About this podcast
Where the world and America meet, with episodes each weekday. The world is changing. Decisions made in the US and by the second Trump administration are accelerating that change. But they are also a symptom of it. With Asma Khalid in DC, Tristan Redman in London, and the backing of the BBC’s international newsroom, The Global Story brings clarity to politics, business and foreign policy in a time of connection and disruption.
Episodes
The newest 50 of 691 episodes
- GTA 6: A mirror of America? · 27 min“This is the biggest entertainment release ever”, says the BBC’s technology reporter, Laura Cress. Like the 10 million people who have pre-ordered Grand Theft Auto 6 ahead of its…
- Why the Nvidia scandal is bigger than one tech CEO’s affair · 27 minThis episode was updated on 12th November following Jensen Huang’s resignation as CEO of Nvidia. China appears determined to acquire America’s most advanced computing technology…
- How porn changed the internet - and everything else · 27 minEvery day, tens of thousands of hours of pornographic content are uploaded to the internet. At peak times, 10% of internet traffic is people watching porn. But who is making…
- Will Trump’s foreign policy change following the midterms? · 28 minA week on from the Democrats’ victory in the US midterm elections, what might these results mean for the rest of the world? What will Trump’s foreign policy look like now he has…
- How North Korea pulled off a $6bn heist · 26 minLast week saw what could be the biggest heist in history: $6.3bn was stolen from the cryptocurrency exchange Binance. North Korean hackers are suspected of being behind the…
- Russell Brand and the unfinished MeToo reckoning · 27 minRussell Brand’s conviction for rape and sexual assault has brought renewed scrutiny to the actor and comedian, who cultivated an image of provocation and promiscuity before…
- Are governments preparing for the apocalypse? · 27 minPreppers have long been planning for the worst-case scenario. Are governments now doing the same? The UK government has launched a national “Be Ready” campaign, urging people to…
- What a ‘blue tsunami’ means for US foreign policy · 26 minCan a new crop of Democrats in Congress end the war in Iran? Democrats have taken control of both chambers of Congress in the US midterm elections, dealing a major blow to…
- They fled Russia. The US sent them back · 27 minAfter Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022, many Russians who opposed the war – or feared being sent to fight in it – fled the country. In much of the West, they were welcomed as…
- Anthropic warns its AI could be dangerous. So why do people want to invest? · 26 minThe AI juggernaut Anthropic could "pose catastrophic or existential risks to humanity,” its owners warned last week, “if not developed, deployed, and operated with appropriate…
- Can London’s black cabs survive driverless cars? · 27 minLondoners can now travel in autonomous cars for the first time, after Uber was granted a licence to operate a test fleet of self-driving vehicles. Each vehicle must have a safety…
- How Trump’s Cuba policy is shaping Miami’s midterms · 26 minLatino voters in Florida — including 68% of Cuban-Americans in Miami-Dade County — helped fuel Donald Trump’s 2024 presidential victory. But now, ahead of next week’s midterm…
- Did Melania Trump broker a ceasefire in Ukraine? · 27 minA ceasefire has come into effect in the Ukrainian city of Oleshky, on the front line of the war with Russia. Thousands of residents have been trapped there, cut off from food…
- How Lula held on to Brazil · 27 minBrazil has just come through a fierce electoral campaign that saw left-wing incumbent Lula face Flavio Bolsonaro, son of Jair Bolsonaro, the former president convicted of…
- Why young Israelis are more conservative than their parents · 27 minThe polls suggest a tight race in Israel’s upcoming election. Candidates are doing all they can to win the approval of young and first-time voters, who are set to play an…
- What happened to missing journalist Austin Tice? · 27 minThe American journalist and former marine, Austin Tice, disappeared 14 years ago while covering the civil war in Syria. Despite the best efforts of US officials and Austin’s…
- Europe protests: A continent in crisis? · 27 min“They've surrendered their country to vandals,” claimed Donald Trump this week, as videos of protests and looting across France spread across social media and TV news bulletins…
- Who gets to decide Ukraine's future? · 27 minCan Ukraine still rely on America? More than 80 years after the Yalta conference reshaped post-war Europe, some observers fear a new era of great-power diplomacy could once again…
- They were loyal Democrats. Then came Gaza · 33 minMidterm elections in the United States are normally about domestic issues such as the economy and the cost of living. They’re often a pulse check on voter sentiment towards the…
- Is Trump sacrificing Ukraine for cheaper diesel? · 27 minAmerica’s pain at the pump could have major implications for the future of the war in Ukraine. US President Donald Trump wants to bring down fuel prices for Americans. One way…
- America’s rogue ambassadors · 27 minA diplomat’s job is traditionally to represent their country’s interests while maintaining good relations with their host nation. But some of Donald Trump’s ambassadors are…
- Why Trump is not going to war with the Houthis · 27 minIs Washington leaving Saudi Arabia to fend for itself? Last week, Houthi rebels launched a series of missile strikes on Riyadh, Saudi Arabia’s capital. Surveillance footage…
- Could Gen Z bring down India’s Modi? · 27 minThis week tens of thousands of young people have taken to the streets of Delhi, India’s capital, demanding changes to the electoral system and the resignation of the country’s…
- Was World War Two worth it? Some US conservatives have doubts · 27 minSince World War Two ended, most people living in the United States or Europe have generally upheld a consensus about its morality; that it was a just war fought against an evil…
- Are we really living in unprecedented times? · 27 minPoliticians and commentators keep telling us we are living through unprecedented times. But how unusual is the world we are living in, really? John Simpson has spent 60 years…
- What’s really happening with plague in Russia? · 27 minA plague scare in Siberia has become a Rorschach test for public health fears in a post-Covid world. Russian officials are investigating the death of a worker at a plague…
- Why French teenagers are fighting for their education · 26 minWhat began as a revolt over public school funding has spilled into a much bigger fight over the future of France. Now, hundreds of thousands of people have taken to the streets…
- The warnings before 7 October · 27 minIsrael is marking three years since the 7 October attacks, in which around 1,200 people were killed by Hamas-led attackers and a further 251 hostages were taken back to Gaza. The…
- Smart glasses or ‘pervert glasses’? · 27 minAt a recent Meta product launch, Mark Zuckerberg promised that the company’s smart glasses would give wearers “new superpowers”, but what are they? Amid criticisms of its privacy…
- America’s global hunt for execution drugs · 27 minWhy do executions in the United States keep going wrong? Last week, Tennessee attempted to carry out the execution of Christa Pike, a convicted murderer who had spent three…
- How white South Africans became the face of Trump’s refugee policy · 27 minIn the last year, the US has admitted just 13,000 refugees — a fraction of the number it has accepted in previous years. And almost all of those new arrivals have been white…
- Inside the Flydubai attack that could upend Israeli elections · 26 minHow did the passengers of Flydubai's flight FZ1073 prevent a catastrophe after a cockpit attack? And what does this incident mean for Israel at a politically charged moment? On…
- Is Meta dying? · 27 minFifteen years ago, the film The Social Network told the story of Facebook’s rise to global prominence. As Meta faces growing scrutiny from regulators and pours billions into AI…
- Did a farmer foil a plot to attack a UK military base? · 27 minIn the early hours of Sunday morning, three vans were spotted near a British military base used by the United States for its bombing operations in Iran. A huge police operation…
- The Super El Nino: what happens when it hits us? · 27 minClimate scientists have put out a dire warning about this year’s El Niño; that it will likely be the worst in recorded history. And if previous ‘super’ El Niños are anything to…
- Katseye, America and the dark side of K-pop perfection · 27 minWhat happens when K-pop’s gruelling formula meets the American music industry? The global girl group Katseye has gone from a reality-show experiment to a global phenomenon. With…
- Is a free press at serious risk in Trump’s America? · 27 minLast week, President Donald Trump barred CNN, Politico and MS NOW from the White House, accusing them of spreading "fake news". After their reporters had their press passes…
- Inside China’s push to become the world’s AI superpower · 27 minChina’s President Xi returns to the White House on Thursday for the first time in over a decade. A priority for both leaders will be to discuss AI. The two countries are…
- Why the world wants American surrogates · 27 minThe United States is one of the few wealthy countries where commercial surrogacy remains legal. Bans elsewhere in the world, combined with a largely free-market approach at home…
- Searching for Russia’s missing soldiers · 27 minWhile Russia’s president continues to insist that his, “special military operation” in Ukraine is succeeding, the estimated number of Russian soldiers killed and wounded in this…
- Dave Ramsey: Iran, tariffs and affordability · 27 minAs the midterm elections in America approach, the economy is one of the deciding factors for how people will vote. Before his second term started, President Trump promised to…
- Ed Sheeran, Macklemore, and the politics of staying silent · 27 minOne of the most successful songwriters of all time is facing the biggest controversy of his nearly two decades in the public eye. Where does pop star Ed Sheeran go from here? On…
- Will the Houthis tank the global economy? · 27 minOver the last week, the Houthis - an Iran-backed militant group in Yemen - have captured two strategic islands along the Red Sea coast, consolidating its control of a key…
- The Canadians who want out of Canada · 27 minAs Canada continues to wage a trade war with the US, an internal battle is being fought over the country’s identity. Next month, voters in Alberta, the country’s wealthiest…
- Can the US and China stop AI from killing us all? · 27 minChina’s President Xi Jinping will meet Donald Trump later this month with the issue of AI governance high on the agenda. In recent weeks there has been increasing concern around…
- Did America win the ‘war on terror’? · 27 minWhy can’t America quit the Middle East? September 11 marked a shift in the American psyche, and altered the way the United States saw its place in the world. Shortly after the…
- How the AfD is rewriting German history · 27 minFor the first time since World War Two, a far-right party has made a significant win in Germany – taking almost 44% of the vote in Saxony-Anhalt. The Alternative for Germany…
- Why America's allies are sanctioning West Bank settlers · 27 minOn Tuesday, the government of the United Kingdom announced sweeping sanctions against Israeli settlements in the West Bank, and accused settlers of ‘ethnic cleansing.’ Soon…
- Can Dubai’s luxe image survive the war with Iran? · 27 minAs the summer holiday season draws to a close, foreigners travelling to and from Dubai in the United Arab Emirates are facing delays, cancellations and severe travel warnings…
- Was Saudi Arabia involved in 9/11? · 27 minTwenty-five years on from the deadliest terror attack in history, thousands of grieving families are still fighting for answers. In early 2000, two young Saudis arrived in San…
