The Lede

Following the dramatic recent political developments in Syria, Ammar Azzouz, author of “Domicide: Architecture, War and the Destruction of Home in Syria,” and Wendy Pearlman, author of “The Home I Worked To Make: Voices From the New Syrian Diaspora,” join New Lines’ Lydia Wilson on The Lede to discuss how conflict and exile have shaped Syrians’ idea of home, and how that might change in an uncerta...

On this week’s episode, acclaimed journalist and author Robert Kaplan joins New Lines’ Faisal Al Yafai on The Lede for a discussion on Donald Trump, the Iraq War and his new book “Waste Land: A World in Permanent Crisis.” Further listening: The American Experiment From Outside and Within — with Hari Kunzru and Faisal Al Yafai Produced by Finbar Anderson

Will 2025 bring resolutions to the many news stories of the previous year? Four of New Lines’ editors consider the upcoming second Donald Trump presidency, the conflicts in Gaza and Ukraine, possible turbulence in Europe and the future for Syria. Further listening: Survival and Statehood in Ukraine — with Yaroslav Trofimov Produced by Finbar Anderson

Returning to the podcast, Mary Kaldor, professor emeritus of global governance at the London School of Economics, joins New Lines’ Lydia Wilson for a discussion on how to end the various intractable wars still raging in 2025, from Gaza to Ukraine. Produced by Finbar Anderson

On this rerun episode of Global Insights on The Lede, originally aired in July, host Kwangu Liwewe discusses the inexorable rise of soccer stars of African origin with former Nigeria star player Segun “The Mathematical” Odegbami and soccer journalist Ponga Liwewe. Produced by Finbar Anderson

In this special Christmas episode of The Lede, New Lines’ most culinary-minded discuss the mysterious, thrilling and sometimes bloody origin stories of their favorite dishes, and go head-to-head in the annual Christmas quiz. Produced by Finbar Anderson

In a momentous week in the history of Syria, New Lines’ Middle East Editor Kareem Shaheen and Editorial Director Rasha Elass join Faisal Al Yafai on The Lede to discuss how the Assad regime’s collapse happened so quickly, the terrible symbolism of the Sednaya prison complex and what’s next for Syria’s future. Further reading: The Backstory Behind the Fall of Aleppo by Hassan Hassan and Michael Wei...

Bestselling historian Katja Hoyer joins New Lines’ Faisal Al Yafai on The Lede to discuss her history of East Germany, reunification and the former state’s most famous living politician, Angela Merkel, who has just published a major new memoir. Produced by Finbar Anderson

This week’s episode of Global Insights on The Lede looks at the arrest warrants issued by the International Criminal Court for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, his former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, and Hamas military commander Mohammed Deif, with insight from Itamar Mann, a professor at the University of Haifa’s Faculty of Law, New Lines’ Middle East Editor Kareem Shaheen and Global...

On this week’s episode of the podcast, Middle East cultural expert Diana Darke joins New Lines’ Lydia Wilson to discuss the unacknowledged influence of Islamic architecture on medieval buildings throughout Europe. Further reading | A New Theory: European Cathedrals Show Traces of Ancient Egypt Produced by Finbar Anderson

One week after the American election, New Lines’ Faisal Al Yafai is joined by the novelist and commentator Hari Kunzru for a discussion on the changing currents of American society and culture, the author’s recent novels, and Kunzru’s new introduction to the Edward Said classic “Culture and Imperialism.” Produced by Finbar Anderson

Throughout 2024, The Lede has covered a number of elections. Few of them are likely to be as consequential as the reelection of Donald Trump in the United States. A panel of New Lines editors discuss what Trump’s victory means both for America and around the world. Further reading: The Threat Trump Poses Is Real, but Democrats Must Learn Through Defeat Produced by Finbar Anderson

Once again, the debate over whether or not Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump might be a threat to the future of America’s democracy is dominating the narrative around November’s knife-edge election. But that debate, political scientists John Sides and Sheri Berman tell New Lines’ Danny Postel, is unlikely to be where the election is actually won or lost. Produced by Finbar Anderson Addi...

In this episode of Global Insights on The Lede, Gazan journalist Abeer Ayyoub tells New Lines’ Kwangu Liwewe about a recent trip to Cairo, Egypt, to which her sister has recently fled from Gaza. Ayyoub also tells Liwewe about her parents’ decision to stay in the beleaguered northern part of Gaza. Produced by Finbar Anderson

This week’s episode of The Lede welcomes back returning guest Ece Temelkuran, whose book “How To Lose a Country,” has just been republished with the subtitle, “The Seven Steps From Democracy to Fascism.” Temelkuran joins Faisal Al Yafai to test the pulse of global democracy and consider the rise of fascism since her last appearance on the podcast.   Produced by Finbar Anderson

In this week’s episode of The Lede, New Lines’ Faisal Al Yafai is joined by The Wall Street Journal’s chief foreign affairs correspondent, Yaroslav Trofimov, for a discussion about modern Ukraine and Trofimov’s new novel, “No Country for Love,” set in the country’s turbulent early 20th century. Produced by Finbar Anderson

In this week’s episode, New Lines’ Faisal Al Yafai discusses the assassination of Hassan Nasrallah and the outsize role the Hezbollah leader had in the Arab world and Israel with the magazine’s Middle East Editor Kareem Shaheen and Yair Wallach, a reader in Israeli studies at the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS) in London. Further reading: The Day After Hassan Nasrallah Produced by Fi...

On this episode of Global Insights on The Lede, the executive director of the joint United Nations Programme on HIV and AIDS, Winnie Byanyima, joins New Lines’ Kwangu Liwewe to examine the global response to the mpox outbreak in Africa, and how it relates to the continent’s past and ongoing struggle against HIV. Produced by Finbar Anderson

On this week’s episode of The Lede, renowned professor of Holocaust and genocide studies Omer Bartov of Brown University joins New Lines’ Lisa Goldman to discuss his recent trip to Israel and how his position in the debate on genocide has fundamentally changed. Produced by Finbar Anderson

For this first episode of the new season of The Lede, New Lines’ Faisal Al Yafai sits down with journalist Paul Caruana Galizia, whose mother was murdered in Malta as a result of her reporting, to discuss the importance of investigative journalism and the terrible price it can exact. Produced by Finbar Anderson

As The Lede takes a summer break, listen again to one of our favorite conversations from the past year, which was shortlisted in the International Women's Podcast Awards. This week, we go back to a conversation between Zahra Hankir, author of “Eyeliner: A Cultural History,” and New Lines’ Ola Salem about the fascinating history of the humble eyeliner. Produced by Finbar Anderson

As Global Insights on The Lede takes a summer break, listen again to one of our favorite episodes from the past year. We published this episode about the rise of toxic masculinity in Kenya and South Africa following the murders of two Kenyan women this January, with insight from South African author Rosie Motene and Caroline Kimeu, The Guardian’s East Africa global development correspondent.  Prod...

On this week’s episode of The Lede, sociologist Eman Abdelhadi and David Faris, author of “It’s Time To Fight Dirty: How Democrats Can Build a Lasting Majority in American Politics,” join New Lines’ Danny Postel in Chicago to discuss the ongoing battle to determine the future of the Democratic Party. Further reading: Kamala’s Progressive Skeptics Produced by Finbar Anderson

Ex-Pentagon adviser Jasmine El-Gamal sits down with New Lines’ Faisal Al Yafai on The Lede for a wide-ranging discussion that covers her time working as a translator during the Iraq War and at Guantanamo Bay, the unique perspective she gained working as an adviser to the Pentagon for three U.S. defense secretaries, and Joe Biden’s failures on Gaza. Further reading: Lost and Found in Guantanamo Bay...

Lebanon is no stranger to conflict. For many of its citizens, a vicious 15-year civil war and a short but brutal war with Israel in 2006 are within living memory. Now, another conflict simmers on the country’s southern border with Israel and threatens every day to expand across the country. New Lines’ Faisal Al Yafai speaks to Lebanese translator and writer Lina Mounzer to understand what the atmo...