Business Daily

Latest Episodes:

The end of the oil era Oct 09, 2020

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How will the energy transition transform geopolitics? Which countries will be the winners and losers?

The answers may not be as obvious as you might think - not at least according to Jason Bordoff, a former energy advisor to President Obama, and director of Columbia University's Center on Global Energy Policy.

In a long interview with Manuela Saragosa, he explains why the future may not be so bleak for oil producers, how the transition could be bumpy and last decades, and why even once the world has finally weaned itself off fossil fuels, a future energy based on clean renewable energy could bring a whole new series of risks with it.

Producer: Laurence Knight

(Picture: Old oil tankers; Credit: timnewman/Getty Images)

The end of the line for cruise ships? Oct 08, 2020

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Can the cruise ship industry survive? Once a lucrative market, with giant vessels boasting 100% occupancy, cruises have been all but wiped out since the coronavirus.

Manuela Saragosa hears from reporter Vivienne Nunis in Venice. Pre-covid, Venice was the poster city for over-tourism. Cruise ships towered over the city’s fragile, historic buildings, filling the air with their exhaust fumes. Many campaigners wished to see the back of them. The pandemic has granted those campaigners their wish. But it’s come at an economic price. And it’s highlighted the cruise ship industry’s precarious future. Manuela also speaks to Simon Calder, travel expert, about the prospects for this hard-hit sector of the industry.

Producer: Sarah Treanor

(Image: Two luxury cruise ships being dismantled at Turkey's shipbreaking yard. Credit: Chris McGrath/ Getty Images)

Does big tech need a reboot? Oct 07, 2020

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A leading Silicon Valley boss says big tech companies need more empathy and diversity. Maelle Gavet, is a French-born tech entrepreneur with experience in building firms in her native France, India, Russia, South Africa, and now as chief operating officer of online real-estate broker, Compass.Inc. She's been listed as one of the most influential women in US tech. In her new book 'Trampled by Unicorns' she critiques what she sees as the cultural deficits of Silicon Valley and says that these companies cannot be relied upon to self-regulate. This comes as a report backed by Democratic lawmakers has urged changes that could lead to the break-up of some of America's biggest tech companies. But James Ball, an award-winning investigative reporter, and author of a new book himself, 'The System: Who Owns the Internet and How it Owns Us' says we shouldn't be too quick to do this as it won't actually fix the real problems.

(Image: A friendly robot is seen through a shattered phone screen. Credit: SimoneN / Getty Images)

Is Facebook bad for democracy? Oct 06, 2020

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How the social media platform is poisoning politics around the world. A former Facebook employee says she has "blood on my hands" after struggling to contain the misinformation and manipulation conducted through the platform.

Azerbaijani journalist Arzu Geybulla describes the coordinated Facebook campaigns against activists and politicians in her country. Berhan Taye, Africa policy manager at digital rights group Access Now, tells us why Facebook isn't doing enough to prevent the spread of hate speech in Ethiopia. And Siva Vaidhyanathen, author of a book 'Antisocial Media: How Facebook Disconnects Us and Undermines Democracy' explains why Facebook can't stop the spread of toxic content without undermining its business model.

(Photo: A mobile phone advert featuring Facebook in Myanmar, where Facebook has been blamed for helping spread hate speech. Credit: Getty Images)

Is it time to rethink the electricity grid? Oct 05, 2020

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Are our century-old grids fit for the era of solar and wind power, or is a completely new kind of electricity transmission needed?

Justin Rowlatt looks at the mess in California, where President Trump has blamed rolling blackouts on the state's rush to embrace renewable energy. But former regulator Cheryl LaFleur says one big reason is California's poor integration with neighbouring electricity grids. A US government report recommended linking all the nation's grids together, but then the report mysteriously disappeared - investigative journalist Peter Fairley explains why.

Meanwhile Britain is looking to integrate its own National Grid more closely with the rest of Europe, according to the director of the UK Electricity System Operator Fintan Slye, so that it can handle a glut of new wind power. But why not go one step further and build a global electricity grid? It's a possibility discussed by energy consultant Michael Barnard.

Producer: Laurence Knight

(Picture: Stork on an electricity pylon at sunset; Credit: James Warwick/Getty Images)

Business Weekly: 03/10/2020 Oct 03, 2020

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This week saw the rather unedifying spectacle of the first 2020 US presidential debate. Did either of the candidates offer solid policies on the economy or the environment?

As further investigations shed more light on Donald Trump’s financial affairs we’ll ask why he has been so reluctant to make them public.

We’ll also find out why Facebook is threatening to ban all news on its Australian sites and ask whether clubbing can survive during a pandemic.

Business Weekly is presented by Lucy Burton and produced by Joshua Thorpe.

Final countdown for a Brexit trade deal Oct 02, 2020

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Why state aid may be the sticking point for a Brexit trade deal

(Image: Two boxing gloves punching each other, one with the UK flag, one with the EU flag. Credit: Getty Images Stock)

Trump's taxes Oct 01, 2020

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What can the New York Times' revelations can tell us about the President's financial affairs?

President Trump paid only $750 in tax federal income taxes in 2016 and 2017, and paid none in 10 of the past 15 years. That's according to an investigation by The New York Times earlier this week. The President says its all fake news. He's for years refused to publish his income tax returns. David Cay Johnstone, an investigative journalist and editor with DCReport.org, says the Times revelations show why he's keeping them hidden.

Adam Davidson who's written extensively on the President's business ties, says the only way to join up the dots since the death of his father, who was continuously propping up the President's finances, and the end of his lucrative appearances on the reality TV show, The Apprentice, is to work out who's bankrolling Trump's businesses.

But Dan Alexander, writer for Forbes magazine and author of White House Inc: How Donald Trump turned the Presidency into a Business, says that the President does have more assets than debts but he could come across conflicts of interest when he tries to re-finance these debts.

(Image: Novelty US dollar bills printed with Donald Trump's image on. Credit: Joel Forrest / Barcroft Media via Getty Images)

Facebook's face-off in Australia Sep 29, 2020

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Should Facebook and Google pay for news that appears on their platforms? The Australian government thinks so. It’s drafted a law that would force them to pay - and Facebook is now threatening to ban all news from its Australian site. It’s a high stakes stand-off with potential global repercussions.

Veteran local newspaper publisher Bruce Ellen tells Manuela Saragosa how his business has suffered the past decade as articles are shared online for free. Journalist Zoe Samios of the Sydney Morning Herald says the pushback from Facebook has been especially forceful, while Belinda Barnet of Swinburne University in Melbourne says she thinks they are unlikely to back down.

But consultant Hal Crawford has little sympathy for the news companies, which he says get a lot more value from social media platforms than vice versa. Plus, Peter Lewis from the Centre for Responsible Technology worries that if Facebook follows through with its threat to remove news altogether from its platform in Australia, what will fill the void?

(Image: Facebook logo seen displayed on a smartphone with 100 dollar bills in the background. Credit: Igor Golovniov/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)

China to the rescue? Sep 28, 2020

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President Xi Jinping made a big surprise announcement on Tuesday - that China is committing to cut its net carbon emissions to zero by 2060.

But why has President Xi decided to take such a bold unilateral step? Will China's actions match his words? And how will other countries respond, not least the US?

To answer these questions, Justin Rowlatt speaks to two people who have been at the top table of international climate diplomacy. Todd Stern was US President Barack Obama's representative in the Paris Agreement negotiations. And Rachel Kyte was an advisor on sustainable development to the United Nations Secretary General.

Plus, Li Yan of Greenpeace in China explains what to look out for next year in the country's new five-year plan as proof that Beijing is serious about tackling carbon emissions.

Producer: Laurence Knight

(Picture: China's President Xi Jinping; Credit: Ed Jones/AFP via Getty Images)