brings you inside what’s shaping the world's economies with the smartest and most informed business reporters around the world. The context you need on the stories that can move markets. Every afternoon.

Big Take

Weekend Listen: George Saunders Imagines an Oil Exec’s Deathbed

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/97035b65-94db-439e-97ab-b3e9015549e6/transcript

By many metrics, Meta is falling behind in the AI race. So CEO Mark Zuckerberg is building one of the largest data centers in the world — a facility the size of about 3,000 football fields in one of the poorest regions in the US.

On today’s Big Take podcast, host Sarah Holder sits down with Bloomberg reporter Riley Griffin, who traveled to Richland Parish, Louisiana, to hear from residents about the risks and opportunities they see as Meta comes to town. Will they reap the benefits? Or trade in one uncertain economy for another?

Read more: Meta Goes Big on the Bayou

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

Hosted by Sarah Holder; Produced by Julia Press; Reported by Riley Griffin; Edited by Aaron Edwards.

Fact-checking by Laura Newcombe and Rachael Lewis-Krisky; Engineering by Alex Sugiura.

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

By many metrics, Meta is falling behind in the AI race. So CEO Mark Zuckerberg is building one of the largest data centers in the world &mdash; a facility the size of about 3,000 football fields in one of the poorest regions in the US.
On today&rsquo;s Big Take podcast, host Sarah Holder sits down with Bloomberg reporter Riley Griffin, who traveled to Richland Parish, Louisiana, to hear from residents about the risks and opportunities they see as Meta comes to town. Will they reap the benefits? Or trade in one uncertain economy for another?
Read more: <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/features/2026-meta-facebook-ai-data-center-louisiana/">Meta Goes Big on the Bayou</a>
We have a special Bloomberg subscription offer for podcast listeners at <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/subscriptions/podcasts">Bloomberg.com/podcastoffer.</a>
Hosted by Sarah Holder; Produced by Julia Press; Reported by Riley Griffin; Edited by Aaron Edwards.
Fact-checking by Laura Newcombe and Rachael Lewis-Krisky; Engineering by Alex Sugiura.
Senior Producer: Naomi Shavin; Deputy Executive Producer: Julia Weaver. Executive Producer: Nicole Beemsterboer.

Can AI Save This Failing Rural Economy?

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/93586700-2ff6-46a4-a18c-b460015bda6b/transcript

President Rodrigo Paz ended 20 years of socialist rule in Bolivia with promises of unity, democracy and prosperity — and plans to tap the country’s mineral wealth. But when host David Gura went to Bolivia to interview the president, he found a harsher reality: demonstrators blockading La Paz’s streets to demand the president’s resignation.

On today’s Big Take podcast, Gura shows how centuries-old distrust of government is complicating President Paz’s efforts to persuade Bolivians – and investors – that this time is different.

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

Hosted by David Gura; Produced by David Fox; Reported by David Gura and Sergio Mendoza; Edited by Jeffrey Grocott and Tracey Samuelson.

Fact-checking by Rachael Lewis-Krisky and Laura Newcombe; Engineering by Alex Sugiura.

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

Special thanks to Simon Hampton, Javier Castaneda, Luke Mailander and Adonai Sierra.

President Rodrigo Paz ended 20 years of socialist rule in Bolivia with promises of unity, democracy and prosperity &mdash; and plans to tap the country&rsquo;s mineral wealth. But when host David Gura went to Bolivia to interview the president, he found a harsher reality: demonstrators blockading La Paz&rsquo;s streets to demand the president&rsquo;s resignation.
On today&rsquo;s Big Take podcast, Gura shows how centuries-old distrust of government is complicating President Paz&rsquo;s efforts to persuade Bolivians &ndash; and investors &ndash; that this time is different.
We have a special Bloomberg subscription offer for podcast listeners at <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/subscriptions/podcasts">Bloomberg.com/podcastoffer.</a>
Hosted by David Gura; Produced by David Fox; Reported by David Gura and Sergio Mendoza; Edited by Jeffrey Grocott and Tracey Samuelson.
Fact-checking by Rachael Lewis-Krisky and Laura Newcombe; Engineering by Alex Sugiura.
Senior Producer: Naomi Shavin; Deputy Executive Producer: Julia Weaver. Executive Producer: Nicole Beemsterboer.
Special thanks to Simon Hampton, Javier Castaneda, Luke Mailander and Adonai Sierra.

We Went to Interview Bolivia’s President and a Riot Broke Out

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/dfb42ad2-9cad-4959-bbf1-b45f01685d34/transcript

For more than a decade, the towns north of Dallas, Texas – places like Frisco, Prosper and Celina – have seen an unprecedented housing boom, thanks in part to Indian workers drawn by skilled tech jobs and employers who sponsored their H-1B visas. But in the past year, the market for these houses has fallen and some of Texas’ biggest boomtowns have gone bust.

On today’s Big Take podcast, US housing reporter Prashant Gopal and host Sarah Holder unpack the forces underpinning a growing real estate crisis in Dallas-Forth Worth. They examine how changes to the H-1B visa program forced some residents to rethink their futures and what the dramatic pull back could mean for some of the newest suburbs.

This episode contains mention of suicide. If you or someone you know is having thoughts of suicide or self-harm, a global list of help lines is available at blog.opencounseling.com/suicide-hotlines/

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

Hosted by Sarah Holder; Produced by Rachael Lewis-Krisky; Reported by Prashant Gopal and Tanaz Meghjani; Edited by Jeffrey Grocott.

Fact-checking by Laura Newcombe; Engineering by Alex Sugiura.

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

For more than a decade, the towns north of Dallas, Texas &ndash; places like Frisco, Prosper and Celina &ndash; have seen an unprecedented housing boom, thanks in part to Indian workers drawn by skilled tech jobs and employers who sponsored their H-1B visas. But in the past year, the market for these houses has fallen and some of Texas&rsquo; biggest boomtowns have gone bust.
On today&rsquo;s Big Take podcast, US housing reporter Prashant Gopal and host Sarah Holder unpack the forces underpinning a growing real estate crisis in Dallas-Forth Worth. They examine how changes to the H-1B visa program forced some residents to rethink their futures and what the dramatic pull back could mean for some of the newest suburbs.
This episode contains mention of suicide. If you or someone you know is having thoughts of suicide or self-harm, a global list of help lines is available at&nbsp;<a href="http://blog.opencounseling.com/suicide-hotlines/">blog.opencounseling.com/suicide-hotlines/</a>
We have a special Bloomberg subscription offer for podcast listeners at&nbsp;<a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/subscriptions/podcasts">Bloomberg.com/podcastoffer.</a>
Hosted by Sarah Holder; Produced by Rachael Lewis-Krisky; Reported by Prashant Gopal and Tanaz Meghjani; Edited by Jeffrey Grocott.
Fact-checking by Laura Newcombe; Engineering by Alex Sugiura.
Senior Producer: Naomi Shavin; Deputy Executive Producer: Julia Weaver. Executive Producer: Nicole Beemsterboer.

How H-1B Restrictions Popped Dallas’ Housing Bubble

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/64fe1f3b-a6f8-4290-8369-b45e01527159/transcript

Weekend Listen: George Saunders Imagines an Oil Exec’s Deathbed

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