Media Confidential

Vice and BuzzFeed were once at the forefront of the digital media revolution—Vice alone was once valued at nearly double the New York Times! But now, both firms have shut their news operations, Vice has closed its flagship site, and further cuts to staff numbers are expected. BuzzFeed’s former UK editor Janine Gibson, now weekend editor of the Financial Times, analyses why these millennial media giants became so troubled. Plus, writer Peter Pomerantsev chats about a forgotten master of Second World War propaganda and discusses contemporary information manipulation, touching on Vladimir Putin, Alexei Navalny, Ukraine and Donald Trump. Enjoy one-month’s free trial to Prospect’s digital content, and get full access to rigorously fact-checked, truly independent analysis and perspectives. No commitment—you can cancel at any time. Click here to subscribe: https://subscription.prospectmagazine.co.uk/1mfd/prospect-magazine/mcpod1mf Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

An investigation by Hope Not Hate reported this week that Paul Marshall, owner of GB News and UnHerd and frontrunner in the race to buy the Telegraph, had repeatedly liked and re-tweeted racist and Islamophobic content. In this special bonus episode, Alan and Lionel discuss who decides whether someone is fit to own a major UK newspaper, what Ofcom can do to uphold standards—and what could happen to political discourse in the United Kingdom if Marshall’s bid succeeds. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Does the word “PRESS” on a flak jacket keep a journalist safe or make them a target? In this week’s Media Confidential, we focus on the sobering death toll of reporters covering the war in Gaza, as highlighted by the annual report of the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ). Alan and Lionel hear from the CPJ’s chief executive Jodie Ginsberg and speak to AFP’s Global News Director Phil Chetwynd, who has a team reporting from inside Gaza and who highlights an incident when journalists were seemingly targeted by Israeli guns. Alan also gives insight on dealing with Julian Assange, the Wikileaks founder, whose latest high profile court proceedings began this weekEnjoy one-month’s free trial to Prospect’s digital content, and get full access to rigorously fact-checked, truly independent analysis and perspectives. No commitment—you can cancel at any time. Click here to subscribe: https://subscription.prospectmagazine.co.uk/1mfd/prospect-magazine/mcpod1mf Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The podcast delves into media bias, 24-hour news impact on mental health, and whether President Biden should be on TikTok. They also discuss Taylor Swift's potential influence on the US election and explore the dynamics of BBC Question Time and Fiona Bruce's techniques.

Amid great concern over the provision of local news in the UK and beyond, could organisations such as the Manchester Mill and the Bristol Cable challenge famous old papers in some of Britain’s biggest cities and calm long-term fears of areas becoming “news deserts”? Alan and Lionel hear from Joshi Herrmann and Sophie Atkinson from Manchester Mill about whether their community subscriber model is the way to fund commercially sustainable journalism capable of holding powerful people and institutions to account in local and regional “patches”. There’s also an update on “Gibb gate”, comment on the latest limp Ofcom ruling pertaining to GB News, plus analysis of Tucker Carlson flying to Moscow to interview the Russian president, Vladimir Putin. Enjoy one-month’s free trial to Prospect’s digital content, and get full access to rigorously fact-checked, truly independent analysis and perspectives. No commitment—you can cancel at any time. Click here to subscribe: https://subscription.prospectmagazine.co.uk/1mfd/prospect-magazine/mcpod1mf Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Can Rishi Sunak still rely on what has often been called the “Conservative media”, or are news organisations on the political right becoming increasingly hostile to the prime minister? Journalist David Aaronovitch helps Alan and Lionel analyse who and what is driving significant cultural and political shifts in some of the UK’s newsrooms and media boardrooms. Could the Telegraph and GB News even desert the Tories and back the Reform party at the next general election? Enjoy one-month’s free trial to Prospect’s digital content, and get full access to rigorously fact-checked, truly independent analysis and perspectives. No commitment—you can cancel at any time. Click here to subscribe: https://subscription.prospectmagazine.co.uk/1mfd/prospect-magazine/mcpod1mf Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Investigation into government capture of the BBC, examining the influence and connections of Robbie Gibb, Theresa May's director of communications. Discussions on the independence of the BBC, government appointments, bias allegations, political pressures, and lessons learned from Gibgate scandal.

Is Donald Trump now unstoppable in his quest to secure the Republican presidential nomination, after kicking off caucus season with a decisive win in Iowa? As Trump shapes up for another shot at the White House, Alan and Lionel ask how US media can pitch their coverage and analysis to ensure scrutiny of such an unreliable and divisive figure, without ignoring the election issues that matter to his supporters. They’re joined by Alex Burns, who is now head of news at POLITICO and covered the 2020 election for the New York Times, to analyse how news organisations will and should cover the Trump campaign and question the record of President Joe Biden. Plus, what is former chancellor George Osborne’s involvement with one of the key bidders for the Daily Telegraph, and what is going on at Reach plc as Alison Phillips departs as editor of the Daily Mirror? Here's a new seasonal subscription offer from Prospect. We’re discounting the price of an annual digital subscription by 50%. To take advantage of this great deal, please search for ‘Prospect New Year offer’ or visit https://subscribe.prospectmagazine.co.uk/mc. Offer ends Friday 19th Jan. We'd love your feedback! Tell us more at: https://f9ce3vpjrw3.typeform.com/to/bxJBPxN2 Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Award-winning actor Toby Jones, who plays Alan Bates in ITV’s Mr Bates vs the Post Office, reflects on the drama’s huge public and political impact, alongside its producer Patrick Spence.  Alan and Lionel ask why this screen version has cut through in a way that news reporting of the Post Office Horizon scandal did not, with insights from Professor Rasmus Nielsen, Director of the Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism at the University of Oxford. Here's a new seasonal subscription offer from Prospect. We’re discounting the price of an annual digital subscription by 50%. To take advantage of this great deal, please search for ‘Prospect New Year offer’ or visit https://subscribe.prospectmagazine.co.uk/mc. Offer ends Friday 19th Jan. We'd love your feedback! Tell us more at: https://f9ce3vpjrw3.typeform.com/to/bxJBPxN2 Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

2024 is a crucial year for liberal democracies around the world, with over 50 nations voting in general elections and up to 4.2bn people casting their votes. In this episode, Alan Rusbridger and Lionel Barber discuss why media election coverage will be more important than ever, as key campaigns spill over from conventional, legacy formats such as print, television and radio and onto a wide range of social media platforms. Will fake news and misinformation become even more widespread, and could artificial intelligence have a decisive impact on outcomes? Alan and Lionel also unpick the importance of a key AI lawsuit between the New York Times and Open AI and Microsoft. And then there’s Twitter, or X. How will the social media platform perform with the challenges that it faces on a daily basis since Elon Musk took over the reins? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.