The Bunker – News without the nonsense

America has a gun problem, and not just inside its own borders. Thousands of guns cross into Mexico every year, fuelling an epidemic of violence between drug cartels. Ioan Grillo is the author of ‘Blood Gun Money: How America Arms Gangs and Cartels’. He’s spent time with gun manufacturers, speaking to FBI agents and at murder scenes to decipher just how deep the issue lies. He joined Seth Thevoz in the Bunker from Mexico City. “Suddenly there were no longer just gang members with shaved heads and tattoos; these were paramilitary organisations with AK47s.” — Ioan Grillo “The level of destruction has increased exponentially.” — Ioan Grillo “For the Mexican cartels the easiest source of guns is the US, there’s a huge supply there and they’re relatively cheap.” — Ioan Grillo “The bloodshed they unleash down here with these weapons, it’s unbelievable.” — Ioan Grillo www.patreon.com/bunkercast Written and presented by Seth Thevoz. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. Managing Editor: Jacob Jarvis. Producer: Chris Jones. Audio production: Alex Rees. Music by Kenny Dickinson. THE BUNKER is a Podmasters ProductionInstagram | Twitter Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

It’s time to celebrate the birthplace of democracy with a Greek election! With more than 30 parties and coalitions vying for votes, the stage is set for political chaos. Isn’t democracy wonderful? Alex Andreou speaks to journalist and correspondent for ERT, Evdoxia Lymperi, to try and understand one of the year’s most unpredictable elections.  “This is a mute election, nobody is willing to speak to the pollsters.” “Greeks are not Germans. They have no tradition of coalition governments.” www.patreon.com/bunkercast Written and presented by Alex Andreou. Producer: Liam Tait and Kasia Tomasiewicz. Audio editor: Robin Leeburn. Managing editor: Jacob Jarvis. Music by Kenny Dickinson. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. THE BUNKER is a Podmasters Production.Instagram | Twitter Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The overnight Taliban takeover of Afghanistan in 2021 shocked the world. But who is behind the hardline regime running the country? After 20 years of insurgency against the US-backed government in Kabul, how have they changed since they were last in power? Doomsday Watch host Arthur Snell is joined by Hassan Abbas, author of The Return of the Taliban Afghanistan after the Americans Left, to explore the factions vying for power and which international countries have their eyes on Afghanistan.  “The US were spending billions of dollars on a state-building project.” “The Taliban are not one ‘thing’ but many different factions.” “The Pakistani military has influence over the Old Guard in Afghanistan.” www.patreon.com/bunkercast Written and presented by Arthur Snell. Producer: Kasia Tomasiewicz. Audio editor: Simon Williams. Music by Kenny Dickinson. Managing editor: Jacob Jarvis. Group editor: Andrew Harrison. THE BUNKER is a Podmasters Production.Instagram | Twitter Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

How do we stop terrorists before they act? Are our security services operating with expert proficiency or is it just luck? The answer is unfortunately a mix of both, but that’s no reason to despair. Hannah Fearn speaks to The Independent's home affairs editor Lizzie Dearden about her book, Plotters: The UK Terrorists Who Failed, to get an insight into British terror attacks that were stopped in their tracks. “The pool of people susceptible to terrorism grew during the lockdown.” “Security services were so focused on stopping people from joining Isis that more attacks happened in the UK.” “So many terrorists receive a mental health diagnosis at the point of criminal conviction.” www.patreon.com/bunkercast Book Link:https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/Homegrown/Jeffrey-Toobin/9781668013571Written and presented by Hannah Fearn. Producer: Liam Tait. Audio editor: Alex Rees. Managing editor: Jacob Jarvis. Music by Kenny Dickinson. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. THE BUNKER is a Podmasters Production.Instagram | Twitter Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Despite endless scandals and psychodramas, the Tories keep getting into power. So why are the British obsessed with the Conservative Party? And will we ever get rid of them? Seth Thevoz is joined by Samuel Earle, author of Tory Nation: How One Party Conquered Britain, to ask how one party came to dominate our political imagination. “The election numbers seem more like a rigged casino than a functional democracy.” — Samuel Earle “The House of Lords seems to go against the grain of a liberal democratic society, yet it’s still here.” — Samuel Earle “Conservatives don’t like to see themselves as ideological people.” — Samuel Earle. Support us on Patreon:www.patreon.com/bunkercast Written and presented by Seth Thevoz. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. Managing Editor: Jacob Jarvis. Producer: Chris Jones. Audio production: Jade Bailey. Music by Kenny Dickinson. Artwork by James Parrett. THE BUNKER is a Podmasters Production.Instagram | Twitter Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Battle lines were drawn this week as the Conservatives held two conferences – whose side are you on? In the blue corner Suella Braverman and a whole host of unsavoury fringe figures from the National Conservatism Movement. In the other blue corner it’s the Conservative Democratic Organisation aka the ‘bring back Boris brigade’ led by Nadine Dorries. Plus the Turkish election – is Erdogan’s time up? And yes, we’ll be talking about Eurovision. Alex Andreou joins Ros Taylor to explore the week ahead. “Boris wasn’t there which isn’t unusual as it wasn’t a paid gig.” – Alex Andreou  “We’ve gone ‘high skill high wage’ economy to a ‘let’s all pick some apples’ economy’” – Alex Andreou  “Unhappiness following the local council elections was subsided by the Coronation but now it's back with a vengeance.”– Alex Andreou  Support us on Patreon:www.patreon.com/bunkercast Written and presented by Ros Taylor with Alex Andreou. Producers: Kasia Tomasiewicz and Liam Tait. Audio producer: Jade Bailey. Managing editor: Jacob Jarvis. Music by Kenny Dickinson. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. THE BUNKER is a Podmasters Production.Instagram | Twitter Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

How do you tell if a politician is lying? Their lips are moving. That’s what the old joke would have us believe anyway. Rob Burley was a senior producer on some of the BBC’s flagship political shows so he knows what makes a good (and disastrous) political interview. Ros Taylor talks to Rob about his new book, Why Is This Lying Bastard Lying to Me?: Searching for the Truth on Political TV, to find out the tricks used by politicians to get away with their little white lies.  “Paxman just had enough, he decided he wasn’t going to play by the rules .” “Robin Day revolutionised TV interviews in 1958 and it’s gone downhill since then.”  “The morning after the Brexit referendum the BBC told me not to look into the 350m bus claims.” www.patreon.com/bunkercast Book Link:https://harpercollins.co.uk/products/why-is-this-lying-bastard-lying-to-me-searching-for-the-truth-on-political-tv-rob-burley?variant=40188508504142Written and presented by Ros Taylor. Producer: Liam Tait. Audio editor: Alex Rees. Managing editor: Jacob Jarvis. Music by Kenny Dickinson. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. THE BUNKER is a Podmasters Production. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Right wing extremists are often considered lone wolves. But platforms like 4chan have made it easier than ever for extremist communities to grow. Alex Andreou speaks to best-selling author Jeffrey Toobin about his latest book, Homegrown: Timothy McVeigh and the Rise of Right-Wing Extremism, which explores the connection between the Oklahoma City bomber and the rise of modern day far right extremism. “It’s easy for extremists to find each other. That plot to kidnap the governor of Michigan was hatched over Facebook chat.” “The federal government has not done enough to challenge the idea that all terrorists are Islamic radicals.” “McVeigh did act alone, but he was part of a larger political force in the US.” www.patreon.com/bunkercast Book Link:https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/Homegrown/Jeffrey-Toobin/9781668013571Written and presented by Alex Andreou. Producer: Liam Tait. Audio editor: Alex Rees. Managing editor: Jacob Jarvis. Music by Kenny Dickinson. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. THE BUNKER is a Podmasters Production.Instagram | Twitter Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Donald Trump took over the phrase fake news – but dodgy journalism was an issue long before him. Has the media always been misleading? And how do we tell the difference between bad and fake journalism? Jacob Jarvis is joined by Andie Tucher, author of Not Exactly Lying: Fake News and Fake Journalism in American History, to discover the 300-year-old roots of fake news and why some journalists can’t admit it when they mess up. “Journalists make mistakes all the time – the reporting on Iraq being a key example.” “Sin of omissions can be as consequential as active misinformation.”  “There are huge limits on journalists, who often don’t like saying that.” “Fake journalism is much more worrying than fake news.” Support us on Patreon:www.patreon.com/bunkercast Book Link:http://cup.columbia.edu/book/not-exactly-lying/9780231186353Written and presented by Jacob Jarvis. Producer: Kasia Tomasiewicz. Audio editor: Jade Bailey. Music by Kenny Dickinson. Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. THE BUNKER is a Podmasters Production.Instagram | Twitter Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

David Cameron entered 10 Downing Street 13 years ago. Since he and his right hand man George Osborne got their hands on power it's safe to say things haven’t been going well. Political journalist Steve Richards, of BBC and Rock & Roll Politics fame, joins Andrew Harrison in The Bunker to discuss this gruesome twosome and the pain caused by austerity and Brexit that they are both intrinsically linked to.  “Cameron’s left this horrible horrible mess that was wholly avoidable and we are still living with the consequences.”  “Cameron sold himself very effectively and it's a really interesting case study in how easy it is to mesmerise the media.”  “What has followed has been so chaotic – so it’s easy to forget that the seeds were sown in the Cameron era.”  www.patreon.com/bunkercast Written and presented by Group Editor: Andrew Harrison. Managing Editor: Jacob Jarvis . Music by Kenny Dickinson. Audio production: Robin Leeburn. THE BUNKER is a Podmasters ProductionInstagram | Twitter Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices