

Sensemaker
The Observer
The Sensemaker from The Observer - one story every day to make sense of the world.Subscribe to The Observer today and get access to: Our podcasts before anyone else A daily edition, curated by our editors 7 days a week Puzzles from the inventors of the cryptic crossword Recipes for every occasionFree tickets to join Observer events in our newsroom or onlineClick here to subscribe today for just £1 for your first month. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Episodes
Mentioned books

Aug 15, 2023 • 8min
Ep 662: Sanctions, what sanctions?
How some Russians with lots of money and close links to Vladimir Putin have managed to sidestep sanctions.For the premium Tortoise listening experience, curated by our journalists, download the free Tortoise audio app.For early and ad-free access, subscribe to Tortoise+ on Apple Podcasts.If you’d like to further support slow journalism and help us build a different kind of newsroom, do consider donating to Tortoise at tortoisemedia.com/support-us.Your contributions allow us to investigate, campaign and explore, and to build a newsroom that is responsible and sustainable. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Aug 14, 2023 • 7min
Ep 661: Megan Thee Stallion says she’ll “never be the same"
Rapper Tory Lanez has been sentenced to 10 years in prison for shooting Megan Thee Stallion. Three years after the incident and 8 months after he was found guilty in a US court – he’s still denying it. For the premium Tortoise listening experience, curated by our journalists, download the free Tortoise audio app.For early and ad-free access, subscribe to Tortoise+ on Apple Podcasts.If you’d like to further support slow journalism and help us build a different kind of newsroom, do consider donating to Tortoise at tortoisemedia.com/support-us.Your contributions allow us to investigate, campaign and explore, and to build a newsroom that is responsible and sustainable. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Aug 11, 2023 • 6min
Ep 660: Phoenix’s month from hell
July was the world’s hottest month on record and one city in particular experienced extreme temperatures for a 31-day streak. How are places like Phoenix coping with the affects of climate change?For the premium Tortoise listening experience, curated by our journalists, download the free Tortoise audio app.For early and ad-free access, subscribe to Tortoise+ on Apple Podcasts.If you’d like to further support slow journalism and help us build a different kind of newsroom, do consider donating to Tortoise at tortoisemedia.com/support-us.Your contributions allow us to investigate, campaign and explore, and to build a newsroom that is responsible and sustainable. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Aug 10, 2023 • 6min
Ep 659: Cookham Wood: a failing youth prison
Violence is rife and some boys spend more than 100 days in solitary confinement at the young offender institution in Kent. It has had problems for years, so what can be done to fix it?Click here to listen to The News Meeting.For the premium Tortoise listening experience, curated by our journalists, download the free Tortoise audio app.For early and ad-free access, subscribe to Tortoise+ on Apple Podcasts.If you’d like to further support slow journalism and help us build a different kind of newsroom, do consider donating to Tortoise at tortoisemedia.com/support-us. Your contributions allow us to investigate, campaign and explore, and to build a newsroom that is responsible and sustainable. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Aug 9, 2023 • 6min
Ep 658: Immortal cells: Henrietta Lacks' family settle lawsuit
In 1951 doctors took tissue from a Black woman without her consent. In the decades that followed they contributed to major medical breakthroughs. Now her family has won a settlement from a company they say profited unfairly.For the premium Tortoise listening experience, curated by our journalists, download the free Tortoise audio app.For early and ad-free access, subscribe to Tortoise+ on Apple Podcasts.If you’d like to further support slow journalism and help us build a different kind of newsroom, do consider donating to Tortoise at tortoisemedia.com/support-us. Your contributions allow us to investigate, campaign and explore, and to build a newsroom that is responsible and sustainable. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Aug 8, 2023 • 6min
Ep 657: Niger’s coup
A deadline to reinstate the democratically-elected president has passed. What does the military takeover mean for the region?For the premium Tortoise listening experience, curated by our journalists, download the free Tortoise audio app.For early and ad-free access, subscribe to Tortoise+ on Apple Podcasts.If you’d like to further support slow journalism and help us build a different kind of newsroom, do consider donating to Tortoise at tortoisemedia.com/support-us. Your contributions allow us to investigate, campaign and explore, and to build a newsroom that is responsible and sustainable. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Aug 7, 2023 • 6min
Ep 656: The Post Office scandal continues
It has been described as “one of the most widespread miscarriages of justice in UK history” and now an independent inquiry is trying to understand how it happened, so why are the people affected still struggling to get justice?For the premium Tortoise listening experience, curated by our journalists, download the free Tortoise audio app.For early and ad-free access, subscribe to Tortoise+ on Apple Podcasts.If you’d like to further support slow journalism and help us build a different kind of newsroom, do consider donating to Tortoise at tortoisemedia.com/support-us. Your contributions allow us to investigate, campaign and explore, and to build a newsroom that is responsible and sustainable. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Aug 5, 2023 • 8min
Ep 655: UFOs discussed in Congress
Lawmakers in the United States have heard evidence from three former military and intelligence officials about UFOs and extraterrestrial life. How did we get here and what did we learn?For the premium Tortoise listening experience, curated by our journalists, download the free Tortoise audio app.For early and ad-free access, subscribe to Tortoise+ on Apple Podcasts.If you’d like to further support slow journalism and help us build a different kind of newsroom, do consider donating to Tortoise at tortoisemedia.com/support-us. Your contributions allow us to investigate, campaign and explore, and to build a newsroom that is responsible and sustainable. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Aug 4, 2023 • 7min
Ep 654: Putin’s useful madman
When he was president Dmitry Medvedev was relatively moderate. Now he’s threatening to use nuclear weapons if the Ukrainian counter-offensive is successful.Listen to The News Meeting: https://podfollow.com/the-news-meetingFor the premium Tortoise listening experience, curated by our journalists, download the free Tortoise audio app.For early and ad-free access, subscribe to Tortoise+ on Apple Podcasts.If you’d like to further support slow journalism and help us build a different kind of newsroom, do consider donating to Tortoise at tortoisemedia.com/support-us. Your contributions allow us to investigate, campaign and explore, and to build a newsroom that is responsible and sustainable. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Aug 3, 2023 • 7min
Ep 653: Trump charged with conspiracy
For the third time in four months Donald Trump has been charged in a criminal case. This time it’s for plotting to overturn the 2020 presidential election result. What are the allegations against him?For the premium Tortoise listening experience, curated by our journalists, download the free Tortoise audio app.For early and ad-free access, subscribe to Tortoise+ on Apple Podcasts.If you’d like to further support slow journalism and help us build a different kind of newsroom, do consider donating to Tortoise at tortoisemedia.com/support-us. Your contributions allow us to investigate, campaign and explore, and to build a newsroom that is responsible and sustainable.Listen to Rupert Murdoch: News vs the truth here. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.


