Top News Podcasts

UnHerd political editor Tom McTague and Cambridge professor Helen Thompson team up to investigate the history of today’s politics — and what it means for our future. Each week they will explore the great forces, ideas and events that led us to where we are, whether in Britain, the United States, Europe or beyond. It’s a politics podcast for those who want a deeper, historical understanding of the news, to understand what has really shaped our world and why. We hope you enjoy! Don’t forget to rate, like and subscribe wherever you get your podcasts — and, of course, to get in touch with all your questions and comments so we can respond in future episodes.

Email us at thesetimes@unherd.com or tweet us at @thesetimespod

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Looking at the world through the lens of its media. Think of us as your media detectives, helping you get past the propaganda and misinformation. The Global Jigsaw comes from BBC Monitoring, which tracks, deciphers and analyses news media in 100 languages.

We reach across multiple time zones, from China and India, to Iran, Africa and Latin America.

We watch Russian state TV around the clock, giving unrivalled insight into the evolution of Kremlin propaganda.

But propaganda is just part of the information space we inhabit. In its more extreme form, we focus on disinformation that aims to defame enemies, sway elections, and undermine democracy.

We have been monitoring jihadist media for nearly two decades, following the chatter from al-Qaeda and Islamic State group, gaining extraordinary knowledge about their aims, their ideological differences and allegiances.

We watch the behaviour of Russia’s Putin, Iran’s Khamenei, Turkey’s Erdogan, China’s Xi Jinping, Hungary’s Orban and anyone else who might be challenging the established order, seeking to expand their global footprint or export their brand of ideology.

At BBC Monitoring, we don’t just speak the language, we understand the narrative. So we can help you untangle the context and single out rhetoric from reality, deception from truth.

This podcast delves into the lives of those who have been reduced to a single headline. Each episode will take a closer look at the stories of those who are on a mission to change their narrative. Through raw and honest conversations, we will reveal the human behind the headline. Join me, as we uncover the truth behind the misconceptions, shed light on the stories of those who have perhaps been wrongfully portrayed, explore the complexities of the human experience, and celebrate the power of second chances.

Join a trusted and insightful guide, former Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull to walk though one of the most vexed and consequential questions of our time. Are we witnessing the decline of western/liberal democracy?

External threats to our democracies have not gone away - as Vladimir Putin has demonstrated in Ukraine, but we are now realising that the greatest threats to our democracies are not from without but from within.

The southwestern United States has been in a drought for more than 20 years. It's created a serious problem for the Colorado River, and tens of millions of people in the region. Parched is a podcast about people who rely on the river that shaped the West – and have ideas to save it. Hosted by Michael Elizabeth Sakas, a climate and environment reporter for CPR News.

The sinister life coaching company that takes over your life. Catrin Nye investigates.

In early 2019 Jeffrey Leigh-Jones from Portsmouth got a life coach. Someone to mentor him in life and help him realise his business ambitions.

Two years later, Jeff had sold his house, his relationship was in pieces, and he had handed over tens of thousands of pounds. And he wasn't the only one. In this eighteen-month investigation for the BBC, journalist Catrin Nye and her team expose control, intimidation and fear at a mysterious life coaching company taking over people's lives and ripping families apart.

As the investigation hots up, the group fights back, and there's a surreal final showdown.