The News Meeting

By The ObserverNews News Commentary Politics

The News Meeting episodes

August 13How vulnerable is global shipping?
Can Andy Burnham do anything to combat wildfires? What does the future of universities and further education look like for students? And are we reaching a crunch point with global shipping?

Jeevan Vasagar is joined by The Observer’s Cat Neilan, Hannah Schuller and Ben Zaranko as they battle it out and pitch the top stories of the day.

**We want to hear what you think! Email us at: [email protected]

Follow us on Social Media:
@ObserverUK on X
@theobserveruk on Instagram and TikTok
@theobserveruk.bsky.social‬ on bluesky

Host: Jeevan Vasagar

Producer: Matt Russell

To find out more about The Observer:

Subscribe to TheObserver+ on Apple Podcasts for early access and ad-free content
Head to our website observer.co.uk
Download the Observer app – for a listening experience curated by our journalists

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
36 min
August 06How will the drought affect our food supply?
Why are AI models hacking real companies? How will the ongoing drought affect our domestic food supply? And what is the political and humanitarian fallout after around 70,000 migrants swam from Morocco into Spain’s Ceuta enclave last week?

Giles Whittell is joined by The Observer’s Hannah Schuller, Jonathan Lewis and Jon Ungoed-Thomas as they battle it out and pitch the top stories of the day.

**We want to hear what you think! Email us at: [email protected]

Follow us on Social Media:
@ObserverUK on X
@theobserveruk on Instagram and TikTok
@theobserveruk.bsky.social‬ on bluesky

Host: Giles Whittell

Producer: Amalie Sortland

Executive Producer: Matt Russell

To find out more about The Observer:

Subscribe to TheObserver+ on Apple Podcasts for early access and ad-free content
Head to our website observer.co.uk
Download the Observer app – for a listening experience curated by our journalists
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
36 min
July 30Is football’s soul for sale?
Why are we experiencing so many wildfires in the UK? How is Prime Minister Andy Burnham proposing to reform adult social care? And is the future of the World Cup in jeopardy over FIFA’s controversial investment plans?

Jeevan Vasagar is joined by The Observer’s Stephen Armstrong, Cat Neilan and Andrew Butler as they battle it out and pitch the top stories of the day.

**We want to hear what you think! Email us at: [email protected]

Follow us on Social Media:
@ObserverUK on X
@theobserveruk on Instagram and TikTok
@theobserveruk.bsky.social‬ on bluesky

Host: Jeevan Vasagar

Producer: Amalie Sortland

Executive Producer: Matt Russell and Poppy Bullard

To find out more about The Observer:

Subscribe to TheObserver+ on Apple Podcasts for early access and ad-free content
Head to our website observer.co.uk
Download the Observer app – for a listening experience curated by our journalists
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
31 min
July 23What's behind India's 'cockroach' protests?
Why did an OpenAI model go rogue? What does Ukraine's targeting of a Russian online retailer say about the war? And who is behind India's 'cockroach' protests?

Jeevan Vasagar is joined by The Observer’s James Tapper, Poppy Bullard and Hannah Schuller as they battle it out to pitch the top story of the day.

**We want to hear what you think! Email us at: [email protected]

Follow us on Social Media:

@ObserverUK on X
@theobserveruk on Instagram and TikTok
@theobserveruk.bsky.social‬ on bluesky

To find out more about The Observer:

Subscribe to TheObserver+ on Apple Podcasts for early access and ad-free content
Head to our website observer.co.uk
Download the Observer app – for a listening experience curated by our journalists
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
34 min
July 16Why aren’t Gen Z buying rounds at the pub?
Why can’t England’s men’s football team win a major football tournament? Is Gen Z an economically selfish generation? And what kind of message is the government sending by nationalising British Steel?

Jasper Corbett is joined by The Observer’s Stephen Armstrong, Jessy Parker Humphreys and Ben Zaranko as they battle it out to pitch the top story of the day.

**We want to hear what you think! Email us at: [email protected]

Follow us on Social Media:
@ObserverUK on X
@theobserveruk on Instagram and TikTok
@theobserveruk.bsky.social‬ on bluesky

Host: Jasper Corbett

Producer: Amalie Sortland

Executive Producer: Jasper Corbett

To find out more about The Observer:

Subscribe to TheObserver+ on Apple Podcasts for early access and ad-free content
Head to our website observer.co.uk
Download the Observer app – for a listening experience curated by our journalists
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
30 min
July 09Nigel Farage v Count Binface: Who could win?
With the US-Iran peace deal seemingly in tatters, and reporting restrictions on western media outlets, how can journalists figure out what’s actually going on in Iran? Why is Nigel Farage spending the summer arguing against a bin in the Clacton byelection? Has Donald Trump’s intervention over a red card at the World Cup undermined fans' trust in FIFA?

Giles Whittell is joined by The Observer’s Hannah Schuller, Poppy Bullard and Andrew Butler
as they battle it out to pitch the top story of the day.

**We want to hear what you think! Email us at: [email protected]

Follow us on Social Media:
@ObserverUK on X
@theobserveruk on Instagram and TikTok
@theobserveruk.bsky.social‬ on bluesky

Host: Giles Whittell

Producer: Amalie Sortland

Executive Producer: Jasper Corbett

To find out more about The Observer:

Subscribe to TheObserver+ on Apple Podcasts for early access and ad-free content
Head to our website observer.co.uk
Download the Observer app – for a listening experience curated by our journalists
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
37 min
July 02Is Taylor Swift’s wedding getting women into betting?
How much money Donald Trump has made from cryptocurrency? Why have rumours about Taylor Swift’s wedding led to an online betting frenzy? Are Silicon Valley whistleblowers under greater threat than ever before?

Jeevan Vasagar is joined by the Observer’s Technology Editor Patricia Clarke, Social Media Editor Caitlin Macdonald, and Reporter Jon Ungoed-Thomas as they battle it out to pitch the top story of the day.

**We want to hear what you think! Email us at: [email protected]

Follow us on Social Media:
@ObserverUK on X
@theobserveruk on Instagram and TikTok
@theobserveruk.bsky.social‬ on bluesky

Host: Jeevan Vasagar

Producer: Poppy Bullard

Executive Producer: Jasper Corbett

To find out more about The Observer:

Subscribe to TheObserver+ on Apple Podcasts for early access and ad-free content
Head to our website observer.co.uk
Download the Observer app – for a listening experience curated by our journalists

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
28 min
June 25Why does Andy Burnham want to move part of Downing Street?
Why might Andy Burnham move part of the Downing Street operations to Manchester? What happened to maternity care across Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust? And can we adapt our cities to extreme heat?

Giles Whittell is joined by The Observer’s Ben Zaranko, Jessy Parker-Humphreys and Evan Moffitt as they battle it out and pitch the top stories of the day.

**We want to hear what you think! Email us at: [email protected]

Follow us on Social Media:
@ObserverUK on X
@theobserveruk on Instagram and TikTok
@theobserveruk.bsky.social‬ on bluesky

To find out more about The Observer:

Subscribe to TheObserver+ on Apple Podcasts for early access and ad-free content
Head to our website observer.co.uk
Download the Observer app – for a listening experience curated by our journalists

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
39 min
June 18Why does the Putney Pusher remain anonymous?
Why are UK voters so anti-establishment? Why can’t we name the Putney Pusher suspect? And why is the government banning teenagers from having AI relationships?

Jeevan Vasagar is joined by The Observer’s Sarah Dear, Stephen Armstrong and Cat Neilan as they battle it out and pitch the top stories of the day.

**We want to hear what you think! Email us at: [email protected]

Follow us on Social Media:
@ObserverUK on X
@theobserveruk on Instagram and TikTok
@theobserveruk.bsky.social‬ on bluesky

Host: Jeevan Vasagar

Producer: Amalie Sortland

Executive Producer: Matt Russell

To find out more about The Observer:

Subscribe to TheObserver+ on Apple Podcasts for early access and ad-free content
Head to our website observer.co.uk
Download the Observer app – for a listening experience curated by our journalists
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
32 min
June 11What’s driving disorder in Belfast?
Who's calling the shots when World Cup staff and fans are denied entry? Can the US-Iran ceasefire survive another exchange of strikes? And why has the Belfast knife attack become about the Irish border?

Giles Whittell is joined by The Observer’s John Simpson, Hannah Schuller and Evan Moffitt as they battle it out and pitch the top stories of the day.

**We want to hear what you think! Email us at: [email protected]

Follow us on Social Media:
@ObserverUK on X
@theobserveruk on Instagram and TikTok
@theobserveruk.bsky.social‬ on bluesky

Host: Giles Whittell

Producer: Amalie Sortland

Executive Producer: Poppy Bullard

To find out more about The Observer:

Subscribe to TheObserver+ on Apple Podcasts for early access and ad-free content
Head to our website observer.co.uk
Download the Observer app – for a listening experience curated by our journalists
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
35 min