The Economist Podcasts

By The Economist

News & Politics

What's The Economist Podcasts about?

Every weekday our global network of correspondents makes sense of the stories beneath the headlines. We bring you surprising trends and tales from around the world, current affairs, business and finance—as well as science and technology. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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Off the top of their heads:...

09.28.2022

Women are burning their hijabs on bonfires and hacking off their hair—but the unrest has come to be about far more than the heavy hands of the morality police. The murder of Abe Shinzo, a former Japanese prime minister, exposed ...

The Economist Podcasts episodes:

09.28.2022 Off the top of their heads: Iran’s widespread protests Women are burning their hijabs on bonfires and hacking off their hair—but the unrest has come to be about far more than the heavy hands of the morality police. The murder of Abe Shinzo, a former Japanese prime minister, exposed ...
09.27.2022 Babbage: How psychedelics could fix the brain Psychedelic drugs—such as LSD and psilocybin, the psychoactive compound found in magic mushrooms—may be coming to the medicine cabinet. Research into their use to treat mental-health conditions was long blocked by law and stigma. But in recent years, there has ...
09.27.2022 In for a penny, in for a pounding: Britain’s economic gyrations The markets are so far entirely unconvinced that the new administration’s Reagan-esque economic plans will work to spur growth—just look at sterling's tumble. In Tibet, China’s mass collection of DNA samples has one unabashed motive: social control. And the curious ...
09.26.2022 Editor’s Picks: September 26th 2022 A selection of three essential articles read aloud from the latest issue of The Economist. This week, a new-look Gulf, Vladimir Putin's partial mobilisation (10:45), and the Google-Meta advertising duopoly (15:00). Please subscribe to The Economist for full access to ...
09.26.2022 Giorgia on my mind: Italy’s far-right government Italians have voted decisively for a coalition of right-wing parties, with Giorgia Meloni, leader of the Brothers of Italy, the likely next prime minister. What this means for Italy, Europe and the war in Ukraine remains unclear. Latin American prisons ...
09.23.2022 Checks and Balance: Ukraine relief “The world should see the outrageous acts for what they are," Joe Biden told the United Nations General Assembly this week, condemning Russia's invasion of Ukraine. So far, America has led efforts to support Ukraine’s fight back against the aggressor ...
09.23.2022 Empire State v real-estate empire: Donald Trump’s legal woes Letitia James, New York’s attorney general, announced a sweeping lawsuit against Donald Trump, his businesses and three of his children. He’s also being investigated over allegations of election interference in Georgia and storing classified documents at his Florida resort. The ...
09.22.2022 The Economist Asks: Why is progress on gender equality slowing? The covid-19 pandemic played havoc with the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals. Progress to achieve gender equality by 2030 has not only stalled, it’s reversed. Host Anne McElvoy asks Melinda French Gates, a philanthropist, if the target still makes sense. ...
09.22.2022 Inflation nation: The Fed raises rates, again America’s Federal Reserve made its third straight 0.75% interest-rate hike, with Jerome Powell, the Fed’s chair, warning that more hikes would follow. But with inflation still high, and labour markets still tight, is the Fed doing all it can? A ...
09.21.2022 Money Talks: Beyond seasonable doubt Lawsuits aimed at green-house gas emissions are a growing trend, and better science is making them more precise. As ESG comes under attack, could these suits represent a different front in pressuring companies to act on climate change? On this ...
09.21.2022 The 300,000 body problem: Russia mobilises and threatens This morning Vladimir Putin announced that Russia would call up more troops to fight in Ukraine, said his goal of “liberating” eastern Ukraine remained unchanged and accused the west of “nuclear blackmail.” Our correspondent parses his speech. Our midterm series ...
09.20.2022 Babbage: How science can save the world During the pandemic, scientists gained greater prominence in the lives of ordinary people than ever before. And while covid-19 highlighted the importance of the field to humanity, it also raised questions about the role of scientists in modern life. Host ...
09.20.2022 Charles in charge: the future of the Commonwealth Elizabeth II was devoted to the Commonwealth, a club of countries that are home to one-third of the world’s population. What is its future under Charles III? Jeddah is Saudi Arabia’s most charming and cosmopolitan city, which Saudi Arabia’s de ...
09.19.2022 Editor’s Picks: September 19th 2022 A selection of three essential articles read aloud from the latest issue of The Economist. This week, why the British monarchy matters, Vladimir Putin’s war is failing (10:31), and China’s property crisis hasn’t gone away (17:59). Please subscribe to The ...
09.19.2022 The first draft is history: Chile’s rejected constitution Two years in the making, the country’s new foundational document was summarily swatted down in a referendum. We ask how it went so wrong, and what comes next. Data show a long-held view on fertility and prosperity is not as ...
09.16.2022 Checks and Balance: Roe your own way The most significant moment in the midterms campaigns may have come in June. That was when the Supreme Court decided to overturn Roe v Wade, taking away the federal right to an abortion and sending the decision back to the ...
09.16.2022 Minority report: the Rohingya, five years on Five years after a brutal campaign that drove nearly 750,000 out of Myanmar and into Bangladesh, conditions for the Muslim minority remain appalling on both sides of the border. Central Asian countries are laying plans for railways that would fill ...
09.15.2022 The Economist Asks: Could Vladimir Putin lose the war in Ukraine? Ukraine has made a remarkable turnaround. In a few days, its army liberated 6,000 square kilometres of territory–more than Russia had seized in the previous five months. Host Anne McElvoy asks Wesley Clark, a retired four-star US general, if Ukraine’s ...
09.15.2022 Xi sells sanctuary: a telling Putin meeting As the presidents of China and Russia meet in Uzbekistan, we examine their friendship. They have much in common—but Russia’s prosecution of the war in Ukraine may strain relations. Islamic State and al-Qaeda may be less in the news but ...
09.14.2022 Money talks: India's moment India’s economy recently overtook Britain’s to be the world’s fifth largest, and it’s on track to be the fastest growing big economy this year. Part of what’s powering that growth is renewed domestic investment by the country’s big conglomerates. Could ...
09.14.2022 Cautiousness in the Caucasus: Azerbaijan and Armenia clash A conflict smouldering since a war in 2020 has again caught alight; Azerbaijan may feel emboldened by a distracted Russia and its own energy prospects. Gulf countries are swimming in piles of unexpected, oil-derived cash: we ask whether they will ...
09.13.2022 Babbage: Will Ethereum’s merge transform crypto? A monumental shift is about to take place in the crypto world. One of the most important blockchain projects, Ethereum, is set to change the way it secures its network—from the energy-intensive “proof-of-work” system to the greener “proof-of-stake” method. Known ...
09.13.2022 Joule of denial: Russia’s energy games Vladimir Putin hopes the threat of cutting off fuel supplies this winter will weaken Europe’s support for Ukraine. European leaders are trying to cobble together a collective response to prevent such fracturing. Before Russia invaded, Ukraine’s surrogacy industry was booming. ...
09.12.2022 Editor’s Picks: September 12th 2022 A selection of three essential articles read aloud from the latest issue of The Economist. This week, the death of Elizabeth II marks the end of an era. Also, why Jair Bolsonaro poses a threat to Brazilian democracy (11:15), and ...
09.12.2022 Russian rush-out: Ukraine’s stunning gains Russia has lost in a week what cost it months to gain in eastern Ukraine. We ask what the lightning counter-offensive means for the war. What is more surprising than Mississippi’s capital lacking access to clean drinking water is that ...
09.09.2022 Checks and Balance: The elephant in the boardroom The close relationship between the Republican Party and the corporate world has shaped American capitalism for decades. Businesses are used to disdain from Democrats, but vitriol from the right is newer. This has been on display in public brawls between ...
09.09.2022 Beyond the call of duty: Britain’s queen dies The death of Queen Elizabeth II marks the end of an era. We explore her long, dutiful reign and how it shaped the modern monarchy. The country has changed substantially during her time, but one parallel remains: her successor, King ...
09.08.2022 The Economist Asks: Can Britain’s new prime minister solve an economic crisis? The new leader of the Conservative Party, Liz Truss, faces an enormous task. Britain is contending with soaring energy bills, double-digit inflation and the unresolved backwash of Brexit. Host Anne McElvoy asks Lord Razzall and former Tory leader Iain Duncan ...
09.08.2022 Playing his Trump card: Bolsonaro and the election In Brazil, fears are growing that if Jair Bolsonaro loses in October, as polls suggest is likely, he may try to stage a coup or foment violence. He’s been sowing distrust in the country’s electoral system, and many of his ...
09.07.2022 Introducing The Prince Xi Jinping is the most powerful person in the world. But the real story of China’s leader remains a mystery. The Economist’s Sue-Lin Wong finds out how he rose to the top in a new podcast series launching on September ...
09.07.2022 Money Talks: Running on empty Europe is facing a catastrophic energy crisis. Prices for the natural gas needed to power many of its electricity plants have increased ten-fold since last summer. Most recently, Russia has choked off gas supplies to the Nord Stream 1 pipeline ...
09.07.2022 America’s next top model: predicting the midterm results Our model, built to predict the outcome of this year’s midterm elections, tips Republicans to take the House and Democrats to retain control of the Senate. The model’s architect discusses how and why he built it, and our polling guru ...
09.06.2022 Babbage: From our archive—the James Webb Space Telescope In recent months, the world has been astounded by cosmic images taken by the James Webb Space Telescope. By gazing deep into space, it can see billions of years back in time, and promises to transform human understanding of the ...
09.06.2022 Deed of Truss: Britain’s new leader As Liz Truss becomes prime minister, we ask whether her meat-and-potatoes tax-slashing agenda will work for a crisis-stricken Britain. Japan’s prison population is ageing just as its wider society is—and that is at last prompting reforms to its punitive penal ...
09.05.2022 Editor’s Picks: September 5th 2022 A selection of three essential articles read aloud from the latest issue of The Economist. This week, the disunited states of America, why Britain can't build (9:15) and Pakistan’s worst floods in recent memory (17:05). Please subscribe to The Economist ...
09.05.2022 Cereal numbers: the fall in food prices The worst predictions for costs have not come to pass, partly because Russia is selling plenty of wheat. But plenty of food-price woe may still await. We examine the curious re-appearance of the polio virus in the West. And the ...
09.02.2022 Checks and Balance: A house divided Red and blue states have always been different. Each state’s ability to experiment, iterate and differentiate has been a source of strength. But as federal politics has become more partisan, so have the states. On everything from abortion to climate, ...
09.02.2022 No quiet on any front: Ethiopia’s clash of conflicts After a five-month hiatus, violence has returned to the northern region of Tigray—but that is just one of the conflicts threatening to pull the country to pieces. China’s Belt and Road Initiative has made it a prominent developing-world lender. How ...
09.01.2022 The Economist Asks: How can mental health-care crises be solved? During the 13 years Thomas Insel led America’s National Institute of Mental Health, medicines and treatments for those with serious mental health disorders improved, but outcomes did not. Host Anne McElvoy asks him what has gone wrong–and how it might ...
09.01.2022 Ready, steady, slow: Ukraine’s bid for Kherson The long-trailed counter-offensive to retake the Russian-occupied regional powerhouse and symbolically powerful provincial capital has begun. But Ukraine’s forces are in no hurry. Visa and Mastercard are two of the world’s most profitable companies; we look at efforts to break ...
08.31.2022 Money Talks: Will the electric vehicle boom go bust? This month, California banned the sale of petrol cars by 2035. It could prompt a third of American states to embrace electric vehicles more quickly. But America is a laggard when it comes to the EV revolution. The European Parliament ...
08.31.2022 Iron Curtain call: Mikhail Gorbachev The leader who oversaw the Soviet Union’s collapse had only intended to reform it. But the propaganda and repression he abhorred were what held it together. A speed bump lies ahead for electric vehicles: manufacturing and mining capacity may not ...
08.30.2022 Babbage: The open-source intelligence war Six months have passed since Russia invaded Ukraine. It is arguably the most transparent conflict ever, thanks to publicly available satellite data and social media. How has open-source intelligence (OSINT) shaped the war? The Economist’s defence editor Shashank Joshi examines ...
08.30.2022 Home truths: a global property wobble As interest rates rise, lots of pandemic-era property trends are fading—but not every market is equally vulnerable as the boom peters out. Generals have long avoided fighting in cities: it is messy and dangerous. Increasingly, though, they have no choice. ...
08.29.2022 Editor’s Picks: August 29th 2022 A selection of three essential articles read aloud from the latest issue of The Economist. This week, are sanctions on Russia working? Plus, Joe Biden’s sweeping debt-forgiveness plan (10:00) and in defence of commuting (15:10). Please subscribe to The Economist ...
08.29.2022 The third horseman: famine stalks Somalia Our correspondent reports from Somalia, which stands on the brink of famine thanks to a drought, soaring food costs and infrastructure destroyed by decades of fighting. Old Hollywood studios are waging an epic battle against their upstart streaming rivals. And ...
08.26.2022 Checks and Balance: Extreme goes mainstream After the FBI raided Donald Trump’s Florida home, Mar-a-Lago, threats against law enforcement surged and an armed man tried to break into the agency’s office in Cincinnati. Election, health-care and school officials are feeling increasingly unsafe doing their jobs. Is ...
08.26.2022 Them that’s got shall have: student-debt relief America’s federal government will spend hundreds of billions of dollars cancelling student-loan debt—fulfilling a long-standing progressive wish. But while it may be good politics, the policy rationale makes less sense. Too many Nigerian children are sent to beg on the ...
08.25.2022 The Economist Asks: Can Russian history explain the Ukraine crisis? Six months into Vladimir Putin’s war in Ukraine, host Jon Fasman asks historian Orlando Figes how Russian history can help make sense of the conflict. The bestselling author explains how past myths and ideologies continue to shape Russia’s attitude to ...
08.25.2022 Cell-by date: Malaysia’s ex-PM is jailed Najib Razak, prime minister during the massive 1MDB scandal in which billions went missing, lost his final appeal against corruption convictions. We ask what that means for Malaysia’s politics. Many American voters want the law changed on livestock welfare—but the ...

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