How is information stored in Flash?

So I know one can use MySQL and PHP to store information (which I’ve been doing for years), but now that I’m learning Flash, I’m wondering what the most common way of storing text is for use with Flash.

When going to some flash-only websites, I notice they have recent news and other dynamic text that’s displayed. Where is this text most likely being pulled from and how is it placed there? Also, how is the text retreived into Flash?

Thanks for the help!