With one America’s biggest news broadcasters, CBS News, reportedly in turmoil under editor-in-chief Bari Weiss, Alan and Lionel are joined by former CBS president Sir Howard Stringer.

After Bari Weiss reportedly pulled a recent episode of the popular 60 Minutes programme from the air, some critics have accused the channel, and its editor, of censorship. Alan and Lionel ask Howard about the effect of Weiss’s management. Has CBS strayed from its original mission? And when did this slide begin?

In a detailed conversation, Howard reflects on journalism at CBS during the Reagan administration, the decline of the network since, and the challenges it now faces. He also discusses the evolution of news media, Donald Trump’s impact on American journalism, and the state of the BBC.

Plus, the three discuss the challenges posed by technological advancements in the media landscape.

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This week, Alan and Lionel return to their Media Confidential duties to analyse the good, the bad and the ugly media reactions to the US abduction of Venezuelan president Nicolás Maduro.

They also discuss a new documentary on investigative journalist Seymour Hersh, whose career has spanned from Watergate to Abu Ghraib. In response to a listener’s question, Alan shares a life hack to broaden your reading for free, and escape information bubbles in an increasing polarised digital landscape.

Plus, Lionel shares some gossip from Piers Morgan’s Christmas party.To have your question featured on Media Confidential, email [email protected].

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You’ve been listening to the Prospect Podcast, Media Confidential’s sister podcast. To subscribe on Spotify, click HERE. For Apple podcasts, click HERE. 

Is Britain becoming a police state?

Last September, Ellen and Imaan were joined by Conor Gearty, a barrister and professor of human rights law at LSE. In his final interview before his passing, Conor explained how his views on the future of protest had changed—and why he was more concerned than ever.

Plus, after hundreds were arrested for supporting the proscribed group Palestine Action, he discussed his reaction to the ban and criticised the Labour government’s stance on protest, which he said panders to a “middle covert authoritarianism”. Are protests from the political left and right treated differently?

Conor also weighed in on what will be at stake if Britain leaves the ECHR. How must Labour respond to Reform’s rhetoric on human rights? And how can democracy be fortified?

To read Conor Gearty’s past writing for Prospect, click here.

Or, to read an edited transcript of this interview, click here.

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You’ve been listening to the Prospect Podcast, Media Confidential’s sister podcast. To subscribe on Spotify, click HERE. For Apple podcasts, click HERE. 

In the final podcast of the year, Ellen and Alona look back at their favourite episodes from 2025. During a dark year, Prospect has been collecting glimmers of hope. They asked some of the most interesting thinkers today—from politics, to environment to tech—for their perspectives on hope and optimism. What keeps them fighting for a more just world?

Philosopher Slavoj Zizek and broadcaster Mehdi Hasan talk about the merits of pessimism. Human rights lawyer Philippe Sands discusses justice in the age of international impunity, while authoritarianism expert Ruth Ben-Ghiat considers the situation in the US.

Poet and writer Robert Macfarlane reflects on preserving nature in a time of destruction. Cory Doctorow and Laura Bates weigh in on transformations in technology and artificial intelligence. Yassmin Abdel-Magied discusses the humanitarianism crisis in Sudan, while Nicola Kelly explores the untold immigration story.

Plus, veteran journalist and outgoing Prospect editor Alan Rusbridger joins the podcast to reflect on his journey, his mistakes, and how he feels about the future—including the contentious thing that unexpectedly makes him feel hopeful.

You can revisit all our episodes from the past year here.

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You’ve been listening to the Prospect Podcast, Media Confidential’s sister podcast. To subscribe on Spotify, click HERE. For Apple podcasts, click HERE. 

Why does every platform seem to get worse over time? Ellen Halliday and Alona Ferber are joined by journalist, tech activist and sci-fi writer Cory Doctorow, who coined the term “enshittification” to describe the decay of digital services into exploitative, user-hostile platforms.

As constraints that once kept platforms in check have broken down, Cory shares how tech giants polluted the digital landscape, why AI-generated “slop” has sped it up, and why we should all care. What’s in it for tech CEOs? What is this is doing to us as humans? And what would real de-enshittification look like?

Cory discusses how to grab people’s attention, and how to fight back against tech giants.

Cory’s book ‘Enshittification: Why Everything Suddenly Got Worse and What To Do About It’ is published by Verso

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Back in July, Alan and Lionel were joined by Line Vaaben, who is ‘existential editor’ at Danish newspaper Politiken.

Line and her team write stories that explore the complexities of life, love and death. She discussed her award-winning journalism with Alan and Lionel, which included spending time embedded in a palliative care ward, notepad in hand, as people took their last breaths.

To listen to all past episodes of Media Confidential, click here.

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Does “no-platforming” have a place in journalism?

Alan and Lionel are joined by Zanny Minton Beddoes, the editor-in-chief of the Economist.They discuss how to cover far-right politics and whether a reporter should ever avoid interviewing divisive figures.

Zanny and Lionel talk about the backlash they each received after interviewing Steve Bannon.The three also reflect on biggest news stories of the year, the “extraordinary” state of politics in the USA and the challenges of mainstream media in covering the Trump administration.

Plus, Zanny explains how the Economist created a new AI lab and changed its strategy to adapt to how readers consume journalism now.

And, with the biggest UK media job of still up for grabs, could she be in the running for director general of the BBC?

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As his time as editor comes to an end, Alan talks to Lionel about his final edition of Prospect—and what he plans to do next. He reflects on his time at the magazine and how it compares to his old haunt at the Guardian.

The pair also discuss Netflix’s bid for Warner Bros, the hunt for Channel 4’s new CEO and the murky world of content moderation.

‘Media Confidential’ with Alan Rusbridger and Lionel Barber will continue on Monday.

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Franz Wild is our guest on this week’s Media Confidential. He’s the editor-in-chief and CEO of the Bureau of Investigative Journalism—also known as “The Bureau”.

Alan, Lionel and Franz discuss society’s dire need for investigative journalism and why the job of being an investigative journalist attracts a certain type of character: someone who is willing to keep their eye on a story that might take years to come to light.

They also talk about funding models, the menacing letters Bureau editors receive, and why they won’t be intimidated by threats of legal action against their journalists.

Franz also talks about the importance of editorial independence and why the public discourse needs investigative journalists.

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This week, Alan and Lionel discuss editorial independence, the BBC’s search for a new director general and ask if the current structure is even working.

Is the role too much for one person? As the post-budget scrutiny rumbles on, they also talk about which publications are producing the best analysis—and whose is best avoided...

Plus, the hosts discuss 40 years of the Independent after learning of the death of one of its founders, Andreas Whittam Smith, and reminisce about the life and legacy of the late Tom Stoppard.

Today’s episode is brought to you by ENERGISE AFRICA – the innovative UK-based investment site that helps bring vital solar energy access to people across sub-Saharan Africa.

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