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Who benefits when massive AI data centers come to town?
- Interview
From Virginia to Kansas, the battle over data centers has reached the ballot box this midterm election. Communities are voting on whether to limit or ban the massive facilities being built to power AI – and the fight crosses party lines. Both Democrats and Republicans are accusing their opponents of being too eager to welcome billions of dollars in tech investment without considering the costs. Darrell West, a researcher at the Brookings Institution, has been studying the backlash. He says it's become something much bigger. "The data center fight is no longer just about data centers. It's about AI and its po...
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On November 3rd, voters will determine what the next two years of their local leadership
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Is this episode right for you?
B2 · Upper-intermediate
Comfortable if you already follow TV news
- 86% of the words are B1 or easier.
- 181 words a minute: natural, fairly fast speech.
- 223 harder words (B2 and up) in the whole episode.
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The 2026 midterm elections are upon us. On November 3rd, voters will determine what the next two years of their local leadership and the balance of national government will look like. Listen to the NPR News Now podcast for all the updates you need ahead of and after November
3rd from NPR News. This is Fresh Air. I'm Tanya Moseley. The AI boom has a problem.
It has to be built somewhere. And to power it, tech companies are building massive data centers. They need land, enormous amounts of electricity, and in many cases, water. In exchange, they promise jobs and community investment.
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