In The News

Surging gun crime in the United States has put the issue of gun control back on the agenda. But why is it happening - and can anything be done? Washington correspondent Martin Wall reports. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Elon Musk says he wants to buy Twitter, but the board of the company doesn’t seem too hot on the idea. Musk has, nevertheless, filed papers to the Securities and Exchange Commission outlining a $46bn financing package to fund his takeover bid. If it succeeds, it will be just the latest in a long list of controversies surrounding the company.    Irish Times media columnist Laura Slattery...

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The Kinahan family's rise to the top of the Irish drug trade was helped by the low profile and overseas life of Christy Kinhan snr. But a violent feud brought growing attention, as did his son Daniel's ambition to be a player in the world of boxing. Then this week, the United States announced it would sanction the family and offer a $5 million reward for evidence leading to their prosecution. Will...

European countries are welcoming Ukrainian refugees with open arms. But migrants from other parts of the world get much different treatment, as reporter Sally Hayden reveals in her new book. 'My Fourth Time, we Drowned" tells the story of how EU policy has helped create an inhumane system that ends in imprisonment in Libyan detention centres for thousands of migrants. Sally talked to Sorcha Pollak...

Moldova is a small country sandwiched between Romania and Ukraine. It was once part of the Soviet Union. It's not an EU member or a member of the Nato alliance. And it is home to a small breakaway region where Russian is spoken. For all those reasons, many Moldovans are worried that Moscow has its eye on them, and will see the invasion of Ukraine as the best opportunity it will ever get to bring M...

After more than three decades in the limelight, action star Bruce Willis has retired from acting. Taking to social media, his family revealed the actor has recently been diagnosed with Aphasia, a cognitive disorder which affects a person's ability to communicate. Chief film correspondent Donald Clarke speaks to Sorcha Pollak about Willis’ path to fame, from his days on 80s comedy drama Moonlightin...

Alleged war crimes in Ukraine have shocked Europe and the world. But as war drags on, can the EU react strongly and maintain a united response to Russia's invasion? Meanwhile in Budapest the EU leader closest to Putin, prime minister Viktor Orban, has won reelection. But Hungary's isolation within the EU is growing. Naomi O'Leary is Europe correspondent. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for...

Russian diplomats have been expelled from Ireland in the past, but the move to send four of them back to Moscow last week as a signal to the Kremlin of Ireland’s condemnation of the war in Ukraine, marks a low-point in relations between the two countries. The controversial Russian embassy on Dublin’s Orwell Road has come under a renewed spotlight since the war began, but it has been suspected...

After more than two years advising the Government on the coronavirus pandemic, the National Public Health Emergency Team for Covid-19 (Nphet) finally disbanded in February of this year. But as Ireland grapples another wave of the Omicron variant, was it the right time to go? Irish Times political reporter and co-author of Pandemonium, an upcoming book on the Irish pandemic Jack Horgan Jones s...

Multi-level marketing companies, or MLMs, have grown in popularity across the UK and Ireland in recent years, particularly during the pandemic when online companies wooed people with the promise of big money and work-from-home flexibility. They’re touted as one way tickets to financial success, but in reality many recruits end up working for free. Irish Times reporters Jessica Doyle and Adesewa Aw...

Sunday April 3rd will be a big day for Ireland. It’s the day when every household in the country will complete the census, answering questions about who they are, what they do and what they believe in. So what insight does it give us into modern Ireland and how is the information used to plan for the future? Conor Pope speaks to Eileen Murphy, head of census administration at the Central Statistic...

Why has Mariupol, a major port city in the south east of Ukraine, become the focal point of Putin's war? In today's episode, Lara Marlowe describes the devastation faced by the people of Mariupol over the last four weeks, while Dr Christian Kaunert, Professor of International Security at Dublin City University, explains what Russia stands to gain by capturing the city. Hosted by Sorcha Pollak. Pro...

A second wave of Omicron is hitting the country like a tsunami and hospital case numbers are on the rise. The Government is reluctant to re-introduce restrictions or mandatory mask wearing, so what options remain? In today’s episode Dr Gerald Barry, Assistant Professor of Virology at UCD, speaks to Conor Pope about this fresh wave of Omicron and what ‘living with the virus’ will really mean for pe...

Over half a million cold calls have been made to random phone numbers in Russia in recent days, as part of an international campaign to bypass Putin’s propaganda. The people making these calls want to inform Russians about the real atrocities of the war, in an attempt to spur them into action. In today’s episode, Conor Pope speaks to one of the developers behind the Call Russia campaign, Irish-bas...

It's three weeks since Vladimir Putin invaded Ukraine, expecting to fight a short war that he would win. While that hasn’t happened, people in besieged cities like Mariupol are suffering terribly under intense daily bombardment by Russian forces.  Daniel McLaughlin and Lara Marlowe are reporting for The Irish Times from the western city of Lviv, which has not seen any fighting so far.  T...

Climate scientists are warning that the Amazon rainforest may be nearing a tipping point of “dieback”, the point where it dries out and turns to savannah. If it’s reached, it will have consequences across the planet. Sorcha Pollak talks to one of the scientists behind the research, Dr Chris Boulton of University of Exeter, about what they’ve learned.  Irish Times South American correspon...

Irish Times features writer Patrick Freyne delves into the confusing world of NFTs. What are they and why are they making people so rich? And how easy it to make one? He tells Conor Pope everything there is to know about the non-fungible token. Produced by Declan Conlon and Suzanne Brennan Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has triggered the fasting-growing refugee crisis in Europe since the second world war. Already, more than one and half million people have crossed into neighbouring countries to escape the onslaught. In today's episode, Conor Pope speaks to political correspondent Harry McGee about the Irish government's plan to take in 100-thousand refugees. We also hear from two Ukra...

Since late 2021, the United States was warning that Vladimir Putin was about to invade Ukraine. Yet despite two decades of deteriorating relations with the Russian president, EU leaders refused to believe it would happen. Now, nearly a fortnight into Putin’s war with Ukraine, it’s far from clear as to how this ends. In this episode, The Irish Times assistant editor Ruadhán Mac Cormaic profiles the...

Labour’s outgoing leader Alan Kelly surprised many when he announced his resignation on Wednesday after less than two years in the role, saying the parliamentary party had lost collective confidence in his leadership. The Irish Times political reporter Jack Horgan-Jones talks to producer Jennifer Ryan about what happened behind the scenes to bring about the Tipperary TD’s toppling. Producer: Decla...

Lara Marlowe travels from Paris to the Ukrainian border with a group of men returning to fight against the Russian invasion. Dan McLaughlin reports on hope and fear, kindness and determination in Kyiv, as the fate of the city hangs in the balance. And Naomi O'Leary observes a historic day in the EU parliament, where solidarity with Ukraine took precedence over old concerns about Europe's role in c...

Today the requirement to wear masks in shops and on public transport is gone. In terms of rules and restrictions at least, things are "back to normal". But many things are different than they were in March 2020, from behaviour and lifestyle to crime, the economy and politics. Sorcha Pollak talks to Jennifer O'Connell and Simon Carswell about how things have changed. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/...

Earlier today, we spoke to our reporter in Ukraine Dan McLaughlin about what he is witnessing on the ground in Ukraine as Russia invades, the resilience of the Ukrainian people, its president and its neighbours, and how although this moment was predicted, it still comes as a horrific shock. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Monday was an extraordinary day of tension and drama as, in a series of televised events, Russian president Vladimir Putin made clear his decision to recognise the independence of two regions of Ukraine that broke away from the Kyiv government in 2014. Putin's dark reasoning for the move, explained in a lengthy address, raises the very real prospect of further action against Ukraine. Dan McLaughli...