For four generations, the Merwin family has worked in Boeing’s factories in Washington state. But for the last six weeks, Tony Merwin and his son Patrick have been on strike, along with 33,000 machinists. They explain why they’re demanding higher wages and pension benefits.  Further Reading: -For This Boeing Family, the Job Is the Same. The Payoff Isn’t  -Boeing Strike Extended After Union Machinists Reject Contract  -Boeing’s CEO Is Shrinking the Jet Maker to Stop Its Crisis From Spiraling  Further Listening: -Why 33,000 Boeing Workers Walked Off the Job  -Boeing's Long Flight Delay – in Space  -Boeing Agrees to Felony Plea. Now Its Future Is Up in the Air.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

During the Trump administration, Chris Krebs was the top cybersecurity official at the Department of Homeland Security. He spoke with WSJ’s Rolfe Winkler at WSJ Tech Live about the upcoming U.S. election and growing cyber threats from foreign governments. Further Listening: -The Chinese Hackers Spying on U.S. Internet Traffic  -Red, White and Who? Playlist  Further Reading: -China-Linked Hackers Breach U.S. Internet Providers in New ‘Salt Typhoon’ Cyberattack  -U.S. Wiretap Systems Targeted in China-Linked Hack  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

For the past two years, tech billionaire Elon Musk has been having regular contact with Russian President Vladimir Putin. WSJ’s Thomas Grove reports on what we know about the nature of their conversations and why that contact raises potential national security concerns for some in the current administration. Further Reading: - Elon Musk’s Secret Conversations With Vladimir Putin  - Musk Says He Thwarted Attack on Russian Fleet in Ukraine’s Crimea  Further Listening: - Uncovering Elon Musk's Secret Political Donations  - The Russian Military is Using Elon Musk’s Starlink  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Hans Zimmer, Academy Award-winning composer, and Golnar Khosrowshahi, CEO of Reservoir Media, discuss AI in the music industry, why human creation is still unique and whether or not Zimmer approves of “The Journal” theme music. Further Listening: -⁠Artificial: The OpenAI Story⁠ -⁠When AI Comes for Your Art⁠ Further Reading: -⁠Hans Zimmer, Movie Maestro⁠ -⁠Music Labels Take On AI Startups With New Lawsuits Photo: Uncredited Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Hans Zimmer, Academy Award-winning composer, and Golnar Khosrowshahi, CEO of Reservoir Media, discuss AI in the music industry, why human creation is still unique and whether or not Zimmer approves of “The Journal” theme music. Further Listening: -Artificial: The OpenAI Story -When AI Comes for Your Art Further Reading: -Hans Zimmer, Movie Maestro -Music Labels Take On AI Startups With New Lawsuits Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Five undecided voters in swing states speak to Rachel Humphreys about how they're feeling as election day looms. Ryan Knutson and Molly Ball unpack the stakes. Plus, will betting markets predict the winner? Further Listening: - Red, White and Who? Playlist  - Red, White and Who? The Desperation Stage  - How Betting on U.S. Politics Is Getting Big  Further Reading: - Trump Takes Narrow Lead Over Harris in Closing Weeks of Race  - Meet the Traders Making Money Off the Trump Shooting and Biden’s Stumbles  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Mike Jeffries, former CEO of Abercrombie & Fitch, was arrested and charged with running an international sex-trafficking ring. WSJ’s Khadeeja Safdar describes the alleged crimes and the potential fallout for the company. Further Reading: -Former Abercrombie CEO Mike Jeffries Is Arrested, Charged in Sex-Trafficking Case  Further Listening: -The Resurrection of Abercrombie & Fitch  -JPMorgan's $75 Million Jeffrey Epstein Settlement  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Across the country, elections officials are bracing for a potentially contentious election day. At the same time, a network of conservative election integrity groups are preparing to challenge the result. WSJ's Rebecca Ballhaus reports on the billionaire-funded effort to contest the election, and WSJ's Jim Carlton reports how Maricopa County, Arizona is preparing for the worst. Further Reading: -The Secretive Billionaire Network Funding ‘Stop the Steal’ 2.0  -‘It Feels Very Dystopian.’ Republican County Officials Brace for Election Deniers—Again  Further Listening: -Red, White and Who? The Desperation Stage   -Uncovering Elon Musk's Secret Political Donations  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

For 17 days last year, unidentified drones swarmed an area in Virginia that is home to a military base and other sensitive intelligence sites. WSJ’s Gordon Lubold looked into why it was so difficult for U.S. officials to stop them.  Further Reading: -Mystery Drones Swarmed a U.S. Military Base for 17 Days. The Pentagon Is Stumped.  Further Listening: -How Ukraine Built a Weapon to Control the Black Sea  -Cheap Drones Are Transforming the Battlefield  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Clouds are gathering over the Sunshine State’s housing market. Especially along the state’s Gulf Coast, housing inventory is up and buyer interest is slowing. WSJ’s Deborah Acosta talks through the cooling-off of one of America’s biggest housing booms and what it says about what it means to live in Florida now. Further Listening: - Is Asheville No Longer a 'Climate Haven?  - Years After Surfside Collapse, Florida Condos Are In Crisis  Further Reading: - The Great Florida Migration Is Coming Undone  - Why the Tampa Area Is So Vulnerable to a Hurricane  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Last year, China’s foreign minister, Qin Gang, suddenly disappeared. Qin was a rising star in Chinese politics and a protegé of China’s strongman leader, Xi Jinping. In the first episode of our three-part investigation, we chart Qin’s rise and begin to untangle the mystery of his disappearance. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In the second episode of our investigation, we examine the life and career of Fu Xiaotian: the prominent Chinese TV host who had an affair with Qin Gang. Like Qin, Fu was sharp and ambitious, but her high-flying career would come to an abrupt halt. And like Qin, she would also mysteriously disappear.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In our final episode, we get a break in the case of the missing minister: According to our sources, Chinese officials were told that Qin disappeared due to an explosive allegation. We dig into that story and its consequences for Fu and for Qin – Xi Jinping’s trusted aide.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

With millions of votes already cast, the race is on for each campaign to get their supporters to the polls. Ryan Knutson talks with Molly Ball about the different strategies Trump and Harris are taking, and why election denial is such a big issue in Arizona. Plus, Rachel Humphreys speaks to a Gen Z Voter. Further Listening:  - Red, White and Who? Playlist  - Red, White and Who? Foreign Policy and the Rise of Donald Trump Jr.  - Red, White and Who? Veep Veep! All Eyes on Vance and Walz  Further Reading: - Republicans Rush to Bolster Trump’s Ground Game  - Kari Lake’s 2022 Fraud Claims Are Costing Her in 2024  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Lilly Ledbetter, equal pay trailblazer, died on Saturday. WSJ’s Joseph De Avila reports on how Ledbetter faced pay discrimination at her job and sued her employer, taking her case all the way to the Supreme Court. And WSJ’s Lauren Weber discusses the persistence of the gender pay gap.  Further Reading: -Fair-Wage Advocate Lilly Ledbetter Dies at 86  -Data Show Gender Pay Gap Opens Early  Further Listening: -The TikTok That Changed College Hoops  -What Corporate America Can Learn From Coke’s Reckoning With Race  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Investigators say that Arion Kurtaj’s life in cybercrime began at age 11, and ultimately led to his participation in the hacks of major companies like Nvidia, Microsoft, and Uber. WSJ’s Robert McMillan explains how Kurtaj’s case has brought worries about a new breed of fearless young hackers. Further Reading: -This Teenage Hacker Became a Legend Attacking Companies. Then His Rivals Attacked Him.  -Hackers Leaked ‘Grand Theft Auto’ Footage, Rockstar Games Says  Further Listening: -Hack Me If You Can, Part 1: The Making of a Russian Hacker  -How North Korea’s Hacker Army Stole $3 Billion in Crypto  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Over the summer, an outbreak of listeria in Boar’s Head products killed 10 people and sickened dozens more. In the months after the crisis, the family that runs the company has said little. WSJ’s Sarah Nassauer dug through court documents to piece together a decades-long story of a family fighting over ownership of a deli meat empire. Further Reading: - Inside the Half-Century Feud Dividing the Boar’s Head Family  - Boar’s Head Closing Virginia Factory Tied to Deadly Listeria Outbreak  Further Listening: - Farm-to-Table Pioneer on Why We Still Need Better Food  - Food Fight: PepsiCo vs. Carrefour  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

TD Bank’s U.S. entity pleaded guilty and agreed to pay more than $3 billion in penalties, acknowledging it failed to properly monitor money laundering by drug cartels and other criminal groups. WSJ’s Dylan Tokar unpacks the investigation that led to such a historic deal. Further Listening: -The Suitcases Full of Cash Flowing Through Airports  Further Reading: -TD Bank Agrees to $3 Billion in Penalties and Growth Restrictions in U.S. Settlement  -TD Pays Hefty Penalties as Prosecutors Detail Nearly a Decade of Lax Controls  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Ryan Knutson and Molly Ball explore what we know about both candidates’ approach to foreign policy. Plus, Molly shares what she learned about the future of MAGA from an interview with Donald Trump Jr. and JD Vance. Further Listening: - Red, White and Who? Playlist  - Red, White and Who? Veep Veep! All Eyes on Vance and Walz  - Red, White and Who? It's Always the Economy!  Further Reading: - How Donald Trump Jr. Became the Crown Prince of MAGA World  - JD Vance’s Version of Trump Is Better Than the Real Thing  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The U.S. budget deficit topped $1.8 trillion in the last fiscal year. Meanwhile, both candidates for president are proposing plans that would increase the deficit for years to come. WSJ’s Richard Rubin explains how the deficit got so large and why the candidates don’t talk about it.  Further Listening: -The Economy: Trump vs. Harris  -The Clock Is Ticking on the Debt Ceiling  Further Reading: -Federal Deficit Hit $1.8 Trillion for 2024, CBO Says  -Federal Debt Is Soaring. Here’s Why Trump and Harris Aren’t Talking About It.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices