Latest Interviews
Showing 31–45 of 138 interview transcripts.
Clear all filters- The Economist30 min
Eye to the chancellor: interviewing Friedrich Merz
Friedrich Merz, Rosie Bloor, Jason Palmer, Sani Minton-Beddoes, Chris Lockwood, Tom Nuttall, Alice Hsu, Johnny Williams
Ahead of the German general election, CDU leader Friedrich Merz positions his party as the polling frontrunner by diagnosing deep structural economic crises while refusing to compromise on the constitutional debt brake. Simultaneously, Taiwan confronts an unprecedented wave of military espionage where Chinese agents coerce both retired officers and active-duty soldiers through debt traps and psychological tactics to prepare the population for a potential 2027 invasion. In a separate commercial shift, the backpack market has evolved from utilitarian gear into a high-fashion sector driven by luxury brands and design innovations, with limited-edition items commanding prices between $400 and $4,000.
- The Economist22 min
I’ll be jammed: electronic warfare in Ukraine
Jason Palmer, Shashank Joshi, Tim Cross
The event analyzes three distinct shifts in modern strategy: the intensifying electronic warfare contest between Russia and Ukraine driving NATO's need for portable spectrum tools, the emergence of carbon monoxide as a hard-to-detect performance enhancer in professional cycling, and the erosion of UK parliamentary oratory driven by social media constraints. Key figures include the Union Cycliste Internationale and UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer, while specific outcomes involve Ukraine's increased local EW production, WADA's pending classification of carbon monoxide, and a century-long decline in parliamentary speech length. Collectively, these developments highlight critical adaptations in military technology, sports regulation, and political communication required to address evolving threats and cultural changes.
- The Economist24 min
It could happen to you: introducing “Scam Inc”
Jason Palmer, Rosie Bloor, Su Lin Wong, Simon Rabinovich, Tim Cross
Podcast series *Scam Inc.* reveals a multi-billion dollar online fraud industry utilizing violent coercion, AI-driven voice cloning, and psychological exploitation across the globe. Concurrently, the US administration has aggressively implemented sweeping tariff threats on major trading partners, creating significant market volatility while seeking to revitalize domestic manufacturing through protectionist policies. In the sports sector, Magnus Carlsen and Tim Cross are launching a rebranded Freestyle Chess Grand Slam Tour that employs randomized starting positions and F1-style broadcasting to transform chess into a mass-market entertainment product.
- The Economist25 min
Leeward: we meet South Korea’s probable president
Marianne Faithfull, Jason Palmer, Noah Snyder, Claire McHugh, Anne Rowe
South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol faces removal following an attempted martial law imposition, while opposition leader Lee Jae-myung emerges as a frontrunner despite facing disqualification hurdles from past election law convictions and pending corruption charges. Simultaneously, Colombia's Catatumbo region endures a severe humanitarian crisis with over 53,000 displaced persons resulting from intensified violence between the ELN and FARC dissidents, prompting President Gustavo Petro to declare a state of internal commotion and suspend peace negotiations. In cultural history, singer Marianne Faithfull passed away as a symbol of redemption after a dramatic fall from 1960s counterculture fame to street life due to heroin addiction, followed by a critically acclaimed musical resurgence in the 1980s.
- The Economist29 min
Rebel with a new cause: meeting Syria’s president
Ahmed al-Sharaa, Mamoon Alhidayat, Rosie Bloor, Jason Palmer, Zeni Minton-Bettos, Nicholas Pelham, Ethan Wu, James Francham
Ahmed al-Shara has consolidated power as Syria's transitional president following Bashar al-Assad's removal, though his refusal to explicitly reject Sharia law and vague commitments to democratic elections have raised concerns about potential authoritarian consolidation. Meanwhile, the Bank of Japan concluded its era of deflation by raising interest rates to 0.5%, driven by a virtuous wage-price cycle that has boosted bond yields despite lingering pressures on household spending. In the UK, a fifteen-year financial review disclosed that Members of Parliament earned £60 million from second jobs, with media appearances and speeches accounting for the majority of income and sparking public debate over potential regulatory caps.
- The Economist22 min
Thy neighbours, beggared: Trump’s opening tariffs
Trump, Rosie Bloor, Jason Palmer, Henry Kerr, Jeff Carr, Andrew Miller, Tom Trevithan, Jonathan Brown, Stephen Katz
President Trump has declared a national emergency to impose sweeping tariffs on Canadian, Mexican, and Chinese imports, prompting Canada to enact immediate countermeasures targeting Republican states while the administration seeks to leverage economic disruption for border security and industrial goals. Simultaneously, Denver-based Boom Supersonic successfully demonstrated its XB-1 aircraft breaking the sound barrier, advancing plans for commercial supersonic travel by 2029 through advanced carbon fiber and engine technologies. In the cultural sector, London's West End and other British venues have seen a post-pandemic surge in obligatory standing ovations, a phenomenon critics argue has diluted the meaning of applause into a coercive ritual driven by ticket costs and restored social habits.
- The Economist25 min
Turkish delight: influencing the new Syria
Mauro Morandi, Jason Palmer, Rosie Bloor, Piotr Zalewski, Mike Bird, Anne Rowe
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is re-engaging Syria to secure its 900-kilometer border and suppress Kurdish autonomy while facilitating the return of three million refugees, a strategy that draws cautious interest from regional powers like Saudi Arabia. Simultaneously, the Trump administration has pivoted to integrate cryptocurrencies into the U.S. financial system through an executive order and a new "Doge" body led by Elon Musk, reversing previous restrictions to encourage bank participation. Meanwhile, Mauro Morandi, who lived in isolation on the Italian island of Budeli for three decades, evolved from a recluse into an environmental educator before passing away in his 80s.
- The Economist25 min
Bot against America: a Chinese AI jolts markets
Rosie Bloor, Jason Palmer, Guy Scriven, Sarah Larniuk, Tim Cross
DeepSeek's cost-efficient AI model triggered a global market sell-off by challenging the expense narrative of American tech giants, while US officials like Donald Trump framed the event as a competitive wake-up call for domestic industry. Simultaneously, Canada's Liberal Party faces scrutiny over unachievable 2030 goals to replace diesel in remote Indigenous communities due to climate-altered logistics and historical trust deficits with local First Nations. In the health sector, major fitness operators are pivoting from cardio to strength training to address metabolic health and counteract muscle loss linked to age and weight-loss pharmaceuticals.
- The Economist24 min
Gaza, stripped: Palestinians return to ruins
Jason Palmer, Rosie Bloor, Greg Karlstrom, Wendell Stevenson, Gavin Jackson
While a fragile ceasefire allows thousands of Palestinians to return to northern Gaza amid stalled hostage exchanges, geopolitical tensions escalate as Egyptian and Jordanian leaders firmly reject US President Donald Trump's proposal to resettle Gaza's displaced population. Simultaneously, diplomatic efforts to implement the Israel-Lebanon truce face deadlock as Israeli troops block the Lebanese army's deployment, prompting a formal request for a 30-day extension while Hezbollah continues to violate withdrawal protocols. In the eastern theater, Russian forces in Kherson have shifted from indiscriminate shelling to deliberate drone attacks targeting civilians, a tactic observers identify as an effort to depopulate the region and a potential war crime distinct from standard military operations.
- The Economist21 min
In with a chancellor: dissecting Britain’s growth plan
Rachel Reeves, Jason Palmer, Zannie Minton-Pettos, Eleanor Whitehead, Fraser McIlwraith
Over 200 days into its term, the UK's Labour government under Chancellor Rachel Reeves confronts stagnant growth and bond market volatility through a £40 billion tax increase and a supply-side strategy aimed at unlocking business investment. Simultaneously, Australia's 2025 federal election campaign is defined by a culture war over Australia Day, where Prime Minister Anthony Albanese's reforms clash with Opposition Leader Peter Dutton's "anti-woke" pledge to restore traditional citizenship ceremonies. In a separate historical context, The Economist's "Archive 1945" series analyzes the Soviet capture of the industrial Silesia region, detailing how this January 1945 advance crippled German war production and liberated victims from Nazi concentration camps.
- The Economist27 min
Right turn at a broken traffic light: Germany’s AfD
Rosie Bloor, Jason Palmer, Tom Nuttall, Gareth Brown, Ann Rowe
With a federal election imminent, the German far-right Alternative for Germany party has surged to second place in polling by broadening its platform to address economic anxiety while facing a cross-party firewall that excludes it from governing coalitions. Concurrently, the collapse of the Assad regime in Syria has triggered a significant return of displaced citizens driven by a desire to rebuild, despite ongoing infrastructure destruction and political tensions between secular and Islamist factions. Additionally, the film world mourns the death of auteur David Lynch, whose career was defined by juxtaposing suburban normality with cosmic dread in masterpieces like *Eraserhead* and *Twin Peaks*.
- The Economist23 min
A tax or attacks: how the Houthis fund themselves
Jason Palmer, Rosie Bloor, Corbyn Duncan, Stephen Askins, Alex Hearn, Ore Ogunbiyi, Amma Mensah, Sylvanus Ashan
In the Bab el-Mandab Strait, Houthi attacks have collapsed 70% of shipping volume and spiked freight rates fivefold, while major powers like the US and China remain constrained by regional diplomatic frictions that limit naval intervention. Simultaneously, China has rapidly narrowed its artificial intelligence gap with the US through cost-efficient frontier models like DeepSeek V3, challenging American infrastructure dominance despite sanctions on top-tier chips. In Ghana, founder Amma Mensah transformed a loss-making rainforest operation into a luxury spirits brand, boosting farmer salaries by 50% and targeting the global market with high-value rums derived from local botanicals.
- The Economist25 min
Executive orders of magnitude: Trump’s day one
Trump, Jason Palmer, Rosie Bloor, John Prudhoe, Edward Carr, Nicole Phan
During his second-term inauguration held indoors due to extreme cold, Donald Trump delivered an address centered on reclaiming the Panama Canal, reviving Manifest Destiny, and announcing a goal to plant an American flag on Mars while key Silicon Valley leaders like Elon Musk attended. On his first day in office, he signed executive orders establishing a two-gender policy, declaring a national emergency at the southern border to halt illegal entry, and withdrawing from the World Health Organization and Paris Climate Agreement. Although Trump currently holds peak approval ratings and dominates the Republican Party, legislative constraints from narrow majorities in Congress and potential Supreme Court challenges may limit the long-term durability of his aggressive tariff threats and immigration reforms.
- The Economist24 min
Reunions and rubble: Gaza’s first moments of peace
Rosie Bloor, Jason Palmer, Anshul Pfeffer, Duncan Robinson, Dolly Setton
A four-day ceasefire in Gaza initiated a two-stage truce that released three Israeli hostages and 90 Palestinian prisoners, while triggering political instability in Israel as far-right ministers resigned and the incoming US administration secured the agreement. This diplomatic breakthrough is followed by complex challenges regarding the billions required for reconstruction and the establishment of a governance model, which remains uncertain without Hamas or the Palestinian Authority leading the effort. Concurrently, the United Kingdom faces wage compression as the new National Living Wage narrows the pay gap between unskilled and skilled labor, while medical research confirms clinical hypnosis reduces procedural pain and anxiety despite barriers to its widespread adoption.
- The Economist29 min
Billionaires boldly go: private space-treks
Jason Palmer, Rosie Bloor, Erin Braun, Anne Rowe
Blue Origin successfully debuted its heavy-lift New Glenn rocket, establishing a direct commercial rival to SpaceX in the satellite launch sector while SpaceX achieved a historic booster catch during its seventh Starship test despite losing the upper stage. Concurrently, the incoming US administration plans to initiate a massive deportation campaign led by Stephen Miller and Tom Homan, though legal and logistical hurdles are expected to significantly constrain the operation's scale. In a related obituary, pioneering psychiatrist Dr. Peter Fenwick is remembered for his groundbreaking research into near-death experiences, which revealed that a majority of subjects reported profound visions of light, deceased relatives, and a conscious choice to return to life.