Left To Burn

Field recording is the new photojournalism. In part two of The Battleground’s 7 July session at MayDay Rooms, Duncan Simpson and Joel Schalit play “Isleworth Window Noisy Arrest, Hounslow” — the most gripping track on their new LP, Outsidergrad — and unpack its context. For them, field recording is as much a tool for consciousness-raising as it is a documentary practice: sound alone, without images or narration, can capture the human condition in ways traditional reporting cannot. The discussion begins at 5:38.

It was the best Battleground event yet. If you couldn’t make it, we recorded it for you. On 7 July, The Battleground launched Josh White’s new e-book, Tories Are Dead, and Outsidergrad, Duncan Simpson and Joel Schalit’s collaborative field recordings LP, at MayDay Rooms, on Fleet Street. This is the first of a three-part series.

By Left To Burn

In the second part of their conversation, Battleground Publisher Natalie Sarkic-Todd and Roma Foundation for Europe President Zeljko Jovanovic dive into the details, discussing the obstacles that Roma face in EU member states and how they’re working to overcome them. Particularly noteworthy is Jovanovic’s explanation of the importance of Roma voters in recent elections in Hungary and Romania.

Photograph courtesy of Natalie Sarkic-Todd. All rights reserved.

By Left To Burn

In the first of a two-part series, Battleground Publisher Natalie Sarkic-Todd interviews the president of the Roma Foundation for Europe, Zeljko Jovanovic, about the foundation’s efforts to empower the Roma community. In a wide-ranging conversation, they explore the reasons for the marginalisation of Europe’s largest and youngest ethnic minority, opportunities for youth education and employment, the entrepreneurial ability of Roma women, the power of political representation, and the value of Roma history and culture, recently exhibited at the Venice Biennale.

Photograph courtesy of Natalie Sarkic-Todd. All rights reserved.

By Left To Burn

Few political problems became as acute during the Gaza War as European Holocaust remembrance. Particularly in Germany, where commemorating the Shoah became instrumentalised in anti-Palestinian and Islamophobic policymaking and leftist Jews were arrested and charged with Antisemitism for protesting the conflict. Nowhere in Europe has this approach to the Nazi genocide become more normalised than under the German-led von der Leyen Commission, and its Bavarian-born Coordinator on Combating Antisemitism and Fostering Jewish life, Katharina von Schnurbein. William Noah Glucroft and Joel Schalit, on the European Commission-hosted 2026 Holocaust Remembrance Conference.

Photograph courtesy of Joel Schalit. All rights reserved.

By Left To Burn

First, it was the Sukkot War. Then, it was the Iron Swords War. Now it’s the War of Redemption. No name has stuck to the conflict that erupted on 7 October 2023, which the Trump Administration and the majority of the world’s media have declared is now over. William Noah Glucroft and Joel Schalit discuss failures to brand the war in Gaza, and how it reflects the savagery of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

By Left To Burn

Award-winning Afghan filmmaker, producer and director, Roya Sadat, opened the Brussels International Women’s Film Festival 2025 with her latest film, Sima’s Song. She spoke with Battleground publisher Natalie Sarkic-Todd about her own story, her filmmaking career and the importance of women’s voices. Sadat founded the International Women’s Film Festival in Herat, Afghanistan, now a Taliban stronghold, and currently lives in Seattle.

By Left To Burn

Gaza is everywhere. Few Jewish holidays highlighted its presence more than Yom Kippur this year, when Jihad Al-Shamie, a 35-year-old British citizen of Syrian descent, carried out a car ramming and stabbing attack at a Manchester synagogue. William Noah Glucroft and Joel Schalit deconstruct the violence and the international battlefield of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

By Left To Burn

If only it were about trauma. But, Bibi being Bibi, the premier can’t help himself. Endlessly mining the 11 September attacks to cover for his 7 October failings, Netanyahu turns Israel into America, granting himself the military power he lacks without Washington’s help. In today’s show, William Noah Glucroft and Joel Schalit examine Bibi’s political rhetoric and its impact on Jewish geography, bemoaning the consequences of living within an imaginary American bubble.

By Left To Burn

It’s all about framing. In the lead-up to the second anniversary of 7 October, William Noah Glucroft and Joel Schalit break down the major themes of the Gaza War, their significance for Israelis and Palestinians, and the conflict’s impact on European politics. Doubtless, they’ll have some additional items to discuss on October 8th. Today, the series kicks off with a conversation about Benjamin Netanyahu’s plans for a Super Sparta, Jewish identity and hummus in Berlin.