Understand the UK Election is a simple 10-part guide to everything that is going on in the election, hosted by Adam Fleming. In this episode, it's all about what happens at the end of the campaign and what everything has been building up to – election day! All you need to know from what happens when the polls open to when we can expect the first results, and how a government is formed. Hosted by Adam Fleming, from Newscast and AntiSocial with BBC News presenter Reeta Chakrabarti one of the team ...
Jun 21, 2024•15 min•Season 5Ep. 10
Understand the UK Election is a simple 10-part guide to everything that is going on in the election, hosted by Adam Fleming. In this episode, how the election plays out differently across the country and the big impact that the smaller nations that make up the United Kingdom can have on the election outcome. The host is Adam Fleming, from Newscast and AntiSocial, with James Cook, BBC Scotland Editor, Catrin Haf Jones, Political Correspondent for BBC Wales and Enda McClafferty, BBC Northern Irela...
Jun 17, 2024•14 min•Season 5Ep. 9
Understand the UK Election is a simple 10-part guide to everything that is going on in the election, with Adam Fleming. In this episode, from the front pages of the press to the televised debates; why does what the media says matter and how has social media changed things? This episode was hosted Adam Fleming, from Newscast and AntiSocial, with David Yelland, former editor of The Sun newspaper and host of Radio 4’s When it hits the fan podcast, and Katie Razzall, the BBC’s News Culture & Med...
Jun 17, 2024•14 min•Season 5Ep. 8
Understand the UK Election is a simple 10-part guide to everything that is going on in the election, with Adam Fleming. In this episode, what do polls actually tell us? What can we learn when the polls get it wrong? And do people really tell the truth about who they are intending to vote for? This episode was hosted Adam Fleming, from Newscast and AntiSocial, with Professor Jane Green, Director of the Nuffield Politics Research Centre at Oxford University, co-director of the British Election Stu...
Jun 17, 2024•14 min•Season 5Ep. 7
Understand the UK Election is a simple 10-part guide to everything that is going on in the election, with Adam Fleming. Seats with slim majorities have played a big part in determining the outcome of the election in recent years, but how will constituency boundary changes affect this? What impact can tactical voting and electoral pacts have? And how safe are ‘safe seats’ really? This episode was hosted Adam Fleming, from Newscast and AntiSocial, with Alex Forsyth, political correspondent and hos...
Jun 17, 2024•14 min•Season 5Ep. 6
Understand the UK Election is a simple 10-part guide to everything that is going on in the election, hosted by Adam Fleming. In this episode; changes to Brits abroad being able to vote, voter ID rules explained, dogs at polling stations and why pencils, not pens, are used to cast your vote. Hosted by Adam Fleming, from Newscast and Anti-Social, with Vijay Rangarajan, Chief Executive of the Electoral Commission. Producers: Alix Pickles and Alex Lewis Production Manager: Janet Staples Editor: Sam ...
Jun 10, 2024•15 min•Season 5Ep. 5
Understand the UK Election is a simple 10-part guide to everything that is going on in the election, hosted by Adam Fleming. In this episode, Adam looks at why people vote the way they do. What can we tell about how someone will vote from their age, gender, ethnicity and education? And what do labels like Mondeo Man, Worcester Woman and Pebbledash People really mean? This episode was hosted by Adam Fleming, from Newscast and Anti-Social, with Professor Jane Green, Director of the Nuffield Politi...
Jun 10, 2024•15 min•Season 5Ep. 4
Understand the UK Election is a simple 10-part guide to everything that is going on in the election, hosted by Adam Fleming. In this episode, Adam looks at manifestos; a set of policies that a party stands for and would hope to deliver if elected. What is their place in British political history? How do they get written and who are they actually for? This episode was hosted by Adam Fleming, from Newscast and Anti-Social, with Rachel Wolf, who co-wrote the Conservatives’ 2019 manifesto for Boris ...
Jun 10, 2024•15 min•Season 5Ep. 3
Understand the UK Election is a simple 10-part guide to everything that is going on in the election, hosted by Adam Fleming. In this episode, Adam looks at how candidates are selected and why it’s such a critical moment for the parties. This episode was hosted by Adam Fleming, from Newscast and AntiSocial, with Michael Crick, political journalist and founder of @TomorrowsMPs. Producers: Alix Pickles and Alex Lewis Production Manager: Janet Staples Editor: Sam Bonham...
Jun 10, 2024•15 min•Season 5Ep. 2
Understand the UK Election is a simple 10-episode guide to everything that is going on in the election. Hosted by Adam Fleming, it looks at everything from candidate selection and leader debates, to results day and the difference a manifesto can make, speaking to journalists, election forecasters and people who have worked at the heart of politics. The series kicks off by taking you inside the campaign trail and asking how parties make it work to their advantage. This episode was hosted by Adam ...
Jun 10, 2024•15 min•Season 5Ep. 1
In the final episode of the series, Justin Webb and guests discuss how the role of president has changed - and what the winner of the vote will be able to do once in office.
Dec 29, 2023•15 min•Season 4Ep. 5
In the penultimate episode, Justin Webb and guests discuss what happens on election day -- and how the notorious electoral college system works.
Dec 29, 2023•14 min•Season 4Ep. 4
Justin Webb and guests reach episode 3 of this guide to how the US elections are run, with a look at the historical and contemporary importance of the TV debates.
Dec 29, 2023•14 min•Season 4Ep. 3
Following on from part one, which explained how the candidates are selected, part two looks at what happens on the campaign trail - and who's paying the bill?
Dec 29, 2023•14 min•Season 4Ep. 2
Justin Webb, former BBC US correspondent and co-presenter of Americast unpicks some of the terminology associated with the US Election.
Dec 29, 2023•14 min•Season 4Ep. 1
What role have the USA and Iran played in the region? Where do we stand on the 'two-state solution'? Katya Adler and guests explain the history and context of the decades long conflict between Israel and the Palestinians and assess what happened to the peace process. In this episode we set out how global players have tried to influence the region at times of peace and at times of war.
Oct 20, 2023•15 min•Season 3Ep. 5
How do Lebanon, Hezbollah, Egypt and Jordan view Israel and the Palestinians? Katya Adler explains the history of the formation of Hezbollah and the role it plays in the region. The US, UK and EU have designated Hezbollah's military wing as a terrorist organisation but how is it viewed in Lebanon and the region? We take a tour of this Middle Eastern neighbourhood to set out the relationships that could determine the future of the conflict.
Oct 19, 2023•15 min•Season 3Ep. 4
What is Hamas, what do they stand for and what do they want now? As part of our series explaining the context of today’s conflict, Katya Adler and guests take a closer look at the group responsible for orchestrating the recent attacks on Israel. They are regarded as a terrorist organisation by Israel, the US and the UK, but how are they seen by Palestinians? As well as being a militant group and an Islamist movement, they are in charge of governing more than two million people in the Gaza Strip....
Oct 18, 2023•15 min•Season 3Ep. 3
Katya Adler and guests explain the context of the conflict, exploring issues and history that will help you get to grips with what’s going on today. In this episode we'll look at what’s shaped modern Israel.
Oct 17, 2023•15 min•Season 3Ep. 2
Katya Adler and guests explain the history and context of the decades long conflict between Israel and the Palestinians. In this episode we focus on life in the Palestinian territories of the Gaza strip and the West Bank and explore the history of how the state of Israel was created.
Oct 16, 2023•13 min•Season 3Ep. 1
When so-called "generative" Artificial Intelligences like Chat GPT and Google's Bard were made available to the public, they made headlines around the world and raised fears about how fast this type of AI was developing. But realistically, what harm could AI do to people? Is it an existential threat, or could it become one? And if things got really bad, couldn't we just switch it off or smash it up with a hammer? Technology has already completely altered our lives, and Artificial Intelligence ma...
Jul 07, 2023•14 min•Season 2Ep. 10
AI is now able to do some types of work faster and cheaper than human beings, and some workers have already found themselves out of a job. Earlier this year, a report from Goldman Sachs said that AI could potentially replace the equivalent of 300 million full-time jobs, and a different survey of 12 thousand people suggested that a third were worried their bosses would replace them with AI. So is AI coming for your job? What type of workers are most at risk, and if you aren't replaced, could you ...
Jul 07, 2023•15 min•Season 2Ep. 9
At its simplest, an algorithm is a sequence of step-by-step instructions designed to give a result. They are the building blocks of every computer program and are there to ensure every digital device gives the right results on request. For example, when we type a search query into Google, its algorithms try to give us the result we're seeking. In the case of Social Media, the algorithm's job is to keep followers on a platform, by showing engaging, interesting, and relevant posts. But over the ye...
Jul 07, 2023•14 min•Season 2Ep. 8
Artificial Intelligence is already here. It's being used in products and services you already use, and is working behind the scenes in medicine, transportation, robotics, science, education, the military, surveillance, finance , agriculture, entertainment, retail, customer service, and manufacturing. How is is AI being used in these sectors, and for what purpose? And with the release of chatbots that can emulate human writing, we're now seeing websites that say they're "powered by Chat GPT". Wha...
Jul 07, 2023•14 min•Season 2Ep. 7
Artificial Intelligence has been in the news constantly this year, from a chatbot that can write anything you can imagine, in any style, to scientists and world leaders warning that AI needs to be controlled. With the big tech firms all rushing to make their AI products available to the public, it looks like AI is likely to be part of our lives from now on. But what is it? What are the different types of AI we should know about? Are they intelligent, in a way we would recognise, and are they con...
Jul 07, 2023•14 min•Season 2Ep. 6
Big data is vast, unwieldy information that is so huge that normal software traditionally used to analyse it just can't cope. It's not new. Ever since humans organised ourselves, we've been keeping records, and gathering information, from scrolls, to bank ledgers and now your internet browsing history. But his information is now flowing into organisations at a faster rate and in greater volume than ever before. Taking a good look at it could provide meaningful insights. But how can you spot patt...
Jul 03, 2023•14 min•Season 2Ep. 5
You might be wary of using digital currencies, but you probably already do. Salaries, benefits and pensions are now paid direct to banks, and when you buy a coffee, you may well use a contactless card to pay, without a flutter of a 5 pound note in sight. So what are online cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin, and why won't some people touch those with a barge pole? And when you hear about them, another word always pops up - Blockchain. What does it do? And how could both become important when we start...
Jul 03, 2023•13 min•Season 2Ep. 4
Just by putting on a headset, Virtual Reality promises to immerse you in another world, and Augmented Reality takes that world and brings it into your living room. How do they work? It's a type of technology that seems to have been "the next big thing" for at least a decade. But are they just expensive toys, or do they have a use beyond gaming? In a similar vein, you may have seen adverts for the Metaverse, and that Facebook's parent company is pumping huge amounts of money into it. But what is ...
Jul 03, 2023•15 min•Season 2Ep. 3
We all get that sinking feeling when we accidentally delete a valuable photo or document, but there's now a good chance you can find a backup copy - thanks to the Cloud. Cloud computing has drifted into our lives without many people even realising - apart from those irritating emails, offering to sell you ever greater amounts of storage space. Some laptops now have very little memory built-in, and rely on the Cloud to store files. But where does it all that information go? What does the Cloud lo...
Jul 03, 2023•14 min•Season 2Ep. 2
You're probably reading this on a device connected to the internet, while listening to this episode. But how did the digital files that make up this description, and the digital sound files that you can hear, appear, on demand, on your phone, tablet or other device? How are you connected to the internet? In this episode, we'll explain how 4G and 5G, work, Broadband through cables and satellites, and the final connection inside your home - Wi-Fi. Technology has already completely altered our live...
Jul 03, 2023•15 min•Season 2Ep. 1
