Briefed - Your Daily European Podcast

In May 6 last year, Friedrich Merz was elected chancelor in Germany, after more than 30 years in politics. One year in, what can we make of his record so far? Production: By  Europod, in co-production with the Sphera network . Follow us on: LinkedIn •. Instagram Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Briefed is taking a break this week. In the meantime, I’m bringing you a German-themed segment featuring one of Europod’s award-winning series: My Question to Angela Merkel . Follow Emilia, a young journalist, as she searches for the perfect question to ask Angela Merkel before she leaves office. For this final episode of the week, I’m bringing you episode 9 of the series, which looks at the oppor...

Briefed is taking a break this week. In the meantime, I’m bringing you a German-themed segment featuring one of Europod’s award-winning series: My Question to Angela Merkel . Follow Emilia, a young journalist, as she searches for the perfect question to ask Angela Merkel before she leaves office. In this episode, Emilia looks back at Angela Merkel’s decision to welcome refugees to Germany in 2015....

Briefed is taking a break this week. In the meantime, I’m bringing you a German-themed segment featuring one of Europod’s award-winning series: My Question to Angela Merkel . Follow Emilia, a young journalist, as she searches for the perfect question to ask Angela Merkel before she leaves office. In this episode, we look back at the EU’s response to the Greek debt crisis, with testimonies from Jea...

Briefed is taking a break this week. In the meantime, I’m bringing you a German-themed segment featuring one of Europod’s award-winning series: My Question to Angela Merkel . Follow Emilia, a young journalist, as she searches for the perfect question to ask Angela Merkel before she leaves office. Today, I’m bringing you episode 6 of the series, which looks at Angela Merkel’s response to the 2008 f...

Briefed is taking a break this week. In the meantime, I’m bringing you a German-themed segment featuring one of Europod’s award-winning series: My Question to Angela Merkel . Follow Emilia, a young journalist, as she searches for the perfect question to ask Angela Merkel before she leaves office. For today, I’ve chosen episode 5 of the series, which looks at the early days of Angela Merkel’s time...

The EU has formally relaunched contact with Syria after years of frozen relations. But what does it mean for Syrians in Europe? What will be the impact on those who have sought refuge in Europe over the last two decades? Production: By Europod in co-production with the Sphera Network . This episode is based on an article published on Popaganda and is co-written with Hélène Pillon from Médianes . H...

The EU firmly believes that the answer to the energy crisis is in the transition to clean energies. But what does the Commission propose to ease the pressure on Europeans in the short term? Production: By  Europod, in co-production with the Sphera network . Follow us on: LinkedIn Instagram Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

For years, public authorities have said they want to support faster and more affordable train travel. But in practice, not much has changed. So, is the EU actually capable of boosting rail? Production: By  Europod, in co-production with the Sphera network . Follow us on: LinkedIn • Instagram Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The European Union imposed a 120 million euros fine on the social network X last December. On Monday April 20, Elon Musk was supposed to join a hearing by the French authorities about the functionning of X, but he did not show up. What is the real impact of European sanctions on X and other platforms? Production: By  Europod, in co-production with the Sphera network . Follow us on: LinkedIn •...

Briefed presents: Journalism in War - Solidarity Beyond Borders (From Florence) What does it take to report the news from within a war zone? In this special episode recorded at the Voices - European Festival of Journalism and Media Freedom, we explore how journalists continue working under extreme conditions - in Ukraine and in Gaza. Featuring testimonies from Sergiy Tomilenko (National Union of J...

Who will succeed Emmanuel Macron in 2027 ? One thing already seems clear: the candidate from the National Rally, the main extreme right party, will likely make it to the second round of the election, for the third time in a row. But could the far right actually grab power? What’s at stake for France and for the European Union? Production: By  Europod, in co-production with the Sphera network...

In this episode of Europe Talks Back , we take a close look at working conditions across the EU. Are they evolving homogeneously? What are the obstacles to fair working conditions? To answer these questions, we welcome Agnes Parent-Thirion, Senior Research Manager at Eurofound. Production by Europod, in cooperation with ESPON, an EU-funded programme that bridges research and policy. “This podcast...

In Bulgaria, the right-wing party GERB could be beaten in the legislative elections this Sunday. Rumen Radev, the leading candidate in the polls is pledging to end the corruption in the country. Who is he? What is he advocating for? And why is he performing so well in the polls? Production: By  Europod, in co-production with the Sphera network . Follow us on: LinkedIn Instagram Hosted on Acas...

Italy is suspending its defense agreement with Israel. The reason? Concerns over Israel’s conduct in the Middle East conflict—especially in Lebanon. Across Europe, more and more voices are calling for stronger measures against Israel. A citizen-led initiative has now gathered over one million signatures, calling for the suspension of the EU–Israel Association Agreement. So, is the European Union f...

Fights are still very much ongoing in Ukraine. While Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky was in Berlin and then Oslo this Tuesday, April 14th, his country was once again under heavy Russian attacks. Overnight from Monday to Tuesday, Russia launched at least four missiles and one hundred twenty nine drones at Ukraine. Then on Tuesday morning, the city of Dnipro was hit as well, leaving around fi...

Hungary has chosen Europe. That’s what the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, believes. Because on Sunday, the Hungarian people brought an end to the rule of Viktor Orbán, after 16 years in power. But did Hungarians really choose Europe? Production: By  Europod, in co-production with the Sphera network . Follow us on: LinkedIn Instagram Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/...

The reign of Viktor Orbán is over. His opponent, Péter Magyar, won last night’s election. A turning point for the country, which has been ruled by Orbán since 2010. It is also a major lesson for the EU: despite having Donald Trump’s active support, Orbán lost voters’ trust. In Brussels, diplomats and officials alike are celebrating what could be the end of the traditional Hungarian veto. But is th...

In only nine days, between March twenty-eighth and April fifth, five boats sank in the Mediterranean. They were carrying people hoping to cross the sea and reach Europe. At least 180 people died in these shipwrecks. This marks the “deadliest start to a year” in the Mediterranean in more than a decade. What is the EU doing to stop this tragedy? By Europod in co-production with the Sphera Network ....

Le doute plane sur la portée du cessez-le-feu au Moyen-Orient.  Après plus d’un mois de guerre, les États-Unis et Israël d’un côté, et l’Iran de l’autre, sont convenus d’un cessez-le-feu dans la nuit de mardi à mercredi. Mais alors que l’accord devait couvrir toute la région, Israël continue d’attaquer le sud du Liban. De quoi inquiéter le pays, mais aussi les Européens. Production: By ...

Consumers are being squeezed by skyrocketing fuel and gas prices. Meanwhile, producers are raking in extraordinary profits. The situation is unfair - and a few European countries are now proposing to regulate it. They propose to tax the windfall profits of oil and gas companies. But can the EU actually implement such a tax? Production: By  Europod, in co-production with the Sphera network . F...

The EU has nearly half a million people in prison. In many European countries, prisons are seriously overcrowded. Yet over the last decade, violent crime has actually decreased in Europe. What’s wrong with the prison system in Europe? Production: By  Europod, in co-production with the Sphera network . Follow us on: LinkedIn Instagram Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information...

There is no episode of Briefed for this Easter Monday. But I'm directing you to a podcast that I enjoyed very much:  The Right kind of family . It was produced by Europod and a few European partners in 2025. Link to the first episode of the series: https://open.spotify.com/episode/57q2lQuHyy3AfvR97BTl3L?si=H4z7Ow5NSVKpyFhilLJ_bw Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

French bread could be more dangerous than what’s on the table in neighboring countries. Why ? Because of cadmium, a toxic heavy metal lurking in everyday foods. A recent study showed that French people were far more contaminated by cadmium than others. Why is France more contaminated than other countries? Production: By  Europod, in co-production with the Sphera network . Follow us on: L...

NATO is once again under fire from American threats. U.S. President Donald Trump is furious over the EU’s repeated refusals to support - even indirectly - his war efforts. Are Europeans finally firmly standing up against Trump? Production: By  Europod, in co-production with the Sphera network . Follow us on: LinkedIn • Instagram Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.