The Intelligence from The Economist

<p>America’s upbeat assessment of a ceasefire deal masks <a href="https://www.economist.com/middle-east-and-africa/2024/06/12/hamas-and-israel-are-still-far-apart-over-a-ceasefire-deal?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">deep divides</a> that may not, in fact, be bridgeable. There are nevertheless reasons for optimism. Our data team digs into the accusation that the <em>New York Times</em>’s bestseller list is <a href="https://www.economist.com/culture/2024/06/11/is-the-new-york-times-bestseller-list-politically-biased?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">biased</a> against conservatives (10:58). And why a quirk of British regulation is <a href="https://www.economist.com/britain/2024/05/21/when-is-a-non-alcoholic-drink-alcohol-free?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">holding back</a> its non-alcoholic-drinks industry (19:08). </p><br><p><em>Get a world of insights by </em><a href="https://subscribenow.economist.com/podcasts-plus" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>subscribing to Economist Podcasts+</em></a><em>. For more information about how to access Economist Podcasts+, please visit our </em><a href="https://myaccount.economist.com/s/article/What-is-Economist-Podcasts" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>FAQs page</em></a><em> or watch </em><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gczo71bg1uY" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>our video</em></a><em> explaining how to link your account.</em></p><br><p><br></p> <hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>

<p>We have dusted off and tuned up our <a href="https://www.economist.com/interactive/us-2024-election/prediction-model/president?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">forecast model</a> for America’s presidential race. So far it gives Donald Trump a marginally higher chance of a second term. There is at last progress on not one but two vaccines <a href="https://www.economist.com/middle-east-and-africa/2024/05/30/new-fronts-are-opening-in-the-war-against-malaria?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">to beat malaria</a> (9:02). And a look at the “<a href="https://www.economist.com/culture/2024/05/15/tradwives-the-real-housewives-of-the-internet-have-gone-viral?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">tradwives</a>” of TikTok: passionate homemakers who prefer the gender roles of the past (15:10).</p><br><p><em>Get a world of insights by </em><a href="https://subscribenow.economist.com/podcasts-plus" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>subscribing to Economist Podcasts+</em></a><em>. For more information about how to access Economist Podcasts+, please visit our </em><a href="https://myaccount.economist.com/s/article/What-is-Economist-Podcasts" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>FAQs page</em></a><em> or watch </em><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gczo71bg1uY" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>our video</em></a><em> explaining how to link your account.</em></p> <hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>

<p>Across the rich world millions spend more than a third of their disposable income on rent. We ask why policymakers have such <a href="https://www.economist.com/international/2024/05/29/is-your-rent-ever-going-to-fall?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">terrible ideas</a> on easing the pressure. America’s bid to crimp TikTok has raised a <a href="https://www.economist.com/united-states/2024/05/30/the-side-effects-of-the-tiktok-tussle?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">flurry of issues</a> far graver than social-media scrolling (9:53). And why pop stars are (again) <a href="https://www.economist.com/culture/2024/06/04/pop-stars-are-all-about-albums?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">embracing the album</a> over the single (15:46).</p><br><p><em>Get a world of insights by </em><a href="https://subscribenow.economist.com/podcasts-plus" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>subscribing to Economist Podcasts+</em></a><em>. For more information about how to access Economist Podcasts+, please visit our </em><a href="https://myaccount.economist.com/s/article/What-is-Economist-Podcasts" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>FAQs page</em></a><em> or watch </em><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gczo71bg1uY" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>our video</em></a><em> explaining how to link your account.</em></p><p><br></p> <hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>

<p>Hard-right parties did well in Europe's parliamentary elections—so well in France that President Emmanuel Macron <a href="https://www.economist.com/europe/2024/06/09/as-the-french-hard-right-triumphs-in-eu-elections-macron-calls-snap-vote?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">called</a> a risky snap election. Elsewhere, though, the political centre held. We examine the policies that are getting America’s many <a href="https://www.economist.com/united-states/2024/05/09/american-pupils-have-missed-too-much-school-since-the-pandemic?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">chronically truant students</a> back in school (9:13). And the delicate business of <a href="https://www.economist.com/business/2024/05/16/how-not-to-name-a-new-car?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">naming a new car</a> (16:42).</p><br><p><em>Get a world of insights by </em><a href="https://subscribenow.economist.com/podcasts-plus" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>subscribing to Economist Podcasts+</em></a><em>. For more information about how to access Economist Podcasts+, please visit our </em><a href="https://myaccount.economist.com/s/article/What-is-Economist-Podcasts" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>FAQs page</em></a><em> or watch </em><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gczo71bg1uY" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>our video</em></a><em> explaining how to link your account.</em></p><br><p><br></p> <hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>

<p>Narendra Modi has been chosen to lead India for the third time in a row. But after 10 years in power, he was humbled at the national election. What kind of leader will he be? Stories from his youth in the Hindu nationalist movement offer clues.</p><br><p>This episode draws on audio from the following publishers: Narendra Modi YouTube, ANI, Legend Global Studios, Lalit Vachani, Prasar Bharti Archives, Desh Gujarat, The New York Times, NDTV, Doordarshan and BBC.</p><br><p>To listen to the full series, search "The Modi Raj" and subscribe to <a href="https://subscribenow.economist.com/podcasts-plus" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Economist Podcasts+</a>.</p><br><p>If you’re already a subscriber to <em>The Economist</em>, you have full access to all our shows as part of your subscription. For more information about how to access Economist Podcasts+, please visit our <a href="https://myaccount.economist.com/s/article/What-is-Economist-Podcasts" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">FAQs</a> page or watch our <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gczo71bg1uY" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">video</a> explaining how to link your account.</p> <hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>

<p>When Russia attacked the Kakhovka dam in Ukraine a year ago, lives were lost, families stranded and towns submerged. But from that devastation emerged <a href="https://www.economist.com/interactive/europe/2024/06/05/russias-explosion-of-a-huge-ukrainian-dam-had-surprising-effects" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">discussion on post-war reconstruction</a>. Our correspondent spent months <a href="https://www.economist.com/audio/podcasts/the-modi-raj" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">investigating Narendra Modi</a>, the strongman who was humbled at this week’s Indian election (10:02). And <a href="https://www.economist.com/obituary/2024/06/06/barry-kemp-spent-his-career-digging-up-akhenatens-abandoned-city" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">remembering Barry Kemp</a>, the Egyptologist who dug up Akhenaten’s abandoned city (17:18).</p><br><p><em>Listen to what matters most, from global politics and business to science and technology—</em><a href="https://subscribenow.economist.com/podcasts-plus" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>Subscribe to Economist Podcasts+</em></a></p><br><p><em>For more information about how to access Economist Podcasts+, please visit our </em><a href="https://myaccount.economist.com/s/article/What-is-Economist-Podcasts" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>FAQs page</em></a><em> or watch </em><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gczo71bg1uY" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>our video</em></a><em> explaining how to link your account. </em></p> <hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>

<p>As Britain’s general-election campaign heats up, party leaders are <a href="https://www.economist.com/britain/2024/06/03/can-britains-economy-grow-as-fast-as-it-needs-to" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">vague on their economic plans</a>. With growth so slow, how could the victor energise the economy? We visit the D-day beaches 80 years on, as war rages in Europe once again (10:19). And <a href="https://www.economist.com/culture/2024/05/13/venices-new-admission-fee-cannot-curb-overtourism" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Venice’s new daytripper fee</a> is designed to curb crowds. But putting a price on protecting beauty is proving controversial (17:42).  </p><br><p><br></p><p><em>Listen to what matters most, from global politics and business to science and technology—</em><a href="https://subscribenow.economist.com/podcasts-plus" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>Subscribe to Economist Podcasts+</em></a></p><br><p><em>For more information about how to access Economist Podcasts+, please visit our </em><a href="https://myaccount.economist.com/s/article/What-is-Economist-Podcasts" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>FAQs page</em></a><em> or watch </em><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gczo71bg1uY" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>our video</em></a><em> explaining how to link your account. </em></p> <hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>

<p>Narendra Modi, the strongman of India, will have to compromise now his party has <a href="https://www.economist.com/asia/2024/06/04/a-shock-election-result-in-india-humbles-narendra-modi" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">lost its majority</a>. What does the surprise result mean for the country? As some foreign investors shy away from Africa, <a href="https://www.economist.com/business/2024/05/23/africa-inc-is-ready-to-roar" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">the continent’s private sector</a> is serving domestic customers to fill that hole (10:02). And how <a href="https://www.economist.com/science-and-technology/2024/05/08/to-stay-fit-future-moon-dwellers-will-need-special-workouts" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">mastering circus stunts</a> could help future moon-dwellers exercise (16:42).</p><br><p><em>Listen to what matters most, from global politics and business to science and technology—</em><a href="https://subscribenow.economist.com/podcasts-plus" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>Subscribe to Economist Podcasts+</em></a></p><br><p><em>For more information about how to access Economist Podcasts+, please visit our </em><a href="https://myaccount.economist.com/s/article/What-is-Economist-Podcasts" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>FAQs page</em></a><em> or watch </em><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gczo71bg1uY" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>our video</em></a><em> explaining how to link your account. </em></p> <hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>

<p>There has been a slow <a href="https://www.economist.com/china/2024/05/30/hong-kong-convicts-14-pro-democracy-activists?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">strangling of freedom</a> in the territory where pro-democracy activists have been convicted; an annual vigil for the victims of the Tiananmen Square crackdown in Beijing in 1989 has been replaced by a food fair. A boom in startups suggests America is <a href="https://www.economist.com/finance-and-economics/2024/05/12/america-is-in-the-midst-of-an-extraordinary-startup-boom?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">recovering its pioneering spirit</a> (8:06). And <a href="https://www.economist.com/obituary/2024/05/29/june-mendoza-captured-both-the-famous-and-the-unknown?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">remembering June Mendoza</a>, portrait painter to the royals, and the less well-known (16:28).</p><br><p><em>Until June 5th, get a world of insights for </em><a href="https://subscribenow.economist.com/podcasts-plus" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>50% off—subscribe to Economist Podcasts+</em></a><em>.</em></p><br><p><em>For more information about how to access Economist Podcasts+, please visit our </em><a href="https://myaccount.economist.com/s/article/What-is-Economist-Podcasts" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>FAQs page</em></a><em> or watch </em><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gczo71bg1uY" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>our video</em></a><em> explaining how to link your account. </em></p><p><br></p> <hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>

<p>Claudia Sheinbaum has been elected <a href="https://www.economist.com/leaders/2024/06/03/mexicos-new-president-must-do-a-high-stakes-u-turn?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Mexico’s first female president</a>. Now the real fight begins: crime is rocketing, corruption is rampant and the country is divided. Hurricane season has arrived in the Atlantic, and America’s coastal states are braced for <a href="https://www.economist.com/united-states/2024/05/30/america-could-face-its-most-active-hurricane-season-ever?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">a stormy one</a>—thanks to forces both natural and man-linked (11:02). And introducing the new co-host of “The Intelligence” (20:11).</p><br><p><em>Until June 5th get a world of insights for </em><a href="https://subscribenow.economist.com/podcasts-plus" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>50% off—subscribe to Economist Podcasts+</em></a><em>. For more information about how to access Economist Podcasts+, please visit our </em><a href="https://myaccount.economist.com/s/article/What-is-Economist-Podcasts" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>FAQs page</em></a><em> or watch </em><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gczo71bg1uY" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>our video</em></a><em> explaining how to link your account.</em></p><p><br></p> <hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>

<p>The former president was found <a href="https://www.economist.com/leaders/2024/05/30/the-disgrace-of-a-former-american-president?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">guilty</a> on all 34 charges of falsifying business records. But his convictions leave lots of room for appeals, and for supporters to cry foul. South Africa’s ruling party is set to lose its majority in its worst electoral performance since Nelson Mandela’s victory. What might a coalition look like (09:28)? And, we say goodbye to Ore (17:08).</p><br><p><em>Until June 5th, get a world of insights for </em><a href="https://subscribenow.economist.com/podcasts-plus" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>50% off—subscribe to Economist Podcasts+</em></a><em>.</em></p><br><p><em>For more information about how to access Economist Podcasts+, please visit our </em><a href="https://myaccount.economist.com/s/article/What-is-Economist-Podcasts" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>FAQs page</em></a><em> or watch </em><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gczo71bg1uY" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>our video</em></a><em> explaining how to link your account. </em></p> <hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>

<p>Ahead of a <a href="https://www.economist.com/leaders/2024/05/22/rishi-sunaks-election-call-makes-no-sense-but-is-good-news?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">general election</a> in July, we reflect on 14 years of Conservative rule. It’s not a great record, but will the prime minister be able to spin it on the campaign trail? Latin America is still being torn apart by some of the world’s worst <a href="https://www.economist.com/the-americas/2024/05/09/the-worlds-most-violent-region-needs-a-new-approach-to-crime?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">gang violence</a>. Why aren’t countermeasures working (10:26)? And how <a href="https://www.economist.com/science-and-technology/2024/04/24/climate-change-is-slowing-earths-rotation?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">climate change</a> is making our days ever so slightly longer (20:03).</p><br><p><em>Until June 5th, get a world of insights for </em><a href="https://subscribenow.economist.com/podcasts-plus" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>50% off—subscribe to Economist Podcasts+</em></a><em>.</em></p><br><p><em>For more information about how to access Economist Podcasts+, please visit our </em><a href="https://myaccount.economist.com/s/article/What-is-Economist-Podcasts" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>FAQs page</em></a><em> or watch </em><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gczo71bg1uY" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>our video</em></a><em> explaining how to link your account. </em></p> <hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>

<p>Horrific images of charred bodies being pulled from the rubble in Gaza drew outcry, and more countries are recognising the Palestinian state. Israel is becoming more isolated as a result, and Binyamin Netanyahu’s lack of a postwar plan is threatening his government. The growing electoral power of <a href="https://www.economist.com/the-americas/2024/05/23/mexicos-mighty-diaspora-punches-below-its-weight-in-elections?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Mexico’s diaspora</a> ahead of the country’s upcoming elections (11:45). And, come with us for a game of <a href="https://www.economist.com/britain/2024/01/03/lawn-bowls-is-in-decline-can-it-make-a-comeback?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">lawn bowls</a> (19:38).</p><br><p><em>Listen to what matters most, from global politics and business to science and technology—</em><a href="https://subscribenow.economist.com/podcasts-plus" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>Subscribe to Economist Podcasts+</em></a></p><br><p><em>For more information about how to access Economist Podcasts+, please visit our </em><a href="https://myaccount.economist.com/s/article/What-is-Economist-Podcasts" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>FAQs page</em></a><em> or watch </em><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gczo71bg1uY" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>our video</em></a><em> explaining how to link your account. </em></p> <hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>

<p>The IAEA is charged with promoting the <a href="https://www.economist.com/international/2024/05/20/irans-new-leaders-stand-at-a-nuclear-precipice?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">peaceful use of atomic energy</a>. But with uncertainty in Iran and a delicate situation in Ukraine, can the organisation still keep risks under control? The world’s most important <a href="https://www.economist.com/business/2024/05/22/can-anyone-save-the-worlds-most-important-diamond-company?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">diamond company</a> is in trouble. Could selling out save them (10:31)? And, a look at Russia’s low-tech <a href="https://www.economist.com/the-economist-explains/2024/05/15/what-are-the-russian-turtle-tanks-seen-in-ukraine?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">tank defences</a> (16:51)</p><br><p><em>Listen to what matters most, from global politics and business to science and technology—</em><a href="https://subscribenow.economist.com/podcasts-plus" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>Subscribe to Economist Podcasts+</em></a></p><br><p><em>For more information about how to access Economist Podcasts+, please visit our </em><a href="https://myaccount.economist.com/s/article/What-is-Economist-Podcasts" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>FAQs page</em></a><em> or watch </em><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gczo71bg1uY" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>our video</em></a><em> explaining how to link your account. </em></p> <hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>

<p>Apple and Alphabet operate what is in effect a smartphone-app duopoly. Governments <a href="https://www.economist.com/business/2024/05/13/app-stores-are-hugely-lucrative-and-under-attack?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">want</a> to curb their power, but it is not clear whether more competition would change things. We ask why India’s election is so <a href="https://www.economist.com/the-economist-explains/2024/05/11/why-indias-election-is-the-most-expensive-in-the-world?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">eye-wateringly expensive</a>; the country’s size is not the only answer (08:59). And <a href="https://www.economist.com/science-and-technology/2024/04/17/locust-busting-is-getting-an-upgrade?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">new approaches</a> in the old fight against swarms of locusts (14:07).</p><br><p><em>Get a world of insights for </em><a href="https://subscribenow.economist.com/podcasts-plus" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>50% off—subscribe to Economist Podcasts+</em></a><em>. For more information about how to access Economist Podcasts+, please visit our </em><a href="https://myaccount.economist.com/s/article/What-is-Economist-Podcasts" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>FAQs page</em></a><em> or watch </em><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gczo71bg1uY" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>our video</em></a><em> explaining how to link your account.</em></p> <hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>

<p>The introduction laws cracking down on supposed foreign agents has become a common tactic for autocratic leaders. Activists in Georgia, who oppose the introduction of such a law, refer to theirs as “the Russian law”. They see it as moving their country closer to Putin, and away from the West.</p><br><p>Last week, as Georgia’s parliament prepared to vote on the law, Heidi Pett travelled to Tbilisi, the capital, to meet opposition leaders and find out why they are so afraid. What she discovered was a group being beaten, bruised, and left worried for their personal freedom—wondering, once the dust settles, what the day after tomorrow will bring.</p><br><p><em>The Weekend Intelligence is free for anyone to enjoy for a limited time. To continue listening to this and other award-winning podcasts by The Economist, subscribe to </em><a href="https://subscribenow.economist.com/podcasts-plus" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>Economist Podcasts+</em></a><em> for only $25/year - half off the usual price.</em></p><br><p><br></p> <hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>

<p>Narendra Modi is one of the most popular politicians on the planet. India’s prime minister is eyeing a third term atop the world’s biggest democracy. </p><br><p>A tea-seller’s son, Mr Modi began life an outsider and the man behind the political phenomenon remains hard to fathom. India has become an economic powerhouse during his ten years in charge. But he’s also the frontman for a chauvinistic Hindu nationalist dogma. </p><br><p>Can Mr Modi continue to balance both parts of his agenda and finish the job of turning India into a superpower? <em>The Economist</em>’s Avantika Chilkoti finds out what makes him tick. </p><br><p>Launching June 2024.</p><br><p>To listen to the full series, subscribe to <a href="https://subscribenow.economist.com/podcasts-plus" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Economist Podcasts+</a>.</p><br><p>If you’re already a subscriber to <em>The Economist</em>, you have full access to all our shows as part of your subscription. For more information about how to access Economist Podcasts+, please visit our <a href="https://myaccount.economist.com/s/article/What-is-Economist-Podcasts" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">FAQs</a> page or watch our <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gczo71bg1uY" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">video</a> explaining how to link your account.</p> <hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>

<p>Our editor-in-chief and Jerusalem correspondent pay a visit to Israel’s halls of power, finding that long-whispered dissent is <a href="https://www.economist.com/middle-east-and-africa/2024/05/19/the-revolt-against-binyamin-netanyahu?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">spilling</a> into the open. An Italian subsidy for green home improvements was ripe for abuse by design; the bill has now come due and it is <a href="https://www.economist.com/the-economist-explains/2024/04/17/how-a-home-improvement-subsidy-is-wrecking-italys-public-finances?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">enormous</a> (14:28). And how “Bridgerton”, a sort-of period drama, has made string quartets <a href="https://www.economist.com/culture/2024/05/20/the-hit-series-bridgerton-has-set-off-a-string-quartet-boom?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">fashionable</a> again (21:00). </p><br><p><em>Get a world of insights for </em><a href="https://subscribenow.economist.com/podcasts-plus" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>50% off—subscribe to Economist Podcasts+</em></a><em>. For more information about how to access Economist Podcasts+, please visit our </em><a href="https://myaccount.economist.com/s/article/What-is-Economist-Podcasts" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>FAQs page</em></a><em> or watch </em><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gczo71bg1uY" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>our video</em></a><em> explaining how to link your account.</em></p><br><p><br></p> <hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>

<p>When it comes to the chips used in artificial intelligence, one firm has the market locked up. We look at <a href="https://www.economist.com/business/2024/05/19/can-nvidia-be-dethroned-meet-the-startups-vying-for-its-crown?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">the rivals</a> minded to steal Nvidia’s crown. The death toll from the war in Gaza has been disputed since the start; we cut through the numbers to find a reliable estimate (10:19). And our correspondent examines the <a href="https://www.economist.com/culture/2024/04/29/fed-up-with-biden-v-trump-ii-some-succour-from-fictional-rematches?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">great rematches</a> of fiction (16:07).</p><br><p><em>Get a world of insights for </em><a href="https://subscribenow.economist.com/podcasts-plus" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>50% off—subscribe to Economist Podcasts+</em></a><em>. For more information about how to access Economist Podcasts+, please visit our </em><a href="https://myaccount.economist.com/s/article/What-is-Economist-Podcasts" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>FAQs page</em></a><em> or watch </em><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gczo71bg1uY" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>our video</em></a><em> explaining how to link your account.</em></p> <hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>

<p>Domestic divisions are already complicating the <a href="https://www.economist.com/asia/2024/05/20/lai-ching-te-aims-to-strengthen-taiwan-but-maintain-the-status-quo?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">daunting task</a> William Lai Ching-te has set himself: strengthening Taiwan while maintaining its ambiguous geopolitical status quo. With more and more big firms choosing to stay private—with good reason—the stockmarket <a href="https://www.economist.com/finance-and-economics/2024/04/18/why-the-stockmarket-is-disappearing?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">is shrinking</a> (09:37). And dating apps are putting an end to the <a href="https://www.economist.com/britain/2024/04/18/online-dating-spells-the-end-of-britains-lonely-hearts-ads?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">lonely-hearts advertisement</a> (16:47).</p><br><p><em>Get a world of insights for </em><a href="https://subscribenow.economist.com/podcasts-plus" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>50% off—subscribe to Economist Podcasts+</em></a><em>. For more information about how to access Economist Podcasts+, please visit our </em><a href="https://myaccount.economist.com/s/article/What-is-Economist-Podcasts" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>FAQs page</em></a><em> or watch </em><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gczo71bg1uY" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>our video</em></a><em> explaining how to link your account.</em></p> <hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>

<p>The chief prosecutor for the International Criminal Court has caused outrage by <a href="https://www.economist.com/middle-east-and-africa/2024/05/20/the-iccs-threat-to-arrest-binyamin-netanyahu-has-shocked-israel?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">requesting arrest warrants</a> for both Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu and Hamas’s leaders. China’s young people, on the lookout for safe ways to invest modest sums, have settled on collecting little <a href="https://www.economist.com/china/2024/04/25/chinas-young-people-are-rushing-to-buy-gold?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">gold beans</a> (13:20). And Hawaii may soon have the first official <a href="https://www.economist.com/united-states/2024/04/30/hawaii-may-soon-have-americas-first-official-state-gesture?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">state gesture</a> (17:04).  </p><br><p><em>Get a world of insights for </em><a href="https://subscribenow.economist.com/podcasts-plus" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>50% off—subscribe to Economist Podcasts+</em></a><em>. For more information about how to access Economist Podcasts+, please visit our </em><a href="https://myaccount.economist.com/s/article/What-is-Economist-Podcasts" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>FAQs page</em></a><em> or watch </em><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gczo71bg1uY" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>our video</em></a><em> explaining how to link your account.</em></p> <hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>

<p>The death of Ebrahim Raisi will spark <a href="https://www.economist.com/middle-east-and-africa/2024/05/19/the-death-of-irans-president-will-spark-a-high-stakes-power-struggle?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">succession battles</a> both for the presidency and for supreme leader-in-waiting. What kind of Iran will result? Accusations and evidence of Chinese espionage are stacking up in and <a href="https://www.economist.com/britain/2024/05/16/spies-trade-and-tech-chinas-relationship-with-britain?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">raising tensions</a> with Britain (9:57). And how the careers advisers of TikTok are <a href="https://www.economist.com/business/2024/05/09/for-gen-z-job-seekers-tiktok-is-the-new-linkedin?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">shaping the future</a> of job-hunting (18:54).</p><br><p><em>Get a world of insights for </em><a href="https://subscribenow.economist.com/podcasts-plus" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>50% off—subscribe to Economist Podcasts+</em></a><em>. For more information about how to access Economist Podcasts+, please visit our </em><a href="https://myaccount.economist.com/s/article/What-is-Economist-Podcasts" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>FAQs page</em></a><em> or watch </em><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gczo71bg1uY" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>our video</em></a><em> explaining how to link your account.</em></p> <hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>

<p>Mumbai is famously an open city, known for welcoming all comers, regardless of colour, caste, or creed. </p><br><p>But as the city goes about building its future, <em>Economist</em> correspondent Leo Mirani, a proud Mumbaikar, fears his city’s character is being buried beneath the rubble.</p><br><p>In this episode of the Weekend Intelligence Leo contemplates how all this construction will change his beloved Bombay, and who the Mumbai of the future is really designed for.</p><br><p><em>Get a world of insights for </em><a href="https://subscribenow.economist.com/podcasts-plus" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>50% off—subscribe to Economist Podcasts+</em></a></p><br><p><em>For more information about how to access Economist Podcasts+, please visit our </em><a href="https://myaccount.economist.com/s/article/What-is-Economist-Podcasts" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>FAQs page</em></a><em> or watch </em><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gczo71bg1uY" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>our video </em></a><em>explaining how to link your account.</em></p> <hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>

<p>A bid to squeeze money from social-media platforms that link to news content has backfired: what was intended to help publishers is instead <a href="https://www.economist.com/leaders/2024/05/16/canadas-law-to-help-news-outlets-is-harming-them-instead?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">harming them</a>. America’s workers still work more than Europe’s; what is changing is <a href="https://www.economist.com/finance-and-economics/2024/05/01/working-from-home-and-the-us-europe-divide?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">where they do it</a> (9:44). And remembering Shirley Conran, whose books were more than merely saucy: they <a href="https://www.economist.com/obituary/2024/05/16/shirley-conran-wrote-a-bonkbuster-to-teach-schoolgirls-about-sex?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">helped women</a> with everything from money to mathematics (16:22). </p><br><p><em>Get a world of insights for </em><a href="https://subscribenow.economist.com/podcasts-plus" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>50% off—subscribe to Economist Podcasts+</em></a><em>. For more information about how to access Economist Podcasts+, please visit our </em><a href="https://myaccount.economist.com/s/article/What-is-Economist-Podcasts" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>FAQs page</em></a><em> or watch </em><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gczo71bg1uY" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>our video</em></a><em> explaining how to link your account.</em></p> <hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>

<p>An <a href="https://www.economist.com/europe/2024/05/15/an-assassination-attempt-against-slovakias-prime-minister-robert-fico?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">attempt</a> on Robert Fico’s life comes at a time of deep-running polarisation in his country—much of which is his own doing. A vote today among auto workers in America’s historically union-unfriendly south will indicate whether an organised-labour revolution <a href="https://www.economist.com/united-states/2024/05/09/will-unions-sweep-the-american-south?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">can take hold</a> (9:26). And the perception of time <a href="https://www.economist.com/science-and-technology/2024/04/24/memorable-images-make-time-pass-more-slowly?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">varies</a> depending on what you are looking at (17:24).</p><br><p><em>Get a world of insights for </em><a href="https://subscribenow.economist.com/podcasts-plus" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>50% off—subscribe to Economist Podcasts+</em></a><em>. For more information about how to access Economist Podcasts+, please visit our </em><a href="https://myaccount.economist.com/s/article/What-is-Economist-Podcasts" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>FAQs page</em></a><em> or watch </em><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gczo71bg1uY" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>our video</em></a><em> explaining how to link your account.</em></p> <hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>

<p>Michael Cohen has been testifying in Donald Trump’s <a href="https://www.economist.com/united-states/2024/05/12/whos-winning-at-the-trump-trial?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">hush-money trial</a>. Did the former president’s fixer provide what the prosecution had hoped for? The Middle East has a <a href="https://www.economist.com/middle-east-and-africa/2024/04/25/the-middle-east-has-a-militia-problem?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">militia problem</a>. Many of the region’s governments are too weak to keep them down; others simply let them in (10:36). And investigating whether there is more or less <a href="https://www.economist.com/culture/2024/05/01/is-there-more-or-less-sex-on-screen?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">sex on the silver screen</a> these days (19:06).</p><br><p><em>Get a world of insights for </em><a href="https://subscribenow.economist.com/podcasts-plus" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>50% off—subscribe to Economist Podcasts+</em></a><em>. For more information about how to access Economist Podcasts+, please visit our </em><a href="https://myaccount.economist.com/s/article/What-is-Economist-Podcasts" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>FAQs page</em></a><em> or watch </em><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gczo71bg1uY" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>our video</em></a><em> explaining how to link your account.</em></p> <hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>

<p>At a hidden command centre our correspondent finds <a href="https://www.economist.com/europe/2024/05/09/ukraines-defenders-anxiously-dig-in-for-a-looming-russian-assault?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">deflated but defiant soldiers</a>. Fight against Russia now, they say, or fight for Russia against Europe later. With inflation poised to play a critical role in America’s election, we ask why <a href="https://www.economist.com/finance-and-economics/2024/04/25/is-inflation-morally-wrong?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">voters despise it</a> even though it can signal rude economic health (11:58). And how a century-old novella called “<a href="https://www.economist.com/culture/2024/04/25/the-vortex-written-100-years-ago-anticipated-eco-literature?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">The Vortex</a>” pioneered eco-literature (19:23).</p><br><p><em>Get a world of insights for </em><a href="https://subscribenow.economist.com/podcasts-plus" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>50% off—subscribe to Economist Podcasts+</em></a><em>. For more information about how to access Economist Podcasts+, please visit our </em><a href="https://myaccount.economist.com/s/article/What-is-Economist-Podcasts" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>FAQs page</em></a><em> or watch </em><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gczo71bg1uY" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>our video</em></a><em> explaining how to link your account.</em></p> <hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>

<p>A chat with the deputy boss of Ukraine’s military intelligence reveals <a href="https://www.economist.com/europe/2024/05/02/a-fresh-russian-push-will-test-ukraine-severely-says-a-senior-general?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">concerns</a> about a dearth of weapons—but the struggle to get new recruits is also <a href="https://www.economist.com/europe/2024/04/28/dodging-the-draft-in-fearful-ukraine?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">proving problematic</a>. The Chinese Communist Party is still <a href="https://www.economist.com/china/2024/05/02/the-chinese-scientist-who-sequenced-covid-is-barred-from-his-lab?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">hounding experts</a> whose work might expose its pandemic missteps, including the scientist who first sequenced the covid-19 virus (11:24). And why the Japanese still buy <a href="https://www.economist.com/asia/2024/04/25/why-do-the-japanese-love-cds?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">so many CDs</a> (17:14).</p><br><p><em>Listen to what matters most, from global politics and business to science and technology—</em><a href="https://subscribenow.economist.com/podcasts-plus" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>subscribe to Economist Podcasts+</em></a><em>. For more information about how to access Economist Podcasts+, please visit our </em><a href="https://myaccount.economist.com/s/article/What-is-Economist-Podcasts" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>FAQs page</em></a><em> or watch </em><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gczo71bg1uY" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>our video</em></a><em> explaining how to link your account.</em></p><br><p><br></p> <hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>

<p>Sarah Birke and Aryn Braun report frequently on tensions at the border between America and Mexico—even more so during a year in which both countries have elections. But rarely do you hear from the people who experience life on the border every day, and learn how that has changed.</p><br><p>In this episode of the Weekend Intelligence Sarah and Aryn tell the story of the world’s only professional bi-national baseball team, Los Tecolotes de los dos Laredos. It is a tale of a team—and a community—striving for the <em>fronterizo</em> way of life.</p><br><p><br></p><p><em>The Weekend Intelligence is free for anyone to enjoy for a limited time. To continue listening to this and other award-winning podcasts by The Economist, subscribe to </em><a href="https://subscribenow.economist.com/podcasts-plus" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>Economist Podcasts+</em></a><em> for only $25/year - half off the usual price. </em></p> <hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>

<p>The battles for <a href="https://www.economist.com/international/2024/04/25/the-tech-wars-are-about-to-enter-a-fiery-new-phase?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">supremacy in chipmaking</a> and green technology industries are raging on. Re-electing Donald Trump will likely make America’s approach even more anti-China, and a move towards autarky comes with costs. How the landmarked <a href="https://www.economist.com/united-states/2024/05/02/seaport-tower-shows-new-yorks-fight-between-housing-and-heritage?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Seaport Tower</a> has pitted preservationists against developers (10:18). And a tribute to the <a href="https://www.economist.com/obituary/2024/05/08/anne-innis-dagg-devoted-her-life-to-the-worlds-tallest-creature?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">zoologist</a> who really, really loved giraffes (18:18).</p><br><p><em>Listen to what matters most, from global politics and business to science and technology—</em><a href="https://subscribenow.economist.com/podcasts-plus" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>Subscribe to Economist Podcasts+</em></a></p><br><p><em>For more information about how to access Economist Podcasts+, please visit our </em><a href="https://myaccount.economist.com/s/article/What-is-Economist-Podcasts" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>FAQs page</em></a><em> or watch </em><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gczo71bg1uY" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>our video</em></a><em> explaining how to link your account.</em></p> <hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>

<p><a href="https://www.economist.com/asia/2024/05/08/an-interview-with-lawrence-wong-singapores-next-pm?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Lawrence Wong</a> will only be the city-state’s fourth leader since its independence. Our foreign editor asks him how he hopes to balance diplomatic relationships with America and China, maintain economic success, and strengthen the country’s democracy. The impact of climate change on <a href="https://www.economist.com/culture/2024/03/14/climate-change-is-unearthing-and-erasing-history-all-at-once?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">archaeology</a> (11:31). And, a new biopic takes on one of the most lucrative, distinctive pieces of <a href="https://www.economist.com/culture/2024/05/02/bolero-is-among-the-most-lucrative-works-of-classical-music?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">classical music</a> (17:26).</p><br><p><em>Listen to what matters most, from global politics and business to science and technology—</em><a href="https://subscribenow.economist.com/podcasts-plus" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>Subscribe to Economist Podcasts+</em></a></p><br><p><em>For more information about how to access Economist Podcasts+, please visit our </em><a href="https://myaccount.economist.com/s/article/What-is-Economist-Podcasts" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>FAQs page</em></a><em> or watch </em><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gczo71bg1uY" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>our video</em></a><em> explaining how to link your account. </em></p><br><p><br></p> <hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>

<p>Narendra Modi’s reputation for prosperity is likely to propel him to a third term. But for India’s economic successes to last, the country needs a set of new <a href="https://www.economist.com/special-report/2024-04-27?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">reforms</a>. Despite a host of sanctions from the West, Russia still has a <a href="https://www.economist.com/graphic-detail/2024/04/29/who-is-supplying-russias-arms-industry?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">booming arms industry</a>. Where are all the weapons coming from (09:50)? And, the perils of trying to <a href="https://www.economist.com/business/2024/05/02/how-not-to-work-on-a-plane?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">work on a plane</a> (13:54).</p><br><p><em>Listen to what matters most, from global politics and business to science and technology—</em><a href="https://subscribenow.economist.com/podcasts-plus" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>Subscribe to Economist Podcasts+</em></a></p><br><p><em>For more information about how to access Economist Podcasts+, please visit our </em><a href="https://myaccount.economist.com/s/article/What-is-Economist-Podcasts" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>FAQs page</em></a><em> or watch </em><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gczo71bg1uY" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>our video</em></a><em> explaining how to link your account. </em></p> <hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>

<p><a href="https://www.economist.com/middle-east-and-africa/2024/05/06/hamas-talks-up-a-truce-but-israel-may-still-invade-rafah?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">The ceasefire deal</a>, which Hamas has agreed to, prompted celebrations in Gaza. But Binyamin Netanyahu isn’t satisfied and the fighting continues. <a href="https://www.economist.com/culture/2024/04/18/how-hollywood-fell-in-love-with-video-games?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Video game adaptations</a> are getting better, and becoming a more popular choice with Hollywood’s directors (10:01). And the best-selling literary love-child of <a href="https://www.economist.com/culture/2024/04/26/romantasy-brings-dragons-and-eroticism-together-at-last?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">romance and fantasy</a> (14:27).</p><br><p><em>Listen to what matters most, from global politics and business to science and technology—</em><a href="https://subscribenow.economist.com/podcasts-plus" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>Subscribe to Economist Podcasts+</em></a></p><br><p><em>For more information about how to access Economist Podcasts+, please visit our </em><a href="https://myaccount.economist.com/s/article/What-is-Economist-Podcasts" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>FAQs page</em></a><em> or watch </em><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gczo71bg1uY" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>our video</em></a><em> explaining how to link your account.</em></p> <hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>

<p>Thirty years of democracy have not led to uniform prosperity, and nearly everyone disagrees about the equality of opportunity. How will <a href="https://www.economist.com/leaders/2024/05/02/why-south-africans-are-fed-up-after-30-years-of-democracy?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">the disenchantment</a> manifest at the polls? How two small Texas towns became the <a href="https://www.economist.com/united-states/2024/04/16/how-two-small-texas-towns-became-the-patent-law-centre-of-america?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">patent-law centre</a> of America (12:16). And a tribute to <a href="https://www.economist.com/obituary/2024/05/02/eleanor-coppola-recorded-how-a-cinematic-triumph-almost-came-unstuck?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Eleanor Coppola</a>, mastermind of the award-winning behind-the-scenes look at her husband’s epic, “Apocalypse Now” (19:26).</p><br><p><em>Listen to what matters most, from global politics and business to science and technology—</em><a href="https://subscribenow.economist.com/podcasts-plus" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>subscribe to Economist Podcasts+</em></a><em>. For more information about how to access Economist Podcasts+, please visit our </em><a href="https://myaccount.economist.com/s/article/What-is-Economist-Podcasts" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>FAQs page</em></a><em> or watch </em><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gczo71bg1uY" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>our video</em></a><em> explaining how to link your account.</em></p> <hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>

<p>France’s president is known for pronouncements of grand scope with one eye toward history. But when our journalists visited him at his residence his assessment of the state of the world was bleak—a dark, prophetic <a href="https://www.economist.com/leaders/2024/05/02/emmanuel-macrons-urgent-message-for-europe?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">call to arms</a>. In this special episode, we ask whether his view is accurate, whether his <a href="https://www.economist.com/europe/2024/05/02/how-to-rescue-europe" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">proposed solutions</a> would work and whether he is the person to enact them.</p><br><p><em>Read the full transcript of our interview </em><a href="https://www.economist.com/europe/2024/05/02/emmanuel-macron-in-his-own-words-english?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>here</em></a><em>.</em></p><br><p><em>Listen to what matters most, from global politics and business to science and technology—</em><a href="https://subscribenow.economist.com/podcasts-plus" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>subscribe to Economist Podcasts+</em></a><em>. For more information about how to access Economist Podcasts+, please visit our </em><a href="https://myaccount.economist.com/s/article/What-is-Economist-Podcasts" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>FAQs page</em></a><em> or watch </em><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gczo71bg1uY" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>our video</em></a><em> explaining how to link your account.</em></p> <hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>

<p>When you look around the world, and at a wider set of measures, Generation Z are <a href="https://www.economist.com/leaders/2024/04/18/reasons-to-be-cheerful-about-generation-z?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">far better off</a> than the popular narrative would have you believe. We examine what India’s push to <a href="https://www.economist.com/asia/2024/03/14/india-is-souping-up-its-nuclear-missiles?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">soup up its nukes</a> means for the global arms race (09:30). And even as global fertility rates fall, sub-Saharan Africa is experiencing a <a href="https://www.economist.com/graphic-detail/2024/04/16/what-a-baby-boom-means-for-africa?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">relative baby boom</a> (17:11).</p><br><p><em>Listen to what matters most, from global politics and business to science and technology—</em><a href="https://subscribenow.economist.com/podcasts-plus" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>subscribe to Economist Podcasts+</em></a><em>. For more information about how to access Economist Podcasts+, please visit our </em><a href="https://myaccount.economist.com/s/article/What-is-Economist-Podcasts" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>FAQs page</em></a><em> or watch </em><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gczo71bg1uY" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>our video</em></a><em> explaining how to link your account.</em></p> <hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>

<p>A dramatic overnight raid in New York City was just one sign that protests at American universities are set <a href="https://www.economist.com/united-states/2024/04/30/escalating-protests-expose-three-fault-lines-on-american-campuses?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">to continue</a>—a clear historical echo in an already-fraught election year. We ask why a niche newspaper run by Japan’s communist party has <a href="https://www.economist.com/asia/2024/04/18/an-obscure-communist-newspaper-is-shaping-japans-politics?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">so much influence</a> (13:05). And a study of <a href="https://www.economist.com/culture/2024/04/05/the-drawbacks-and-benefits-of-solitude?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">new books</a> on loneliness reveals both the benefits and drawbacks of solitude (20:39).</p><br><p><em>Listen to what matters most, from global politics and business to science and technology—</em><a href="https://subscribenow.economist.com/podcasts-plus" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>subscribe to Economist Podcasts+</em></a><em>. For more information about how to access Economist Podcasts+, please visit our </em><a href="https://myaccount.economist.com/s/article/What-is-Economist-Podcasts" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>FAQs page</em></a><em> or watch </em><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gczo71bg1uY" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>our video</em></a><em> explaining how to link your account</em></p> <hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>

<p>The dengue-fever case counts now break regional records every year—and the structural reasons behind <a href="https://www.economist.com/the-americas/2024/04/25/dengue-fever-is-surging-in-latin-america?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">the spike</a> suggest this sometimes-deadly virus will soon threaten more of the world. Breaches and security holes keep revealing how much of the internet’s innards are <a href="https://www.economist.com/the-economist-explains/2024/04/23/why-is-so-much-of-the-internets-infrastructure-run-by-volunteers?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">maintained by volunteers</a>; we ask why (09:45). And the case for <a href="https://www.economist.com/business/2024/03/21/the-secret-to-career-success-may-well-be-off-to-the-side?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">moving over</a>, not up, at work (17:10). </p><br><p><em>Listen to what matters most, from global politics and business to science and technology—</em><a href="https://subscribenow.economist.com/podcasts-plus" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>subscribe to Economist Podcasts+</em></a><em>. For more information about how to access Economist Podcasts+, please visit our </em><a href="https://myaccount.economist.com/s/article/What-is-Economist-Podcasts" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>FAQs page</em></a><em> or watch </em><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gczo71bg1uY" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>our video</em></a><em> explaining how to link your account.</em></p> <hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>

<p>The ruling military junta that seized power in a coup in 2021 is <a href="https://www.economist.com/asia/2024/04/11/myanmars-junta-is-losing-ever-more-ground?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">losing ground</a>, slowly—and the rebels are now thinking about what happens if they win. We examine the structural reasons behind Britain’s <a href="https://www.economist.com/britain/2024/04/16/where-are-all-the-british-robots?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">dearth of industrial robots</a> (10:22). And climate change boosts Canada’s yields of <a href="https://www.economist.com/the-americas/2024/04/18/the-worlds-insatiable-appetite-for-canadas-maple-syrup?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">maple syrup</a>, but also threatens to make them unpredictable (15:44).</p><br><p><em>Listen to what matters most, from global politics and business to science and technology—</em><a href="https://subscribenow.economist.com/podcasts-plus" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>subscribe to Economist Podcasts+</em></a><em>. For more information about how to access Economist Podcasts+, please visit our </em><a href="https://myaccount.economist.com/s/article/What-is-Economist-Podcasts" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>FAQs page</em></a><em> or watch </em><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gczo71bg1uY" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>our video</em></a><em> explaining how to link your account.</em></p><br><p><br></p> <hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>

<p>As Parliament has now agreed to send asylum seekers to Rwanda, many members of the ruling Conservative party want to <a href="https://www.economist.com/britain/2024/04/25/why-britains-membership-of-the-echr-has-become-a-political-issue" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">quit the court</a> that tried to block it. It would be yet another costly mistake. Earth’s largest refrigerator, <a href="https://www.economist.com/leaders/2024/03/27/antarctica-needs-a-lot-more-attention?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Antarctica</a>, is defrosting. What does this mean for the rest of the world (09:24)? And a tribute to the <a href="https://www.economist.com/obituary/2024/04/25/terry-anderson-was-held-by-islamic-militants-for-2454-days?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">American journalist</a> held captive by Hizbullah for almost 7 years (17:50).</p><br><p><em>Listen to what matters most, from global politics and business to science and technology—</em><a href="https://subscribenow.economist.com/podcasts-plus" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>Subscribe to Economist Podcasts+</em></a></p> <hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>

<p>Ravaged by a civil war, Sudan could see a <a href="https://www.economist.com/middle-east-and-africa/2024/04/15/after-a-year-of-war-sudan-is-a-failing-state?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">nationwide famine</a> by August. With humanitarian aid being blocked on both sides, it is increasingly difficult to get supplies to those who need them the most. How to protect an <a href="https://www.economist.com/culture/2024/04/11/how-to-protect-an-endangered-language?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">endangered language</a> (09:01). And, why domestic cats have become an existential threat to <a href="https://www.economist.com/britain/2024/04/11/a-story-of-scottish-wildcats?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Scottish wildcats</a> (14:43).</p><br><p><em>Additional audio courtesy of the </em><a href="https://www.elalliance.org/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>Endangered Language Alliance</em></a></p><br><p><em>Listen to what matters most, from global politics and business to science and technology—</em><a href="https://subscribenow.economist.com/podcasts-plus" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>Subscribe to Economist Podcasts+</em></a></p><br><p><em>For more information about how to access Economist Podcasts+, please visit our </em><a href="https://myaccount.economist.com/s/article/What-is-Economist-Podcasts" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>FAQs page</em></a><em> or watch </em><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gczo71bg1uY" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>our video</em></a><em> explaining how to link your account.</em></p> <hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>

<p>Police clashes with <a href="https://www.economist.com/united-states/2024/04/23/efforts-to-tackle-student-protests-in-america-have-backfired-badly" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">protesters at Columbia University</a> have spilled over into other institutions, raising the question of how to protect free speech on campuses. Given America’s history with students’ anti-war protests going awry, should politicians be worried? Why most British voters now think <a href="https://www.economist.com/britain/2024/04/11/why-most-people-regret-brexit?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Brexit</a> was a mistake (we did <a href="https://www.economist.com/leaders/2015/10/17/the-reluctant-european" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">warn</a> you!) (08:53) And, could <a href="https://www.economist.com/science-and-technology/2024/04/11/new-technology-can-keep-whales-safe-from-speeding-ships?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">new tech</a> protect whales from speeding ships (15:45)?</p><br><p><em>Listen to what matters most, from global politics and business to science and technology—</em><a href="https://subscribenow.economist.com/podcasts-plus" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>Subscribe to Economist Podcasts+</em></a></p><br><p><em>For more information about how to access Economist Podcasts+, please visit our </em><a href="https://myaccount.economist.com/s/article/What-is-Economist-Podcasts" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>FAQs page</em></a><em> or watch </em><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gczo71bg1uY" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>our video</em></a><em> explaining how to link your account. </em></p><p><br></p> <hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>

<p>The companies behind this wonder of tech are facing <a href="https://www.economist.com/business/2024/04/14/generative-ai-is-a-marvel-is-it-also-built-on-theft?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">allegations</a> of using copyrighted material to build their large language models (LLMs). But will the courts consider it fair use? Why <a href="https://www.economist.com/science-and-technology/2024/04/11/the-first-week-after-prison-is-the-deadliest-for-ex-inmates?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">ex-inmates</a> are so likely to die just after they leave prison (10:15). And, the case for <a href="https://www.economist.com/culture/2024/04/12/are-indians-right-to-boo-hardik-pandya-a-star-cricketer?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">booing</a> in sports (16:13). </p><br><p><em>Listen to what matters most, from global politics and business to science and technology—</em><a href="https://subscribenow.economist.com/podcasts-plus" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>Subscribe to Economist Podcasts+</em></a></p><br><p><em>For more information about how to access Economist Podcasts+, please visit our </em><a href="https://myaccount.economist.com/s/article/What-is-Economist-Podcasts" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>FAQs page</em></a><em> or watch </em><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gczo71bg1uY" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>our video</em></a><em> explaining how to link your account. </em></p> <hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>

<p>At a time when Russia has been making significant gains, an allocated <a href="https://www.economist.com/2024/04/20/finally-americas-congress-does-right-by-ukraine?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">$61bn of aid</a> for Ukraine will be felt on the battlefield almost instantly. Will it help turn the course of the war? In a world of endless <a href="https://www.economist.com/business/2024/04/11/who-wields-the-power-in-the-worlds-supply-chains?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">supply chain disruptions</a>, how can businesses shore up against the costs (11:26)? And the appeal of <a href="https://www.economist.com/culture/2024/04/04/perpetual-stew-an-ancient-way-of-cooking-has-won-gen-z-fans?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">two-month-old stew</a> (18:37).</p><br><p><em>Listen to what matters most, from global politics and business to science and technology—</em><a href="https://subscribenow.economist.com/podcasts-plus" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>Subscribe to Economist Podcasts+</em></a></p><br><p><em>For more information about how to access Economist Podcasts+, please visit our </em><a href="https://myaccount.economist.com/s/article/What-is-Economist-Podcasts" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>FAQs page</em></a><em> or watch </em><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gczo71bg1uY" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>our video</em></a><em> explaining how to link your account. </em></p> <hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>

<p>A missile has reportedly struck a site in the Islamic Republic. If this is retaliation for Iran’s most recent attacks, then it is a muted response. But is there still a risk of escalation? As <a href="https://www.economist.com/asia/2024/04/16/gandhi-v-modi-crunch-time-for-congress-as-india-prepares-to-vote?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">India’s election</a> kicks off, a look into why the opposition is likely to have a poor showing (09:07). And, a tribute to the first foreign-born <a href="https://www.economist.com/obituary/2024/04/18/akebono-was-the-first-foreign-born-grand-champion-of-sumo?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">grand champion of sumo</a> (19:15).</p><br><p><em>Listen to what matters most, from global politics and business to science and technology—</em><a href="https://subscribenow.economist.com/podcasts-plus" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>Subscribe to Economist Podcasts+</em></a></p><br><p><em>For more information about how to access Economist Podcasts+, please visit our </em><a href="https://myaccount.economist.com/s/article/What-is-Economist-Podcasts" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>FAQs page</em></a><em> or watch </em><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gczo71bg1uY" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>our video</em></a><em> explaining how to link your account.</em></p> <hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>

<p>Governments particularly in the rich world are struggling to get young people in uniform. Will some form of conscription become necessary? In America, how <a href="https://www.economist.com/united-states/2024/04/04/the-rise-of-the-remote-husband?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">remote working husbands</a> may be liberating their wives (10:19). And, the generational hunting prowess of the <a href="https://www.economist.com/science-and-technology/2024/03/26/killer-whales-deploy-brutal-co-ordinated-attacks-when-hunting?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">killer whale</a> (16:53).</p><br><p><em>Listen to what matters most, from global politics and business to science and technology—</em><a href="https://subscribenow.economist.com/podcasts-plus" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>Subscribe to Economist Podcasts+</em></a></p><br><p><em>For more information about how to access Economist Podcasts+, please visit our </em><a href="https://myaccount.economist.com/s/article/What-is-Economist-Podcasts" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>FAQs page</em></a><em> or watch </em><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gczo71bg1uY" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>our video</em></a><em> explaining how to link your account.</em></p> <hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>

<p>All over the world, young men are identifying more with the political right, even as women drift more to the left. What is behind the gulf, and <a href="https://www.economist.com/leaders/2024/03/14/making-sense-of-the-gulf-between-young-men-and-women?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">how to close it</a>? The seeming drop in crime in Naples is not because the notorious mafia activity has disappeared—<a href="https://www.economist.com/europe/2024/04/04/the-mafiosi-of-naples-turn-white-collar?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">it has evolved</a> (10:11). And exploring the history and the present of the <a href="https://www.economist.com/culture/2024/04/11/flat-whites-are-australias-greatest-culinary-export?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">flat white</a> (17:08).</p><br><p><em>Listen to what matters most, from global politics and business to science and technology—</em><a href="https://subscribenow.economist.com/podcasts-plus" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>subscribe to Economist Podcasts+</em></a><em>. For more information about how to access Economist Podcasts+, please visit our </em><a href="https://myaccount.economist.com/s/article/What-is-Economist-Podcasts" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>FAQs page</em></a><em> or watch </em><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gczo71bg1uY" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>our video</em></a><em> explaining how to link your account.</em></p><p><br></p> <hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>

<p>The case for assisted dying is essentially one of individual freedom—and plenty of Britons <a href="https://www.economist.com/leaders/2024/04/11/the-rights-and-wrongs-of-assisted-dying?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">support a change</a> in the law to permit it. Japan’s Noto peninsula is still reeling from a New Year’s Day earthquake. It could well have been worse, but geography and demography may <a href="https://www.economist.com/asia/2024/04/01/japan-is-still-reeling-100-days-after-the-noto-earthquake?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">ultimately limit</a> improvements to earthquake preparedness (10:46). And the pros and cons of <a href="https://www.economist.com/business/2024/03/27/the-pros-and-cons-of-corporate-uniforms?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">corporate uniforms</a> (18:49).</p><br><p><em>Listen to what matters most, from global politics and business to science and technology—</em><a href="https://subscribenow.economist.com/podcasts-plus" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>subscribe to Economist Podcasts+</em></a><em>. For more information about how to access Economist Podcasts+, please visit our </em><a href="https://myaccount.economist.com/s/article/What-is-Economist-Podcasts" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>FAQs page</em></a><em> or watch </em><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gczo71bg1uY" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>our video</em></a><em> explaining how to link your account.</em></p> <hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>

<p>For the first time Iran launched a <a href="https://www.economist.com/middle-east-and-africa/2024/04/14/iran-and-israels-shadow-war-explodes-into-the-open?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">huge attack</a> on Israel from its own territory, though the effort largely failed. Israel’s response could easily lead to regional war; what is it <a href="https://www.economist.com/middle-east-and-africa/2024/04/14/will-israel-retaliate-against-iran-or-hold-back?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">likely to be</a>? The first of the four criminal trials that Donald Trump faces will get under way today. It is by some margin <a href="https://www.economist.com/united-states/2024/04/14/what-to-expect-as-donald-trumps-first-criminal-trial-gets-under-way?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">the tawdriest</a> (11:46). And celebrating the 150th anniversary of Impressionism (20:02).   </p><br><p><em>Listen to what matters most, from global politics and business to science and technology—</em><a href="https://subscribenow.economist.com/podcasts-plus" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>subscribe to Economist Podcasts+</em></a><em>. For more information about how to access Economist Podcasts+, please visit our </em><a href="https://myaccount.economist.com/s/article/What-is-Economist-Podcasts" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>FAQs page</em></a><em> or watch </em><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gczo71bg1uY" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>our video</em></a><em> explaining how to link your account.</em></p> <hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>

<p>We have combined polling data to make a detailed portrait of the American electorate. Have a tinker with <a href="https://www.economist.com/interactive/us-2024-election/build-a-voter?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">our interactive</a> model: plug in their age, sex, religion, and more, and let us estimate how your hypothetical voter will vote in the presidential election. Allegations of extortion at the Rafah crossing out of Gaza (09:57). And, a tribute to an <a href="https://www.economist.com/obituary/2024/04/10/rose-dugdale-went-from-debutante-to-ira-bombmaker?utm_campaign=a.io&utm_medium=audio.podcast.np&utm_source=theintelligence&utm_content=discovery.content.anonymous.tr_shownotes_na-na_article&utm_term=sa.listeners" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">heiress-turned-IRA bombmaker</a> (20:17).</p><br><p><em>Listen to what matters most, from global politics and business to science and technology—</em><a href="https://subscribenow.economist.com/podcasts-plus" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>Subscribe to Economist Podcasts+</em></a></p><br><p><em>For more information about how to access Economist Podcasts+, please visit our </em><a href="https://myaccount.economist.com/s/article/What-is-Economist-Podcasts" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>FAQs page</em></a><em> or watch </em><a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gczo71bg1uY" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"><em>our video</em></a><em> explaining how to link your account.</em></p> <hr><p style='color:grey; font-size:0.75em;'> Hosted on Acast. See <a style='color:grey;' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' href='https://acast.com/privacy'>acast.com/privacy</a> for more information.</p>