The Bunker – News without the nonsense

Putin’s invasion of Ukraine has shone a spotlight onto Russia’s oligarchs. How does the Kremlin exert influence over them? And with sanctions beginning to bite, what does the future hold? Catherine Belton, Russia reporter for the Washington Post, talks to Nick Cohen about the Kremlin’s iron grip on Russia’s elite, and her own run in with oligarchs over her book Putin’s People. “The state propaganda machine can’t cover up the level of casualties forever.” “Putin has an inferiority complex. He needs the external trappings of wealth to believe he is Number One.” “UK newspapers shy away from reporting on these individuals because they know the legal costs are high.” “These oligarchs are hostages to Putin because he has a monopoly over court decisions.” “The Yeltsin tycoons have seen 30 years of empire-building undone in one fell swoop.” https://www.patreon.com/bunkercastWritten and presented by Nick Cohen. Producers: Jacob Archbold and Jelena Sofronijevic. Assistant producer: Elina Ganatra. Lead producer: Jacob Jarvis. Audio production by Alex Rees. Music by Kenny Dickinson. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison THE BUNKER is a Podmasters Production Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Netflix’s share price plunged after it announced the loss of 200,000 subscribers in Q1 of 2022. What has gone wrong? And how can the platform get people subscribing again? Alex Hern, Technology Editor for The Guardian, talks to Justin Quirk about why Netflix’s growth turned static, and what the streaming service should be doing to get viewers back onboard.  “This is a company and an industry that expects subscriber numbers to go up.” “The reason Netflix lost those subscribers is because they pulled out of Russia.” “Other streaming services are now able to compete in areas where Netflix was once miles ahead.” “A service with adverts could help Netflix recover some market share.” “Many households don’t even know they have access to Amazon Prime” “I don’t see a painless way out of the hole Netflix has put itself into.” https://www.patreon.com/bunkercastWritten and presented by Justin Quirk. Producers: Jacob Archbold and Jelena Sofronijevic. Assistant producer: Elina Ganatra. Lead producer: Jacob Jarvis. Audio production by Jade Bailey. Music by Kenny Dickinson. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison THE BUNKER is a Podmasters Production Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Johnson has clung on to power, but with 148 Tory rebels voting against him how long can he continue as leader? What’s next for him and the Conservative Party? In a late-night recording, the panel assess a dramatic result. Plus, Romeo Kokriatski, co-host of the Ukraine Without Hype podcast, shares the latest from Ukraine amid concerns the war is turning in Russia’s favour. And, after the Jubilee festivities, the panel discusses British eccentricity and the future of the Monarchy. “It comes back to a fundamental personality problem about Boris Johnson.” – Marie Le Conte  “The booing came from what Johnson could have reasonably expected to be a home crowd.” – Justin Quirk  “The enormous elephant in the room is that a large part of your party has essentially tried to eviscerate you.” – Justin Quirk  “From the country’s point of view, Johnson staying on is disastrous.” – Justin Quirk  “If they keep promising this gigantic reshuffle, who is going to move in order to make space?” – Marie Le Conte “The bigger issue is that there is a total policy vacuum.” – Justin Quirk  “Things will have to change, the Monarchy will have to change.” – Ayesha Hazarika  “There’s a huge space now for Labour to just say very explicitly, ‘What is it that you actually like about this country?’” – Justin Quirk  https://www.patreon.com/bunkercastPresented by Andrew Harrison with Ayesha Hazarika, Marie Le Conte and Justin Quirk. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. Lead Producer: Jacob Jarvis. Producers: Jacob Archbold, Jelena Sofronijevic and Alex Rees. Music by Kenny Dickinson. Audio production by Alex Rees. The Bunker is a Podmasters Production Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

After being jeered over the Jubilee weekend, will Johnson now be jilted by his party in a no confidence vote? With this due to be held on Monday evening, how will the results play out? Ros Taylor and Arthur Snell give their thoughts as they tee up the week ahead. Plus, they ask what’s next for the monarchy after the weekend’s celebrations, discuss the Ukraine latest and cast an eye over the Atlantic.  “We will know by the end of today whether or not Boris Johnson has survived this round of attempts to get him.” – Arthur Snell "Surviving a no confidence vote doesn't mean surviving as PM, as Theresa May can tell us." – Arthur Snell  "It wasn't breaking the law in Downing Street, or any other scandals, but being booed at the Jubilee." – Arthur Snell  “Johnson is somebody who will cling on to the absolutely last moment possible.” – Arthur Snell  www.patreon.com/bunkercast Presented by Ros Taylor with Arthur Snell. Producers: Jacob Archbold, Jelena Sofronijevic and Alex Rees. Music by Kenny Dickinson. Audio production: Jade Bailey. Lead Producer: Jacob Jarvis. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. THE BUNKER is a Podmasters Production Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Pulitzer Prize-winner Margo Jefferson tells Dorian Lynskey about her wide-ranging career as a critic. She discusses shedding light on the lives of everyone from Tina Turner to Michael Jackson, being the first Black woman book critic at Newsweek, and writing on race, class and gender at the New York Times. They also discuss her new book, Constructing a Nervous System, and ask can you ever separate art from the artist?  “We're all curating our personal cultures.” "I felt I had to be impeccable to brilliant... there's a certain high standard you don't slip beneath." "I realised I could bring the critics tools of questioning and probing to myself." https://www.patreon.com/bunkercastWritten and presented by Dorian Lynskey. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. Lead Producer: Jacob Jarvis Producers: Jacob Archbold and Jelena Sofronijevic. Audio production by Jade Bailey. THE BUNKER is a Podmasters Productionhttps://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/602237/constructing-a-nervous-system-by-margo-jefferson/  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

As we move into virtual surroundings able to be anywhere, anyone or anything, how will that affect our minds? As the line between online and offline fades further, we look at how our personalities could shift across spaces. Dr. Alison Attrill-Smith, head of psychology online at the University of Wolverhampton, joins Alex Andreou to discuss the potential psychological impact of the metaverse.  “We've had iterations such as second life, and every time something new establishes itself there seems to be a flocking to it.” “Who goes online will depend on what they're wanting to achieve.” “Everything in psychology is about goals and what people want to achieve.” “There's loads of research that shows that people project online the persona that they aspire to.”  “Whether we'll be able to replicate real life interaction in the digital landscape is really debatable.” “The Proteus effect happens when people project their online persona offline.” “We’re already moving towards a world where digital access is a right, whether that becomes a human right, I'm not sure.” “To some extent we are already living in this virtual world and the metaverse is just an extension of that.” “I like to think that virtually reality has actually increased acceptance of who we really are.” https://www.patreon.com/bunkercastWritten and presented by Alex Andreou. Lead Producer: Jacob Jarvis. Producers: Alex Rees, Jacob Archbold and Jelena Sofronijevic. Assistant Producer: Elina Ganatra. Audio production and original music by Jade Bailey. THE BUNKER is a Podmasters Production Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

How do you know the world is real? How do I know I’m real? As virtual worlds expand, our concepts of reality warp. NYU philosopher David Chalmers – author of Reality+: Virtual Worlds and the Problems of Philosophy – talks to Ros Taylor about the etiquette of virtual living, why video game characters deserve moral rights, and how we can know what we think we know.  “Simulated beings could end up outnumbering non-simulated beings. So the odds that YOU are simulated could be high…” “If we’re living in a simulation, all this is still real – and our lives are still full of meaning.” https://uk.bookshop.org/books/reality-virtual-worlds-and-the-problems-of-philosophy-9780241320716/9780241320716https://www.patreon.com/bunkercastWritten and presented by Ros Taylor. Producers: Jacob Archbold, Jelena Sofronijevic, and Alex Rees. Assistant producer: Elina Ganatra. Lead producer: Jacob Jarvis. Audio production and original music by Jade Bailey. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison THE BUNKER is a Podmasters Production Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Can you enforce laws in cyberspace like you can in the real world? Facebook, now Meta, has struggled to moderate its massive platforms for over a decade, battling with national governments over how it should be regulated. Now, it's preparing to be the biggest player in a new arena - the Metaverse. Lorna Woods, professor of Internet Law, joins Ros Taylor: “The one thing we can say about the metaverse, is that it won't be what we think it is.” “Have we thought about how this service can be misused? Rather than sitting in a phase of techno-optimism about the whole thing.” “The transient nature of the content might be good, as you won't have those long shadows cast over you.” “If we want to see this freeing capacity of the metaverse then we don't want to be tied to one identity.” “We're going to have to think more broadly about how we're going to safeguard.” Written and presented by Ros Taylor. Lead Producer: Jacob Jarvis. Producers: Jacob Archbold and Jelena Sofronijevic. Assistant Producer: Elina Ganatra. Audio production by Alex Rees. Original music by Jade Bailey. THE BUNKER is a Podmasters Production Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

What would a normal day look like inside the metaverse? When would we plug in, and would we ever switch off? Charles Arthur, former technology editor of The Guardian and author of Social Warming: The Dangerous and Polarising Effects of Social Media, joins Ahir Shah to talk about the upsides, downsides and the practicalities of striking a virtual to real-world balance. “The day in the metaverse will be a lot of meetings, a bit like zoom.”  “Travel might be a lot better than slogging through a train and people generously giving you their colds.”  “Well, everything gets used for work and porn in the end.” “We’ve all been on Twitter, everyone's all mouth and no trousers.”  “Maybe everyone will want to wear their headset all day long and sit in little cubes.” “Where we start to blend the real world and cyber, is augmented reality, which is where you put on glasses and you have an overlay for the real world.” “How much extra value will you get from a metaverse meeting over a zoom meeting? If that gets unlocked, then it'll all start happening.” https://www.patreon.com/bunkercastWritten and presented by Ahir Shah. Lead Producer: Jacob Jarvis. Producers: Jacob Archbold and Jelena Sofronijevic. Assistant Producer: Elina Ganatra. Audio production by Jade Bailey. THE BUNKER is a Podmasters Production Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

We explore whether Rishi Sunak’s cost of living package is enough to address the long term hardship faced by millions. Or was it yet another political manoeuvre amid Tory turmoil? Plus, we unpack the issues faced by democracies across the globe with our guest Yascha Mounk, political scientist and author of The Great Experiment: Why Diverse Democracies Fall Apart and How They Can Endure.  “If Johnson can make it to the long summer break, where MPs have weeks away, that might allow people to calm down a little.” – Arthur Snell  “I think the really difficult economic stuff is going to be next winter. It goes from something you worry about to something that fundamentally changes the way you live your life.” – Arthur Snell  "The government has a tendency to respond too late." - Yasmeen Serhan “A lot of discourse would be improved if people were forced to watch one focus group per week.” – Yascha Mounk  “You make better arguments when you know what your opponent means as well.” – Yasmeen Serhan  “I would distinguish between the angry minority and the majority of people.” – Yascha Mounk  https://www.patreon.com/bunkercastPresented by Ros Taylor with Arthur Snell and Yasmeen Serhan. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. Lead Producer: Jacob Jarvis. Producers: Jacob Archbold, Jelena Sofronijevic and Alex Rees, with research by Elina Ganatra. Music by Kenny Dickinson. Audio production by Alex Rees. The Bunker is a Podmasters Production. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices