Economist Radio

The historian Jung Chang, a survivor of the Cultural Revolution and the author of “Wild Swans”, talks to Anne McElvoy about her latest book, “Big Sister, Little Sister, Red Sister”. It follows three remarkable women from China’s brief period of democracy in the 1920s to positions of influence that shaped their country’s history. They talk about how Beijing views the challenge to its authority from the ongoing pro-democracy protests in Hong Kong and what the rest of the world misunderstands about ChinaPlease subscribe to The Economist for full access to print, digital and audio editions:www.economist.com/radiooffer For information regarding your data privacy, visit acast.com/privacy Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Our correspondent walked the length of Hadrian’s Wall, in northern England, finding shifting party alliances and surprising views on Brexit. We take a look at the phenomenon of Japan’s hikikomori, who shut themselves in for years on end. And why a plague of rats in California is likely to get even worse. Want to weigh in on our podcasts? Please fill out our survey at economist.com/podsurvey. For information regarding your data privacy, visit acast.com/privacy Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A selection of three essential articles read aloud from the latest issue of The Economist. This week, an electoral nightmare before Christmas for Britain. (10:10) China’s behind-the-scenes battle for influence in the United Nations. (18:10) And, how to make a small supercomputer with a really big chipPlease subscribe to The Economist for full access to print, digital and audio editions:www.economist.com/radiooffer For information regarding your data privacy, visit acast.com/privacy Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A massive, rolling, national strike begins today, in protest against proposed reforms of the sprawling pension system. But details of the changes haven’t even been published yet. Our correspondent visits the conflict-ravaged Darfur region, and sees a historic opportunity for peace. And a look at how best to let entrepreneurial immigrants get back in business. Want to weigh in on our podcasts? Please fill out our survey at economist.com/podsurvey. For information regarding your data privacy, visit acast.com/privacy Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

After the founders of Google, Larry Page and Sergey Brin, step back from their roles at Google’s parent company Alphabet, who will really be in charge? Israeli venture capitalist Chemi Peres on the ways innovation can lead to peace. And, cases of Malaria are no longer in decline — what needs to happen to reignite the fight? Kenneth Cukier hosts  Please subscribe to The Economist for full access to print, digital and audio editions:www.economist.com/radiooffer Please complete our listener survey at www.economist.com/podsurvey For information regarding your data privacy, visit acast.com/privacy Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The House Judiciary Committee will now take up the inquiry into President Donald Trump. But will any of it matter to uninterested voters? The probe into the mysterious death of an investigative journalist is now haunting Malta’s halls of power. And a look back on the life of a beloved athlete who never quite won cycling’s biggest prize. Want to weigh in on our podcasts? Please fill out our survey at economist.com/podsurvey.  For information regarding your data privacy, visit acast.com/privacy Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Donald Trump is introducing new tariffs and this time they are not aimed at China. The latest figures suggest that China’s economy is stronger than Mr Trump portrays. What valuation will the Saudi Aramco IPO achieve? Also, economist and author Branko Milanović on the battle between liberal capitalism and political capitalism. Patrick Lane hosts Please subscribe to The Economist for full access to print, digital and audio editions:www.economist.com/radiooffer Please complete our listener survey at www.economist.com/podsurvey For information regarding your data privacy, visit acast.com/privacy Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

It will be all smiles at the NATO summit today in London--but many of them will be forced. Behind the scenes, the alliance’s leaders are arguing about what its purpose should be. We also look at the disputed data behind the idea that inequality has been rising inexorably in recent years. And how a novel way to reduce cow and sheep burps could help in the fight against climate change. Want to weigh in on our podcasts? Please fill out our survey at economist.com/podsurvey For information regarding your data privacy, visit acast.com/privacy Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Islamic militant who killed two people in London last week was supposedly being monitored by the authorities. That revelation has prompted a fierce debate about what went wrong. We take a look at the state of the global AIDS epidemic. And as their country goes to wrack and ruin, Venezuelans have been turning to video games, but not for the reasons you might think. Want to weigh in on our podcasts? Please fill out our survey at economist.com/podsurvey. For information regarding your data privacy, visit acast.com/privacy Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Ahead of the 2020 American presidential election, John Prideaux, The Economist's US editor, talks to Bill Weld, a former governor of Massachusetts, Joe Walsh, a talk radio host and former Illinois congressman, and Mark Sanford, a former governor of South Carolina. While Donald Trump enjoys near 90% approval ratings among his party, can anyone challenge him for the Republican presidential nomination? And how has he changed what it means to be a Republican? Anne McElvoy hosts____________________Please complete our listener survey at www.economist.com/podsurvey For full access to print, digital and audio editions of The Economist, go to www.economist.com/radiooffer____________________ For information regarding your data privacy, visit acast.com/privacy Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Andrés Manuel López Obrador, Mexico’s president, is wildly popular, in part because of his determination to wipe out corruption. But is his crusade against graft everything it’s cracked up to be?  We also look at the debate around randomised control trials, a popular but controversial tool in economics. In Congo, caterpillars are considered a delicacy. We explain why they deserve to be the next superfood. Want to weigh in on our podcasts? Please fill out our survey at economist.com/podsurvey. For information regarding your data privacy, visit acast.com/privacy Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A selection of three essential articles read aloud from the latest issue of The Economist. This week, inequality could be lower than you think (11:20), Britain’s Labour Party plans to redistribute political power as well as income (17:30), and Mexico’s President is using a crusade against corruption to take controlPlease subscribe to The Economist for full access to print, digital and audio editions:www.economist.com/radiooffer And please complete our survey at www.economist.com/podsurvey For information regarding your data privacy, visit acast.com/privacy Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Donald Trump used to lionise generals, but this week he had a falling out with the top brass. Are the armed forces becoming as politicised as America’s other institutions? We also take a look at the emergence of a new narco-state in West Africa, Guinea-Bissau. And Silicon Valley has been trying to shed a reputation for sexism, but many of its products remain ill-suited to women. Want to weigh in on our podcasts? Please fill out our survey at economist.com/podsurvey. For information regarding your data privacy, visit acast.com/privacy Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Researchers are using artificial intelligence techniques to invent medicines and materials—but in the process are they upending the scientific method itself? The AI approach is a form of trial-and-error at scale, or “radical empiricism”. But does AI-driven science uncover new answers that humans cannot understand? Host Kenneth Cukier finds out with James Field of LabGenius, Demis Hassabis of DeepMind, astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson, tech venture capitalists Zavain Dar and Nan Li, philosophy professor Sabrina Leonelli, and others. Please subscribe to The Economist for full access to print, digital and audio editions:www.economist.com/radiooffer Please complete our survey at www.economist.com/podsurvey For information regarding your data privacy, visit acast.com/privacy Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The UN has just released its annual report on how well the fight to slow climate change is going. It finds that efforts to reduce greenhouse-gas emissions are going from bad to worse. We also look at a surprising new lease on life for China’s regional dialects. And while people debate about the merits of Uber, one thing is clear -- it drives people to drink -- or so new research suggests. Want to weigh in on our podcasts? Please fill out our survey at economist.com/podsurvey. For information regarding your data privacy, visit acast.com/privacy Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

LVMH, a French luxury goods giant, is buying American jeweller Tiffany & Co for over $16bn. What are its plans for the latest jewel in its crown? Soumaya Keynes speaks to Stephen Vaughn, former general counsel to the United States Trade Representative, about a crisis at the heart of the World Trade Organisation. And, what lessons can be learned from the world’s most extreme economies? Patrick Lane hosts____________________Please complete our listener survey at www.economist.com/podsurvey For full access to print, digital and audio editions of The Economist, go to www.economist.com/radiooffer____________________ For information regarding your data privacy, visit acast.com/privacy Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Michael Bloomberg, the billionaire former mayor of New York, has announced he is running for president. But he is late to join the race and not very popular with Democratic primary voters. We also look at TikTok, a wildly successful video-sharing app, that some see as a threat to security in the Western world. And much of Switzerland is up in arms--about the reliability of the country’s coffee supply. Want to weigh in on our podcasts? Please fill out our survey at economist.com/podsurvey. For information regarding your data privacy, visit acast.com/privacy Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

On the eve of the 2019 United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP25) in Madrid, we ask what delegates hope to achieve. Also, how can online games help in the fight against fake news? And host Tom Standage interviews an artificial intelligence called GPT-2 about its views on the big themes of 2020. Music by Chris Zabriskie "Candlepower" (CC by 4.0) “The World in 2020”, our future-gazing annual, is now available at shop.economist.com.  Please complete our survey at www.economist.com/podsurvey For information regarding your data privacy, visit acast.com/privacy Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

After almost six months of protests and street battles, Hong Kongers have had a chance to vote in local elections. They sent a clear message of support to those agitating for greater democracy. We look at how the impeachment hearings in Washington are undermining the fight against corruption in Eastern Europe. And deep below Jerusalem, a high-tech cemetery is under construction. Would you like to weigh in on our podcasts? Complete our podcast survey at economist.com/podsurvey For information regarding your data privacy, visit acast.com/privacy Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The secretary general of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation, Jens Stoltenberg, reacts to Emmanuel Macron’s stark warnings about the future of the alliance. Daniel Franklin, The Economist’s diplomatic editor, asks Mr Stoltenberg how NATO’s members can overcome their differences—should Europe have its own defence force and is Turkey at risk of drifting away from the alliance? Also, how should Article 5 be enforced in space?For full access to print, digital and audio editions of The Economist, subscribe ateconomist.com/radiooffer For information regarding your data privacy, visit acast.com/privacy Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.