The Intelligence from The Economist

Five years after the American withdrawal from Afghanistan, the Taliban show little sign of moderation. Our correspondent reports from the country on what life is like for ordinary people. A giant earthquake reveals two very different Colombias. And celebrating the life of Gurkha climber, Nirmal Purja, who died in an avalanche.

Watch extended clips from Insider here, plus the full Elon Musk interview. 

Guests and host:

• Tom Sasse, South Asia bureau chief
• Claire McQue, Latin America writer
• Ann Wroe, obituaries editor
• Rosie Blau, co-host of “The Intelligence”

Topics covered: 

• Afghanistan, Taliban, sanctions
• Colombia, earthquake, Espriella
• Nirmal Purja, mountaineer, Everest, avalanche

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After American troops snatched Venezuelan president Nicolas Maduro in a dawn raid in January, democracy did not seem like a priority. Yet this week, talks between the regime and opposition ended with small, positive steps. Why US consumers’ love of fast food may be slowing. And how many hours of Wagner opera would you sit through?  

Guests and host:

• Kinley Salmon, Latin America correspondent
• Shera Avi-Yonah, business correspondent
• Brook Unger, senior digital editor
• Rosie Blau, co-host of “The Intelligence”

Topics covered: 

• Venezuela, Maduro, Delcy Rodríguez, Machado
• Fast food, McDonalds, burgers
• Wagner, “Ring” cycle, classical music

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The Iran war triggered the largest supply shock in the history of petroleum, yet prices never rose as high as feared. Our correspondent explains how action taken by China steadied global oil flows. Why Brazil has such strict laws on racist language. And the legendary lager of Laos. 

Guests and host:

• Matthieu Favas, commodities editor
• Ana Lankes, Brazil bureau chief
• Vishnu Padmanabhan, Asia correspondent 
• Rosie Blau, co-host of “The Intelligence”
• Jason Palmer, co-host of “The Intelligence”

Topics covered: 

• China, Iran, oil supplies, OPEC, crude
• Brazil, hate speech, racism
• Laos, Beerlao, beer, lager

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The Muslim Brotherhood won power and influence in the Arab Spring of 2011. Now autocrats are resurgent and its leaders are in jail or exile. Elon Musk says Europe is more dangerous than America. Is he right? And the puzzling popularity of padel.

Guests and host:

• Gareth Browne, Middle East correspondent
• James Fransham, data journalist
• Hamish Clayton, Britain writer
• Rosie Blau, co-host of “The Intelligence”

Topics covered: 

• Muslim Brotherhood, Islamism, Arab Spring
• Elon Musk, Insider, Europe, crime, 
• Padel, tennis, racket sports

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Britons are turning to artificial intelligence to file objections to state institutions, and claim their dues. The resulting deluge of complaints and demands may overwhelm bureaucracies. Should Catholic priests have to report child abuse disclosed in confession? And the perfect height gap in a relationship. 

Guests and host:

• Matthew Holehouse, Britain public policy editor
• Rebecca Jackson, US Southern correspondent
• Doug Dowson, data journalist
• Rosie Blau, co-host of “The Intelligence”
• Jason Palmer, co-host of “The Intelligence”

Topics covered: 

• AI, agentic flooding, bureaucracy
• Catholic church, confessions, child abuse
• Short kings, short men, height differential

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We look at the peace that has settled over Khartoum, the ruined capital. War rages on elsewhere, and a slim chance at a settlement rests largely with the belligerents’ foreign patrons. We ask why President Donald Trump has picked a fight over a new bridge between Canada and America. And remembering Betye Saar, who provided profound second lives for discarded objects. 

Watch extended clips from Insider here.

Guests and host:

• Tom Gardner, Africa correspondent
• Annie Crabill, senior digital editor
• Ann Wroe, obituaries editor
• Jason Palmer, co-host of “The Intelligence”

Topics covered: 

• Sudan war, proxy war, geopolitics 
• Canada-America relations, Gordie Howe Bridge
• Betye Saar, art

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We examine one of America’s primary races, in which a sharply lefty candidate beat the establishment figure. What does that reveal about changes in the Democratic Party? For decades China’s Yangtze River was a polluted, overfished mess. We look at the wins from cleaning it up—and who loses. And a fond look back at postcards as they fade from use.

Guests and host:

• John Prideaux, executive editor and host, “Checks and Balance”
• Gabriel Crossley, China correspondent
• Catherine Nixey, Britain correspondent
• Jason Palmer, co-host of “The Intelligence”

Topics covered: 

• America’s primary season, Democratic Socialists of America, Michigan, Abdul El-Sayed
• China, Yangtze River, remediation
• postcards, second world war, British history

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Fewer clouds, shrinking ice caps, changing pollutants: all result in less of the sun’s energy being reflected back into space. Which is more bad news for a changing climate. Our correspondent explains why so much more of the world’s cocaine is passing through west Africa. And the data that reveal Americans’ discomfort about wives earning more than their husbands.

Guests and host:

• Oliver Morton, planetary-affairs editor
• Ọrẹ Ogunbiyi, Africa correspondent
• Doug Dowson, data journalist
• Rosie Blau, co-host of “The Intelligence”
• Jason Palmer, co-host of “The Intelligence”

Topics covered: 

• climate change, albedo, global temperatures
• Africa, cocaine, smuggling
• wage equality, gender pay gap

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President Donald Trump’s claim that Hamas had agreed to disarm in Gaza was, at best, premature. We examine the sticking points of a lasting deal. New-business applications are on a tear in America. We ask why so many people are working for themselves—but not doing much hiring. And the enduring popularity of radio in Africa, aided rather than degraded by social media. 

Guests and host:

• Anshel Pfeffer, Israel correspondent
• Shera Avi-Yonah, business correspondent
• William Finlator, contributor to The Economist
• Jason Palmer, co-host of “The Intelligence”

Topics covered: 

• Gaza, Hamas, Israel, Board of Peace
• American business, entrepreneurship
• Africa, media, radio

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The deadly rush of migrants into the Spanish exclave has deep roots in a wider North African conflict—and implications for a far wider European fight about immigration. Our India columnist presents an incomplete list of falling objects as a way to examine public-safety failures. And a data dive that reveals how AI writing is forever shifting.

Guests and host:

• Michael Reid, Spain correspondent and writer at large
• Leo Mirani, Ashoka columnist
• Caitlin Talbot, digital culture correspondent
• Jason Palmer, co-host of “The Intelligence”

Topics covered: 

• Ceuta, migration, Spain, EU, Schengen
• India, public safety
• AI writing, waning human primacy

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