The Global Jigsaw

Soldiers say they have taken control of the West African country. We unpick how events unfolded with BBC Monitoring’s Africa expert Beverly Ochieng. What can we learn from our media watch about what really happened and what could be the impications for the Sahel? This is a special episode of The Global Jigsaw. All of Season 1 is available to listen. Follow or subscribe so that you don’t miss future episodes.

The Global Jigsaw is brought to you by BBC Monitoring, a part of the BBC you may not have heard of. This team of journalists reports on media from 150 countries in up to 100 languages and provides information and analyses to BBC newsrooms and the UK government, as well as commercial clients including universities and thinktanks. It also has an intriguing and, at times, dramatic history dating back to the eve of World War Two. This bonus episode is all about us.

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Israel’s government is pressing ahead with an overhaul of the judicial system which would curtail the power of the Supreme Court, and give the government more. The proposals are seen by critics as an attack on democracy, human rights and the rule of law, and have been met by unprecedented popular protests. In this week’s Global Jigsaw, we look at the crisis in Israel through our media lens, for a glimpse of the ideas and forces dividing Israelis so deeply today.

Producer: Lucy Bailey

Russia's once shadowy private military company Wagner hit the headlines around the world when the group’s leader, Yevgeny Prigozhin, ordered his men to march on Moscow. Although the insurrection was short lived, the impact is felt far and wide. In a special edition, The Global Jigsaw examines the Wagner mutiny from the perspective of countries who have a reason to pay close attention. Get in touch: [email protected]

The gradual dismantling of independent media in Russia, from the colour and vibrancy under Boris Yeltsin in the 90s, to the extreme crackdown under Vladimir Putin a quarter of a century later. The Global Jigsaw tracks the key milestones in the process that turned the media into a “barren landscape”. And we look into a new propaganda push targeting the youngest.

The fault line in Bulgarian politics helping Moscow’s interests in Europe. Kremlin narratives have been dividing politics in this arms-producing EU country. Some see it as Russia’s Trojan horse. The former Soviet ally is torn between old and new allegiances, resulting in polarised attitudes towards Ukraine. How is Russia driving its agenda in Bulgaria, and is it working?

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine intensified the Kremlin’s propaganda push. While independent media was defanged, TV talk shows multiplied to beam the state-sanctioned version of reality into living rooms. Alternative viewpoints are hard to find. Many Russians call their TV set the zombiebox - has it won the battle of narratives?

Journalism under military censorship and state PR. The Russian invasion has dramatically transformed Ukraine’s media landscape. Speaking truth to power has become more of a challenge in an environment that has lost much of its vibrancy and pluralism. Some of the changes have been written into law. What happens when peace returns?

Latin American evangelical preachers have been taking their conservative politics to TikTok. The mix can be dynamite. Left-wing parties have dominated in recent elections, but the phenomenon is growing, in an exceptionally lax social media environment. What does this tell us about religion and politics - and the media - in the region today?

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The African influencers amplifying Kremlin propaganda and disinformation. Russian influence operations have expanded from the CAR to Mali and other countries in the Sahel region. What drives local people to take to the streets with Russian flags, and what’s Moscow’s endgame in Africa?

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