The Explainer

By The JournalNews

The Explainer episodes

August 13 Could Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez be the next US president?
The US midterm elections are still months away, but attention is already turning to the 2028 presidential race. Speculation about Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez has grown after the New York congresswoman said she was not ruling out a run and topped an early poll of Democratic voters in New Hampshire. Could AOC win the Democratic nomination, would she stand a chance in a general election, or would a run for the Senate make more sense? University of Galway law lecturer and The Journal political columnist Larry Donnelly joins us.
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22 min
August 06 How did 72,000 people cross into Ceuta?
More than 70,000 people crossed from Morocco into Ceuta last week, overwhelming the small Spanish territory on the North African coast. Dozens died, while thousands remain, and questions are mounting about the online rumours that fuelled the rush and Morocco’s role in the breakdown of border controls.

How did it happen, why does Spain have territory in Africa, and what does the crisis mean for Europe’s borders? We're joined by Eoghan Gilmartin a freelance journalist based in Madrid.
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21 min
August 04 Cén fáth go mbíonn muid fós ag streachailt leis an síneadh fada?
This summer, The Journal is releasing a six-part series of The Explainer podcast through Irish, focusing on some of the biggest stories affecting the language and the Gaeltacht areas. This week, we look at why so many people in Ireland still can't use the síneadh fada in their own names, from banking systems to booking forms, and whether a new bill could change that.

Cé go bhfuil cosaint ann don síneadh fada in Éirinn faoin Acht na dTeangacha Oifigiúla 2003 agus 2021, cloistear scéalta go minic faoi chomhlachtaí príobháideacha agus eagraíochtaí poiblí sa stát nach bhfuil in ann sínte fada a úsáid in a gcuid córais teicniúla.

Ní haon ionadh é go mbíonn frustrachas ar dhaoine in Éirinn a bhfuil síneadh fada acu ina n-ainm féin nuair nach féidir leo an fada sin a úsáid i gcóras áirithintí éagsúla. Ach cén fáth go bhfuil caidreamh aisteach againn leis an síneadh fada in Éirinn? Agus cén fáth go bhfuil drogall ar chomhlachtaí Éireannacha cosúil le Banc na hÉireann agus Aer Lingus a gcuid bogearraí a uasdhathú chun déileáil leis an síneadh fada? Agus an ndéanfaidh bille nua atá á mholadh ag an Teachta Dála Shinn Féin Aengus Ó Snódaigh aon difríocht don scéal seo?

Tá Gráinne Ní Aodha ón Press Association linn ar The Explainer chun an scéal seo a mhíniú dúinn.
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23 min
July 29 Could nature itself help stop Ireland's wildfires?
Wildfires have burned across Tipperary, Wicklow, Cork and Kerry over the past fortnight, during one of the driest spells in years. Almost none start naturally. But how far a fire spreads depends on what's growing on the land, and how wet or dry the ground is. More than half the land burned here over the past decade overlapped protected nature sites, according to analysis by The Journal Investigates. So why is our landscape so flammable, and would native woodland and rewetted peatland reduce the risk? Ecologist and environmental campaigner Pádraic Fogarty joins us.
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26 min
July 25 Cad atá i ndán don Ghaeilge mura bhfuil tithíocht ar fáil sa Ghaeltacht?
This summer, The Journal is releasing a six-part series of The Explainer podcast through Irish, focusing on some of the biggest stories affecting the language and the Gaeltacht areas. This week, we are examining the issue of housing in Gaeltacht areas.

An tseachtain seo, táimid ag déanamh imscudú ar cheist na tithíochta sna ceantair Ghaeltachta.

Is cearta daonna í an tithíocht, ach tá gearchéim tithíocht ag réabadh in Éirinn le blianta fada anuas. Ar mionléibheal, cloistear go minic conas nach féidir le daoine sna ceantair Ghaeltachta in Éirinn teach a cheannach nó a chur ar cíos, toisc go bhfuil ganntanas tithíochta sna Gaeltachtaí. Tá rud éigin b’fhéidir níos práinní ag tarlú áfach: mura bhfuil tithíocht sa Ghaeltacht, an mhairfidh an teanga do na glúnta atá le teacht?

I Meán Fomhair seo caite, chuaigh breis is 20,000 duine chun sráide i mBÁC chun airde a tharraignt ar fhadhb na tithíochta agus cearta teanga. An bhfuil mórán athraithe ó shin ar aghaidh? Céard iad na fadhbanna is mó a bhaineann leis an tithíocht sna ceantair ina bhfuil an Ghaeilge mar theanga phobail fós?

Chun an scéal sin a phlé linn, tá Áine Ní Bhreisleáin, iriseoir le Seachtain san Irish Independent ar The Explainer.
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29 min
July 22 Who is Andy Burnham?
Britain has a new prime minister (again): Andy Burnham, the "King of the North", its seventh in ten years and the first to take office openly Catholic. What kind of leader is he, how did he get here, and what does his rise mean for Ireland? Dominic McGrath, UK correspondent with the Business Post, joins us to break it down.
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27 min
July 18 Cén tionchar a bheidh ag an intleacht shaorga ar an teanga?
This summer, The Journal is releasing a six-part series of The Explainer podcast through Irish, focusing on some of the biggest stories affecting the language and the Gaeltacht areas. This week, we are taking a look at artificial intelligence and Irish.

Cloistear faoi bhogearraí intleachta shaorga cosúil le Chatgpt agus Anthropic go minic. Ach i gcomhthéacs na Gaeilge, tá an intleacht shaorga anois mar chuid den phlean dhigiteach an rialtais agus stráitéis intleachta shaorga á chur i bhfeidhm ag Údarás na Gaeltachta. Tá an eagraíócht stát ag iarriadh go ndéanfaí forbairt ar chumas an intleachta shaorga an Ghaeilge a thuiscint ionas nach mbeidh sí fágtha ar an trá fholamh sa reabhlóid digiteach atá ag teacht inár dtreo. Ach cén tionchar a bheidh ag an intleacht shaorga ar earnáil na Gaeilge agus an teanga í féin? Tá Maitiú Ó Coimín, iriseori le Tuairisc, ar an bpodchraoladh chun é seo a phlé.

Tá tacaíocht á fháil ag Beartas Gaeltachta The Journal ón Scéim Tuairiscithe ar Dhaonlathas Áitiúil / The Journal’s Gaeltacht initiative is supported by the Local Democracy Reporting Scheme.
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33 min
July 13 Are Ireland's new community safety partnerships working?
Last autumn, the old Joint Policing Committees were replaced with new Local Community Safety Partnerships. All 36 are now up and running, and the first public meetings are happening. Are they any more open than the structure they replaced, and are they actually making communities safer? This week, The Journal's Eoghan Dalton takes stock of what's working, what's stalling, and what still needs to be proved. Our reporting of the new Local Community Safety Partnerships is supported by the Local Democracy Reporting Scheme.
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18 min
July 08 What was it like inside the George Gibney trial?
For decades, George Gibney was one of the biggest names in Irish swimming. The 77-year-old was convicted this week of 40 counts of sexually abusing four girls in the 1970s and 80s, after an 11-day trial at the Central Criminal Court. The Journal's Jane Moore takes us inside the courtroom.
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20 min
July 03 Ireland just took over the EU presidency, but what does that actually mean?
Ireland has taken over the rotating presidency of the Council of the European Union, but does that mean we're suddenly in charge of Europe? Over the next six months, Ireland will have to broker deals among 27 governments on some thorny issues, from a contested €2 trillion budget to big tech regulation and children's online safety, all while holding onto our traditional stance on military neutrality. We're joined by Barry Colfer, director of research at the Institute of International and European Affairs (IIEA), to examine what Ireland's EU presidency actually entails, and what it means for us at home.
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25 min

About The Explainer

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The Explainer is a weekly podcast from The Journal that takes a deeper look at one big news story you need to know about. What's the background? Why is this in the news? Get the facts behind the…