The Economist Radio (All audio)

Demonstrations have been growing for a month and show no signs of abating. But would the reforms that the protesters are demanding actually work? We examine a pioneering bit of Lithuanian software that excels at fake-news detection. And why Germans are resistant to calls for speed limits on the Autobahn. For full access to print, digital and audio editions of The Economist, subscribe here www.economist.com/radiooffer Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson has at last secured a general election. Just as with his predecessor Theresa May, that may not result in easier Brexit arithmetic. We speak to Amy Klobuchar, a Democratic-nomination contender; she is behind in polls, but might be a better bet for a party bent on ousting President Trump. And, the campaign to reduce alcohol consumption that’s funded by the alcohol industry. For full access to print, digital and audio editions of The Economist, subscribe here www.economist.com/radiooffer Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The ongoing unrest is no longer about a rise in metro fares; Chileans have risen up to demand that the prosperity of their country be distributed more evenly. The “Visegrad Four” economies of central Europe have been a post-communism success story—but as flows of people and money shift, they’re looking more precarious. And, a bid to measure just how useful managers really are. For full access to print, digital and audio editions of The Economist, subscribe here www.economist.com/radiooffer Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The man who brought Islamic State to the world stage with visions of a brutal “caliphate” has been killed. But the jihadist movement, while weakened, lives on. Argentines voted their reformist president out and protectionist, big-state Peronists back in. Can the hobbled economy cope? And America’s push to start school later could boost grades and the economy, and even save lives.For full access to print, digital and audio editions of The Economist, subscribe here www.economist.com/radiooffer Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Britain’s prime minister is making a risky move by calling for a general election in December. Will it succeed any more than it did for his predecessor? In Japan, both the government and the people take a dim view of soft-drug use; we ask why. And tourists make a dangerous and defiant last-minute dash up Uluru, Australia’s most famous rock. For full access to print, digital and audio editions of The Economist, subscribe here www.economist.com/radiooffer Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

What began as protests against a tax on WhatsApp calls has blossomed into surprisingly united and peaceful demands for wholesale government overhaul. Today’s disinterment and reburial of Francisco Franco, Spain’s dictator for four decades, speaks volumes about how the country views its bloody history. And how radio DJs are helping with Thailand’s teen-pregnancy problem. For full access to print, digital and audio editions of The Economist, subscribe here www.economist.com/radiooffer Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Vladimir Putin’s diplomacy regarding northern Syria is just one example of the Russian president’s widening influence. British Airways was once known as the world’s favourite airline, we ask why its popularity has fallen far faster than its profits. And why voters should be wary of politicians claiming to speak for “the people”.For full access to print, digital and audio editions of The Economist, subscribe here www.economist.com/radiooffer Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Justin Trudeau will remain prime minister, but will lead a minority government. He will probably be able to continue with his progressive push, but his halo is a bit tarnished. It’s ten years this month since Greece’s financial implosion; we look back on a decade spent balancing the books. And, the surprising success of fun stock-ticker symbols. For full access to print, digital and audio editions of The Economist, subscribe here www.economist.com/radiooffer Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

It might have been a clarifying vote on Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s Brexit motion; instead, more legislation and frustration. We dig through the parliamentary procedure to try to map out what happens next. Sports fans’ easy access to the world’s games poses a threat to some sports, and is even changing the nature of others. And, Indonesia’s curious push for halal pianos. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Britain’s prime minister Boris Johnson has a newly struck European Union divorce deal in hand. He has defied the expectations of many, but he still faces a tricky vote in Britain’s parliament. Turkey’s pummelling of the Syrian border area will pause for five days, but the decline of America’s role and image in the region has not been halted. And the burgeoning business of therapeutic psychedelics. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Our journalists interview Cyril Ramaphosa, South Africa’s president, about his efforts to clean up his country and his African National Congress party. He’s the right man for the job, but the clock is ticking. The markets are rife with funds run by computers, but handing decisions to the machines comes with plenty of risk. And how political polarisation is driving a new dictionary of discourtesy. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Amid the growing disquiet in Hong Kong are a few survivors of the 1989 Tiananmen Square massacre. These once-moderate voices are changing their minds about whether the protesters should keep provoking the Chinese government. Even as a currency crisis unfolds, Lebanon’s central bank is keeping things stable—so far. The bank has a solid history, in part because of one man who guarded a pile of Ottoman gold. And an effort to wrangle the dialects of the Canadian Arctic. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Twelve candidates take to the stage again tonight, with two clear front-runners. We ask how the winnowing field reflects the mood of the party. We also examine an unlikely candidate in a lesser-watched race: that for the Republican nomination. And, why the shattering of the two-hour-marathon mark has much to do with snazzy footwear. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Turkey’s violent strikes on north-eastern Syria came as swiftly as America’s withdrawal. The overwhelmed Kurds, once America’s staunch allies against Islamic State, now want protection from Syria’s Russian-backed forces. “Microfinance” experiments are intended to alleviate poverty, but in Sri Lanka one trial has gone badly wrong. And, why China’s 30m truckers aren’t the folk heroes they might be elsewhere. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

It is at once a story of post-communist success and of populist threats to the rule of law by the governing Law and Justice (PiS) party. What direction will Poles choose for their country? Gay rights are few and far between in China, but couples have found protection in a little loophole in guardianship law. And, how Elvis Presley’s last flash in Las Vegas changed the city forever. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The White House is stonewalling the impeachment inquiry. Could that hinder the Democrats’ ability to build a strong public case? We look at this year’s crop of Nobel prizes in the sciences and ask why, once again, all the winners are men. And, Japan’s government-led efforts to match lonely urbanites with rural folk. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Two months after India’s Hindu-nationalist government stripped the state of Jammu and Kashmir of its autonomy, 7m people are still in limbo. How will it end? Could America’s angrily partisan politics be explained by a rise in loneliness? We visit the Midwest to find out. And, companies are going big on “financial wellness” initiatives for their employees. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The president’s sudden talk of departure from a contested strip of the Turkey-Syria border betrays the Kurds who helped beat back Islamic State—and risks throwing the region into chaos. A look at the cashew industry in Mozambique reveals the tricky trade-offs between agriculture and development. And, an unusual opera outlining the life and letters of birth-control pioneer Marie Stopes. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Chinese and American trade negotiators will again be trying to avoid more eye-watering tariffs this week; meanwhile a years-long dispute with the European Union has sparked yet more levies. Where does it all end? We describe the recent “quantum supremacy” result, and what it realistically means for computing’s future. And, the coming submersion of 12,000 years of human history in Turkey. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A phone call between the presidents has sparked an impeachment inquiry in America. But how do the people of Ukraine view the kerfuffle? Massive student protests put Indonesia’s president in a bind, balancing his programme of reforms and growth against uncomfortable social pressures. And, a revealing read through the Democratic presidential contenders’ autobiographies. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.