Mehdi Hasan joins the Prospect podcast this week, talking to Prospect ’s Ben Clark about Trump, tech bros, cancel culture and…“Gish galloping”. He opens up about his departure from MSNBC after the network cancelled The Mehdi Hasan Show and discusses his move from mainstream to alternative media, almost a year since founding Zeteo on Substack. Zeteo’s contributors now include Naomi Klein and Greta Thunberg. He criticises the media’s failings, from reporting on Israel’s violence to holding Trump a...
Feb 12, 2025•42 min
Would a young Starmer join the Labour party today? Ellen and Alona are joined by Tom Clark, contributing editor at Prospect, who thinks not. From defending misfit environmentalists to denouncing them in the Daily Mail , Starmer’s evolution might dismay some on the left of the party. Once he was a young human rights lawyer and now he is a prime minister punishing MPs for rebelling on child poverty or arming Israel. Tom’s column received some criticism on Bluesky from those who see this as pragmat...
Feb 05, 2025•35 min
In this week’s special episode, we bring you an exclusive interview with Prospect’s World’s Top Thinker of 2025, Brazilian journalist Eliane Brum. Eliane is the author of Banzeiro Òkòtó: The Amazon as the Centre of the World . In 2017, she co-founded Sumaúma, a journalism platform reporting on the Amazon from the inside, which trains young people from urban and indigenous communities. Dialling in from the Amazon rainforest, she spoke to Prospect’s deputy editor Ellen Halliday about her move from...
Jan 29, 2025•26 min
Welcome back to Prospect Lives . In this episode, journalist and author Kiran Sidhu shares her journey of finding a sense of community in her rural Welsh village, while Anglican priest Alice Goodman explains how her clerical friends help her weather political turbulence. Actor and writer Sheila Hancock explores the powerful legacies left by those who change the world, both for better and for worse, while former England cricket captain Mike Brearley offers a hopeful vision for cricket as the worl...
Jan 24, 2025•34 min
After Trump’s second inauguration, Ellen and Alona are joined by Labour peer and diplomat Catherine Ashton. Catherine was formerly leader of the House of Lords, as well as the EU's first High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security policy. She shares her experience working with previous US administrations, and what she’s expecting to see from the special relationship. In the past, members of Starmer’s cabinet have called the president a “buffoon” and a “neo-Nazi-sympathising...
Jan 22, 2025•39 min
As Labour plans to remove the remaining hereditary peers from the House of Lords progress through parliament, not everybody is happy about it. Critics have called the legislation “bungled piecemeal reform”, “high-handed” and “shoddy”. Meg Russell, professor of British and Comparative Politics at UCL, joins Ellen and Alona to unpick the conflict and controversy in the second chamber. She discusses the history and future of this institution, whether our system really is unique, and why outrage ove...
Jan 15, 2025•47 min
What's going on in Ukraine and what does 2025 hold for its people? Journalist Jen Stout has reported on the war in Ukraine for Prospect, the Sunday Post and others—and her prize-winning book Night Train to Odesa was published last year. Now, for our first episode of the year, she joins deputy editor Ellen Halliday to talk about the situation. What will the year ahead look like in Ukraine? What challenges does Kyiv face? And what will its relationship with Trump’s America look like? She also refl...
Jan 08, 2025•32 min
While you're making those New Year's resolutions, how can we harness negative thought patterns and put them towards something productive? What's the best way to live a good life? In September, journalist and author Oliver Burkeman joined Prospect ’s Ellen Halliday and Mindful life columnist Sarah Collins to talk mental health and building a meaningful life—and why his book, Meditations for Mortals , really isn’t self-help. Plus, political journalist Jonn Elledge dialled in from Brighton to help ...
Jan 01, 2025•51 min
For our final episode of 2024, Alan and Lionel look back at their Media Confidential year. They’ve tackled a huge range of stories: from phone-hacking and the rise of AI, to Ofcom’s battles with GB News. They’ve analysed elections on both sides of the Atlantic, were joined by Toby Jones on the Post Office scandal, and heard from courageous reporters working inside Gaza. There’s been an assassination attempt on Donald President, and a crisis at the Washington Post… but which episodes do they find...
Dec 26, 2024•44 min
Cyborgs, a Gregg Wallace public enquiry...the Popeye slasher movie? In our end of year special, the Prospect family—editors, writers and producers—share their predictions for the year ahead. From politics to technology and culture, what will be the most interesting stories of 2025? Ellen and Alona are joined by contributors to discuss the trends that we should be watching in the UK, across the pond, and around the globe... Listen out for guest appearances from Prospect editor Alan Rusbridger and...
Dec 18, 2024•35 min
After more than 50 years of repressive dynastic rule, Bashar al-Assad has fled Syria. Ellen and Alona are joined by Syria expert Lina Khatib, director of the Middle East Institute at SOAS and associate fellow at Chatham House. While many were surprised by the rapid toppling of Assad’s regime, Lina was not. As people speculate about what HTS and other rebel groups intend for Syria, she explains why this might not be what western commentators expect. And with some voicing anxiety about Syria becom...
Dec 11, 2024•44 min
This week, political scientist Cas Mudde joins the Prospect podcast to analyse the “year of elections”. In 2024, around 70 countries with a combined population of 3.4bn went to the polls. In many of those elections—in the EU, India and the US, the far right did surprisingly well. But why do the far right seem to be the only group to have benefitted from the turbulence of recent years? Was it inevitable? He joins Prospect ’s Ellen Halliday to discuss. Plus, a festive “banger” or “dud”: posh adven...
Dec 04, 2024•48 min
Are Jews white? Is criticism of Israel antisemitic? Why is the “Judeo-Christian” grouping a myth? To unpack these big questions, Ellen and Alona are joined by journalist Rachel Shabi, whose new book Off-White: The Truth About Antisemitism was released earlier this month. Rachel explores the rising tensions of the past year, including the impact of Israel’s wars in Gaza and Lebanon, and a slew of misinformation and bad faith arguments on social media. She discusses her own identity as a British-I...
Nov 27, 2024•54 min
This month we introduce a new Lives columnist, Kiran Sidhu, who writes about the rural Welsh village where she lives. Kiran celebrates the power of nature, as does actor and writer Sheila Hancock, who welcomes a robin to her roof garden. Alice Garnett asks whether Gen Z have killed the office romance, while Anglican priest Alice Goodman explains her secret love of weightlifting. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Nov 22, 2024•37 min
Families are spending years living in hotels, households are being moved miles across the country, and government is spending billions on a system that harms those it is designed to protect. What can be done? This week, Ellen and Alona are joined by researcher and local government expert Jack Shaw to talk about his exclusive investigation into the growing scandal of temporary accommodation. This form of homelessness is worse in the UK than in any other nation in the OECD and has a terrible impac...
Nov 20, 2024•47 min
Why do some women like tradwife videos? And why does it even matter? This week, Ellen and Alona are joined by writer Sarah Manavis to discuss the small but significant group of women who promote anti-feminist values online—and why so many others watch their videos. Sarah argues that the success of right-wing young men with large social media followings has distracted from a boom in similarly reactionary gen-Z women. Lifestyle influencers—from the overtly political to the unassuming—are using soc...
Nov 13, 2024•40 min
Would legalising assisted dying end unnecessary suffering? Or would it instead enable the abuse of some of society’s most vulnerable people? As parliament discusses assisted dying once again, Prospect invited two of our most profound thinkers—Rowan Williams and Brenda Hale—to debate the issue. As archbishop of Canterbury, Rowan Williams led a Church that publicly opposes any form of assisted dying, while, as a Supreme Court judge, Brenda Hale was involved in life-or-death judgements. In a moving...
Nov 06, 2024•59 min
For the first time, Ellen and Alona host a special Q&A episode, recorded with a live audience. They’re joined by Jill Abramson, former executive editor of the New York Times , who has been has been covering the presidential election for Prospect . Jill describes how this American election compares to what she’s seen in the past, and answers listeners’ questions. What’s the mood in the US? Can we trust the polls? And what might happen between now and election day to move the dial? To watch th...
Nov 02, 2024•39 min
As Halloween approaches, Ellen and Alona are joined by journalist Gabriel Gatehouse to discuss his plunge into the world of conspiracy theories, QAnon and the extreme fringes of US politics. What have witches in the dark ages got to do with American democracy? How has the internet destabilised state power? And what does that mean for this November’s election? Conspiracy theories about satanic cabals took off in America after the 2020 election—and 41 per cent of Americans now believe that the pol...
Oct 30, 2024•50 min
This week, Ellen and Alona look ahead to COP29, the annual climate summit, hosted this year in Baku, Azerbaijan. They are joined by Isabel Hilton, Prospect ’s contributing editor who shares her experiences at COP, and Sam Alvis, a policy advisor and director of energy and environment at Public First. 25 out of the 35 key “planetary vital signs” are out of bounds, and biodiversity is rapidly dwindling. At the same time, a growing culture war means consensus about action is increasingly contested ...
Oct 23, 2024•47 min
This week, Ellen and Alona talk to investigative journalist Peter Geoghegan. Peter is the former editor-in-chief of the award-winning website openDemocracy and is the author of Democracy for Sale: Dark Money and Dirty Politics . Public faith in democracy has been undermined by hidden influence and undisclosed donations—but how susceptible is the new government to this? In an entertaining conversation, spanning from Mongolian wrestling to Keir Starmer’s glasses, Peter shares his journey doing inv...
Oct 16, 2024•52 min
This month, our columnists are busy with new difficult tasks. Sarah Collins, our Mindful life columnist, boards the emotional rollercoaster that comes with preparing to live abroad, while Anglican Priest Alice Goodman composes her first carol. Farmer Tom tries to rescue seven baby pheasants, while Alice Garnett is moving out of her shared house and navigating London’s rental hellscape. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Oct 10, 2024•39 min
Baroness Warsi, former Conservative cabinet minister and lawyer, joins Ellen and Alona to talk about her new book Muslims Don’t Matter, about “the silencing, stereotyping and stigmatising of Muslims by the British press and political parties.” Politicians, media outlets, think tanks and even the entertainment industry have poisoned public discourse about Muslims, culminating in this summer’s riots. She describes how Islamophobia, which she calls “Britain's bigotry blind spot”, not only passes th...
Oct 08, 2024•39 min
This week, Prospect ’s commissioning editor Emily Lawford joins Ellen and Alona to discuss a dark side of the internet: the “manosphere”. Emily spent months reporting “The incel trap” for this month’s issue of the magazine, meeting with self-proclaimed misogynists in real life. On the podcast, Emily shares what she learned about why young men are radicalised—including the role of mental health—and how online hatred is connected to violence against women in the "real world". Plus, silent discos a...
Oct 01, 2024•30 min
Jon Sopel, co-host of the News Agents podcast and a former BBC North America editor, joins Ellen Halliday and Alona Ferber to discuss his new book, Strangeland: How Britain Stopped Making Sense. He reflects on his time covering the Trump administration—including what he saw unfold on 6th January—and on the upcoming US election. Jon also shares his view on the problems with Robbie Gibb and how editorial standards are overseen at the BBC. Some at the BBC think Robbie Gibb’s stewardship of editoria...
Sep 25, 2024•43 min
This week, journalist and author Oliver Burkeman joins Prospect ’s Ellen Halliday and Mindful life columnist Sarah Collins to talk mental health and building a meaningful life—and why his new book, Meditations for Mortals , really isn’t self-help. Plus, freelance political journalist Jonn Elledge dials in from the Lib Dem conference in Brighton to help us decide whether Ed Davey's party is a “banger” or a “dud”. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information....
Sep 18, 2024•51 min
This week Ellen Halliday and Alona Ferber discuss a vital question: what is the reality of life under occupation for Palestinians? And how much longer can the world ignore it? They are joined by Nathan Thrall, the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of A Day in the Life of Abed Salama: Anatomy of a Jerusalem Tragedy, which follows the life of a Palestinian man whose son Milad died in a 2012 road accident in the West Bank. Thrall, who is based in Jerusalem, discusses how Salama’s story provides a windo...
Sep 10, 2024•42 min
In February 2022, invading Russian forces on their way to Kyiv also occupied the site of Europe’s biggest nuclear disaster—Chernobyl. The response of the Ukrainians running the site, and of the International Atomic Energy Agency, would prove decisive. But who would be honoured as a hero, and who would be branded a traitor? In this episode of the Prospect Podcast, deputy editor Ellen Halliday is joined by Baillie Gifford award-winning author and historian Serhii Plokhy to discuss his new book Che...
Sep 03, 2024•45 min
In a brand-new season of the Prospect Podcast, Ellen Halliday welcomes aboard her new co-host Alona Ferber. They are then joined by leading print and broadcast journalist Paul Mason—an expert on the far-right—to tackle this week's big question: what is the new face of fascism? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Aug 27, 2024•46 min
This months Gen Z-er Alice Garnett and former England cricket Captain Mike Brearley are exploring the value of imitating one's idols, while farmer Tom Martin returns from Rugen in Germany, where he learns from local farmers on the island. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Aug 02, 2024•42 min
