The Take

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Can Brazil convict Bolsonaro and stand up to Trump? Aug 08, 2025

Show notes

Brazil’s former president is under house arrest after its Supreme Court found Jair Bolsonaro had violated social media and political messaging rules. Now on trial for an alleged coup attempt, President Trump has called Bolsonaro’s prosecution a “witch hunt” and hit Brazil with 50% tariffs, an interference President Lula calls a breach to national sovereignty.

In this episode:

Maria Martha Bruno, journalist, Agência Pública

Episode credits:

This episode was produced by Tracie Hunte, Noor Wazwaz, Amy Walters, Sonia Bhagat and Diana Ferrero, with Phillip Lanos, Spencer Cline, Melanie Marich, Kisaa Zehra, Marya Khan, and Malika Bilal. It was edited by Kylene Kiang.

Our sound designer is Alex Roldan. Our video editors are Hisham Abu Salah and Mohannad Al-Melhem. Alexandra Locke is The Take’s executive producer. Ney Alvarez is Al Jazeera’s head of audio.

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The witnesses of the first nuclear bomb Aug 07, 2025

Show notes

What is the threat of nuclear war today? With tensions on the rise, a new telling of firsthand accounts of the creation of the atomic bomb and the Manhattan Project shows the echoes of those decisions today. 80 years after the US bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, we hear an oral history of the people who built the bomb in secrecy to those who suffered its consequences.

In this episode:

Garett Graff (@vermontgmg), journalist and historian

Episode credits:

This episode was produced by Tamara Khandaker, Sonia Bhagat, and Diana Ferrero, with Manny Panaretos, Marcos Bartolomé, Melanie Marich, Kisaa Zehra, Marya Khan, and our guest host, Kevin Hirten. It was edited by Kylene Kiang.

Our sound designer is Alex Roldan. Our video editors are Hisham Abu Salah and Mohannad al-Melhem. Alexandra Locke is The Take’s executive producer. Ney Alvarez is Al Jazeera’s head of audio.

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What Trump's tariffs mean for Shein and Temu shoppers Aug 06, 2025

Show notes

Are US tariffs about to end the ‘add to cart’ era? President Donald Trump’s move to end the de minimis exemption closes a loophole used by Shein, Temu, and others to ship duty-free. With costs likely passed to shoppers, consumers are starting to rethink the real price of ultra-cheap clothing.

In this episode:

Aja Barber (@ajabarber), Author, Consumed

Episode credits:

This episode was produced by Noor Wazwaz, Amy Walters, Sonia Bhagat, and Sarí el-Khalili, with Phillip Lanos, Spencer Cline, Marya Khan, Melanie Marich, Kisaa Zehra, and our host, Malika Bilal. It was edited by Kylene Kiang.

Our sound designer is Alex Roldan. Joe Plourde mixed this episode. Our video editors are Hisham Abu Salah and Mohannad al-Melhem. Alexandra Locke is The Take’s executive producer. Ney Alvarez is Al Jazeera’s head of audio.

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From Amazon to the Gaza flotilla: the journey of an activist Aug 05, 2025

Show notes

Labor activist Chris Smalls is back in the US after imprisonment and abuse by Israeli forces for joining the Handala Freedom Flotilla to Gaza. He tells us about his time in detention, the silence from the US, and what the flotilla movement means for worldwide solidarity with Palestinians facing genocide.

In this episode:

Chris Smalls (@Shut_downAmazon), Founder of The Amazon Labor Union

Episode credits:

This episode was produced by Chloe K. Li, Sonia Bhagat and Julia Muldavin, with Sarí el-Khalili, Phillip Lanos, Spencer Cline, Melanie Marich, Kisaa Zehra, Marya Khan, and our host, Malika Bilal. It was edited by Kylene Kiang.

Our sound designer is Alex Roldan. Our video editors are Hisham Abu Salah and Mohannad al-Melhem. Alexandra Locke is The Take’s executive producer. Ney Alvarez is Al Jazeera’s head of audio.

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Investigating Sheikh Hasina’s final days in Bangladesh Aug 05, 2025

Show notes

A student uprising shook Bangladesh, toppling its most powerful leader. After 15 years in office, Sheikh Hasina’s grip on power broke under the pressure of a movement that began with a dispute over government jobs, and ended with her fleeing the country. To mark the anniversary, here’s the first episode of 36 July: Uprising in Bangladesh, the new season of Al Jazeera Investigates.

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Targeted, killed, starved: journalists struggle in Gaza Aug 04, 2025

Show notes

Almost two years in, the war in Gaza is the deadliest conflict for journalists ever. With no foreign journalists allowed in, Palestinian reporters on the ground are the only ones who can tell the story to the world. But they face death threats, attacks, and now even starvation. How are reporters in Gaza doing their jobs amid such challenges?

In this episode:

Hind Khoudary (@Hind_Gaza), Al Jazeera journalist

Episode credits:

This episode was produced by Tracie Hunte, Chloe K. Li, Sonia Bhagat, Diana Ferrero, Sarí el-Khalil, with Phillip Lanos, Spencer Cline, Tamara Khandaker and Melanie Marich and guest host, Manuel Rapalo. It was edited by Kylene Kiang.

The Take production team is Marcos Bartolomé, Sonia Bhagat, Spencer Cline, Sarí el-Khalili, Diana Ferrero, Tracie Hunte, Tamara Khandaker, Kylene Kiang, Phillip Lanos, Chloe K. Li, Melanie Marich, Catherine Nouhan, Amy Walters, and Noor Wazwaz. Our editorial interns are Marya Khan and Kisaa Zehra. Our guest host is Manuel Rápalo.

Our engagement producers are Adam Abou-Gad and Vienna Maglio. Aya Elmileik is lead of audience engagement. Our sound designer is Alex Roldan. Our video editors are Hisham Abu Salah and Mohannad Al-Melhem. Alexandra Locke is The Take’s executive producer. Ney Alvarez is Al Jazeera’s head of audio.

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Brief: US envoy visits Gaza, Hezbollah refuses to disarm Aug 03, 2025

Show notes

US diplomats visited Gaza where Palestinians continue to die from an Israeli-imposed lack of food. Hezbollah said it would not disarm. It is day 667 of the war in Gaza, where at least 60,430 Palestinians have died.

In this episode:

Hoda Abdel-Hamid, (@HodaAH) Al Jazeera Correspondent
Perry Wilton, Al Jazeera Producer
Zeina Khodr, (@ZeinakhodrAlJaz) Al Jazeera Correspondent

Episode credits:

This episode was produced and mixed by David Enders. Our sound designer is Alex Roldan. Our lead of audience development and engagement is Aya Elmileik and Munera AlDosari is our engagement producer. Alexandra Locke is The Take’s executive producer. Ney Alvarez is Al Jazeera's head of audio.

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Another Take: Will Lebanon ever see justice for the Beirut port blast? Aug 02, 2025

Show notes

Every Saturday, we revisit a story from the archives. This originally aired on February 8, 2023. None of the dates, titles, or other references from that time have been changed.

There’s been no accountability in the massive Beirut port explosion for five years. But a new hope suddenly emerged for families of the victims, when Judge Tarek Bitar reopened his dormant investigation into the blast, and into the leaders accused of letting it happen. Two days later, Lebanon’s Prosecutor General Ghassan Oweidat – one of those accused – issued his own charges against Bitar. Is this now the nail in the coffin for the blast investigation, or can the victims’ families still get justice?

In this episode:

Kareem Chehayeb (@chehayebk), Reporter, Associated Press
Mariana Fodoulian, Sister of Beirut Port Blast Victim

Episode credits:

This episode was updated by Sarí el-Khalili. The original production team was Ashish Malhotra, Amy Walters, Chloe K. Li, Alexandra Locke, Negin Owliaei, and our host, Malika Bilal.

Our sound designer is Alex Roldan. Our engagement producers are Adam Abou-Gad and Vienna Maglio. Aya Elmileik is lead of audience engagement. Alexandra Locke is The Take’s executive producer, and Ney Alvarez is Al Jazeera’s head of audio.

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Beat the press: why Netanyahu sat down with the Nelk Boys Aug 01, 2025

Show notes

Tel Aviv nightlife and the Burger King order of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu were among the talking points of a viral podcast interview with the Nelk Boys. Influencer-driven podcasts are seeing a broader trend of interest in friendly interviews from world leaders and politicians, from Donald Trump to Kamala Harris. What happens when the powerful speak to massive new audiences without journalism?

In this episode:

Nathan Robinson (@NathanJRobinson), Editor-in-Chief, Current Affairs

Episode credits:

This episode was produced by Tamara Khandaker, Chloe K. Li, and Noor Wazwaz, with Phillip Lanos, Spencer Cline, Melanie Marich, Kisaa Zehra, Marya Khan, and our guest host Manuel Rapalo. It was edited by Kylene Kiang.

Our sound designer is Alex Roldan. Our video editors are Hisham Abu Salah and Mohannad al-Melhem. Alexandra Locke is The Take’s executive producer. Ney Alvarez is Al Jazeera’s head of audio.

Connect with us:

@AJEPodcasts on X, Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube

Trump’s “Woke AI” ban: can AI be free of bias? Jul 31, 2025

Show notes

US President Donald Trump says AI is too “woke.” His executive order targets what he sees as liberal ideology in artificial intelligence tools in federal tech. But what biases already exist in AI tools like chatbots, and can the technology ever truly be neutral?

In this episode:

Alejandra Montoya-Boyer (@alejandramontyb), Senior Director, Center for Civil Rights and Technology

Episode credits:

This episode was produced by Diana Ferrero, Chloe K. Li, Marcos Bartolomé, and Julia Muldavin with Phillip Lanos, Spencer Cline, Melanie Marich, Marya Khan, Kisaa Zehra, and our guest host, Manuel Rápalo. It was edited by Kylene Kiang.

Our sound designer is Alex Roldan. Our video editors are Hisham Abu Salah and Mohannad al-Melhem. Alexandra Locke is The Take’s executive producer. Ney Alvarez is Al Jazeera’s head of audio.

Connect with us:

@AJEPodcasts on X, Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube

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