The Fourcast

We all know that the War in Ukraine has up-ended peace in Europe and shaken geopolitics on the continent.

Nowhere more so that in Germany - where the Chancellor spoke of a turning point - with the country pledging to ditch its ties to Moscow and arm Ukraine.

But months later, that turning point appears to have been more words than action - with European allies frustrated with Germany’s apparent inability to fully commit to the Ukrainian cause.

Today, our Europe Editor Matt Frei looks at the reasons why Germany’s past means it is more hesitant to fully commit to a European conflict - and whether that will finally change as this war drags on.

Sources: DW News, France 24

Producer: Rachel Evans

It was a decision that America knew was coming. Jubilation from those who want abortion banned across the US but a devastating blow for those who’ve fought for women to retain the right to choose.

The Supreme Court has reversed five decades of legal protection for abortion rights created by the 1973 landmark judgement, Roe v Wade that gave women the constitutional right to have an abortion.

Now, the Supreme Court with it’s Conservative majority has done what pro-life campaigners have desired for 50 years, taken that right away from women, and handed it back to the states. And nearly half of them will ban abortion outright, even in cases of rape and incest.

In this episode of The Fourcast we speak to Professor Mary Ziegler, who has written extensively on abortion rights in America, and to Tamaya Cox-Toure, part of the Amerian Civil Liberties Union in Oklahoma, about the ramifications we’re already seeing in her state and beyond.

Sources: AP, CSPAN

Produced by: Nina Hodgson

The war in Ukraine continues, with no end in sight.

Ukraine says to end this war they need weapons from the west - that’s the only way they can win. But Kyiv says that they’re not getting what they want and when they want it.

So, how long will this war drag on and what does victory look like for Ukraine, for Russia and for the West?

Today we speak to Lindsey Hilsum, our international editor, who spent weeks in Ukraine since the war began and has covered countless conflicts around the world. 

She tells us about why peace isn’t always peace, why some European leaders are going “wobbly” and why poets understand so much more than journalists.

Produced by: Nina Hodgson and Rachel Evans

Sources: France 24

It’s just over a year since 23-year-old Gracie Spinks was found dead after reporting being stalked by her colleague Michael Sellers.

Her family says a new Independent Office for Police Conduct investigation (IOPC) seems to confirm their worst nightmare that police didn’t fulfil their duty to investigate properly and that their daughter’s death might have been preventable.

In today’s episode our reporter Anja Popp tells Minnie about what happened to Gracie, the findings of the IOPC report and how Gracie’s family are now fighting for change in the name of Gracie.

If you have been affected by any of the issues covered in that report, you can find a range of places to seek help by visiting channel4.com/support

Produced by: Nina Hodgson

Rwanda is of course in the news because back in April, the UK government confirmed a £120m deal to deport adults who arrived illegally into the UK after January 1st this year to this African nation. And last week’s attempt to start this policy failed.

The Home secretary has said the Rwanda deal will act as a deterrent for people smugglers, while also allowing those sent there the opportunity to “build their lives”. 

But can asylum seekers really do that in a nation that has a shocking human rights record, particularly when it comes to LGBTQ+ people?

Rwanda’s high commissioner Johnston Busingye says: “There’s no doubt that we [Rwanda] are a work in progress, every country is, but the Rwanda of today is unrecognisable from the country the world was introduced to in 1994.” 

In this episode, we’re going to focus on how this immigration policy is of particular concern to LGBTQ+ asylum seekers, who are fleeing persecution. 

Producer: Freya Pickford

The age-old issue of misogyny in the world of Westminster has continued to rock British politics this year. 

From an MP’s resignation after watching porn at work to a sexist article which suggested deputy labour leader Angela Rayner used a “Basic Instinct ploy” to distract the prime minister in the commons, the Houses of Parliament is suffering from its own internal crisis. 

There have been a myriad of sexual misconduct claims, three MPs have recently lost the whip for sexual harassment, bullying and sexual assault respectively. And another has been accused of rape.  

So why is misogyny in 2022 still plaguing parliament? And after a series of sexism scandals is it time, like many have suggested, that HR arrived in the House of Commons?

Today, we will speak to the women inside Westminster - high-profile politicians from both sides of the political spectrum and a renowned female journalist - who can give us an insight to where it’s all gone wrong and whether this is time for a radical change in the culture of British politics. 

Sources: STV, Sky News, ITV news

Producer: Rachel Evans

In 2020, the biggest killer of children in America was not cars, nor cancer, but guns. 

Yet in the 23 years since Columbine, the 15 years since Virginia Tech, the ten years since Sandy Hook, the four years since Parkland, nothing from Congress.

Following the Uvalde shooting, senators on both sides have hinted at some possible legislation. Is change coming?

We speak to Matt Frei, who has spent years reporting on the US, covered many presidential elections and unfortunately many mass shootings. We discuss whether there is a fundamental problem with America’s democracy, where the majority want one thing, but the nature of its political system means that the minority often gets the last word.

Sources: AP

Produced by: Nina Hodgson

Before the bunting had been taken down and the Jubilee stage dismantled, at 8am the morning after the Platinum celebrations, a rude awakening for Boris Johnson.

A confidence vote that threatened his leadership of the party and with it the country.

Johnson survived, but his margin of victory was smaller than that of Theresa May’s before him, and she was forced out just months later. Does the same await Johnson?

This week, he’s been defending his record, announcing new policies and aiming to move on - but is the clock ticking - or will he once again defy the odds?

Gary Gibbon returns to analyse the past week in Westminster.

Producer: Rachel Evans

Many Muslims in India say they are experiencing a wave of persecution as Hindu extremists carry out a campaign of intimidation to stop interfaith marriages between Hindus and Muslims. 

Violence waged by mobs who believe Muslims are tricking Hindu women into marriage as an attempt to turn India into a Muslim republic. 

India's Hindu nationalist government say they oppose violence and the BJP say that they have introduced laws in response to a particular kind of crime of which a large number of instances have been reported.  In these cases, Muslim men have misrepresented their name and religion to marry women of other faiths, thereafter revealing their true identities and coercing their wives to covert their religion.

But critics say are actually designed to stamp out interfaith marriages.

We speak to Mandakini Gahlot, our reporter and her producer in India about how falling in love with the wrong person can ruin your life. 

Sources: One India, Times Now.

Producer: Joe Lord-Jones.

Over 70 years of the Queen's reign, Britain’s landscape has transformed. All of this has had a huge impact not only on us but wildlife and the place we call home.

In today’s episode we talk to our chief correspondent, Alex Thomson, about how and why Britain’s land has evolved during the Queen’s 70 years on the throne and ask what next for the British countryside.

Producer: Freya Pickford.

Sources: AP.