Economist Podcasts

The Iran conflict and blockades in the Strait of Hormuz are slowing supply not just of fuel, but food and fertiliser. Geophysics could worsen the approaching hunger crisis: an El Niño weather event is predicted for this year. Anti-conversion laws are resulting in horrific scenes at Christian burial sites in India. And why Britain’s vets are struggling. Guests and host: Catherine Brahic, environmen...

After the failure of talks at the weekend, America is now stopping all ships from using Iranian ports and coastal areas. Our correspondent analyses the rationale. Burkina Faso ’s government is committing war crimes. And which type of fizzy water tastes best? Vote for “The Economist” in the Webby Awards: “ The Last Boat ” podcast and Lane Greene on languages Guests and host: Shashank Joshi, defence...

In a momentous election, Viktor Orban has lost power in Hungary after 16 years of increasingly autocratic rule. Our correspondent explains how the country’s opposition led by Peter Magyar ousted a corrupt regime. Why cows in Britain are producing too much milk. And celebrating the giant rat that helped sniff out landmines in Cambodia.   Guests and host: Matt Steinglass, Europe editor Har...

Also on the daily podcast: what the Artemis Moon mission really accomplished and remembering a brave Soviet psychiatrist SHOW-NOTES TEXT  (60ish wds) Binyamin Netanyahu says his strikes against Hizbullah are separate from the Iran-war ceasefire. That assertion is putting cracks in the deal, and in Israel’s relationship with America . We look at the stated and the unstated goals of the Artemis...

President Donald Trump has long threatened to pull America out of the alliance. We examine why the Iran war has made this time look significantly more serious . Westerners are fleeing their countries in record numbers —with economic consequences for their origins and destinations. And our series profiling the countries contesting the World Cup starts with Spain.   Guests and host: Anton...

With little time to spare before a threatened civilisation-ending attack, America agreed a pause in fighting with Iran. We ask how the temporary deal was reached and how likely a permanent one is. China has an ever-expanding, state-led IVF programme : can that actually reverse a deepening demographic crisis? And the right way to think about AI’s entry into literature .  Guests and host: Gregg...

President Donald Trump’s rhetoric has grown yet more bellicose—and sweary. His stated ploy to destroy Iran’s bridges and power plants would be ruinous for Iran, and Iran’s planned retaliation ruinous for the region. AI-driven job losses predicted for India’s IT sector are looking more likely to be job gains. And why Gen Z is taking up boomers’ hobbies.   Guests and host: Gregg Carlstrom,...

Viktor Orban , Hungary’s prime minister, is an idol to the global nationalist conservative right. Losing the next election would have far-reaching consequences. Could tourists help boost jaguar populations in South and Central America? And the number of Catholic saints is soaring.  Guests and host: Rosie Blau, co-host of “The Intelligence” Jason Palmer, co-host of “The intelligence” Matt Stei...

A giant leadership reshuffle is underway in China, but one job will stay the same: Xi Jinping is almost certain to secure another five-year term at next year’s party congress. Reasons to be optimistic about Europe’s tech future. And the life of controversial winemaker, Michel Rolland . Guests and host: James Miles, global China writer Guy Scriven, global business writer Jon Fasman, senior culture...

NASA has successfully launched its first crewed space mission in over a decade. Our correspondent explains why America wants to build a moonbase. AI models underperform in languages other than English. And meet China’s social-media stars: influencer-officials .  Guests and host: Oliver Morton, senior editor Deena Mousa, science writer Gabriel Crossley, China correspondent Rosie Blau, host of...

Ukraine’s resistance to Russia relies on the clever use of drones . Much of that strategy is down to a single person, a former grain trader with a great idea. Our correspondent meets him. Since the Brexit vote a decade ago, Britain has become more like Europe. And why American universities are abandoning the notorious swimming test .  Guests and host: Oliver Carroll, Ukraine correspondent Mat...

An Economist investigation reveals that Iran is profiting from the war as it evades sanctions and oil prices surge. India’s government has promised to crush the country’s Maoist insurgency . Our correspondent visits a former rebel stronghold. And why understudies , a theatre’s insurance policy, are underestimated.  Guests and host: Rachana Shanbhogue, business affairs editor Kira Huju, Asia c...

The Iran conflict is escalating with little prospect of an end in sight. Our correspondent explains why a US ground invasion is likely. In an ongoing history series , we look at how America’s attitude to migrants changed as it got richer. And “ Project Hail Mary ” is a sci-fi film drawing wide audiences. Guests and host: Gregg Carlstrom, Middle East correspondent Annie Crabill, a news editor in Ne...

Even before America crimped Cuba’s oil, the country was teetering . We ask what is to blame for the Cuban people’s plight, and whether anything better is in prospect. The craze of injecting peptides is not only scientifically unsupported—it is potentially dangerous. Chuck Norris once got mad at dinosaurs. Just once. Our obituaries editor recounts his unlikely rise to international manly stardom.&n...

A jury in California agreed with a plaintiff who argued that Meta and Google, two social-media giants, designed their platforms to be addictive. That opens the floodgates to more litigation and perhaps to regulatory change. We examine the world’s maritime chokepoints and how they shape geopolitics—littorally, not figuratively. And how digitally animated films came to dominate the box office. Guest...

In the daily tea leaves one might read that President Donald Trump would prefer a deal with Iran to a continuing military campaign. Where would that leave Israel and its goals ? Cryptocurrencies have gained a particular foothold in Asian economies; will they become real financial infrastructure or just tools of fraud? And tracing the history of mafias through the ages.  Guests and host: Anshe...

Air strikes and border raids have turned cross-border tensions into hot conflict . We ask what raised the temperature, and whether the Iran war may act to lower it. Meanwhile that war’s oil shock brings with it fears of rising inflation; we examine how recent disruptions might inform policy decisions. And “ listening parties ”, once for music-industry insiders, are becoming the norm.  Guests...

As the war in Iran progresses, none of the options available to Donald Trump looks good. We examine each of them. Thailand’s Buddhist monks are implicated in lots of lawless and dodgy behaviour—but clearing out the bad apples is more complicated than it seems. And gene-editing comes to the fruit bowl : we look at what science is serving up next. Guests and host: Gregg Carlstrom, Middle East corres...

As attention has focused on war in Iran, Israel sees an opportunity to crush a weakened Hizbullah in Lebanon. Our correspondent says it would be far better for the Lebanese state to do so. As south-east Asia is modernising, Islam is counterintuitively gaining greater primacy in civic life. And a tribute to Jürgen Habermas , Germany’s and perhaps Europe’s most prominent intellectual. Guests and hos...

A rash entry into a war of choice exposes President Donald Trump in a number of ways—and he may prove more dangerous as he becomes weaker . Turkey’s foreign entanglements mask the democratic backsliding at home; that is bad news for an opposition figure whose trial just began . And Americans seem to be taking their anger out on food-delivery robots . Guests and host: Robert Guest, deputy editor Pi...

Cancelled flights, longer routes, higher prices: the war in Iran is taking its toll on the airline industry. The conflict may force lasting change on the big Gulf carriers. We ask why the once-frothy fake-meat industry is losing its bite . And why PDFs, one of technology’s most pervasive file types, may meet their end thanks to AI.  Guests and hosts: Simon Wright, industry editor Hollie Berma...

Nigeria sorely needed the enormous oil refinery built by Aliko Dangote, who was already Africa’s richest man. We ask what that new capacity means for him, for Nigeria and for the continent. We speak to the surprisingly large and diverse Iranian diaspora in Los Angeles. And how a cancer diagnosis seems to drive some people to a life of crime .   Guests and host: Ọrẹ Ogunbiyi – Africa corr...

Control of the Strait of Hormuz has become the focus of the war in Iran. The options available point to an acute risk of a broadening regional conflict. China is making great strides in building humanoid robots —but so far they are more about entertainment than utility. And a look at the science to help you get power naps right. Guests and hosts: Gregg Carlstrom, Middle East correspondent Don Wein...

As Israel continues to pound Iran and expands its offensive against Hizbullah in Lebanon, there are rumblings of disunity with America over the path and goal of the conflict. Why now is the time to buy rubbish stocks . And celebrating the life of grand-clown Philippe Gaulier .  Guests and host: Anshel Pfeffer, Israel correspondent Josh Roberts, capital markets correspondent Ann Wroe, obituari...

Iran continues to retaliate against attacks with ferocity. Though many of its ballistic missile facilities have been razed, its vast drone armoury is powerful and destructive. Who will benefit from India’s boom in data centres ? And why giant board games are not child’s play.  Guests and host: Shashank Joshi, defence editor Gavin Jackson, South Asia business and finance correspondent Rosie Bl...