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Where the world and America meet. Every weekday, this is The Global Story.

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.

The Global Story

Ever since Donald Trump returned to the White House in January, his representatives have been following through on promises to slash federal spending. Their latest target is public media, and this week fierce Trump-loyalist Marjorie Taylor Greene led a hearing demanding that the bosses of NPR and PBS justify their government funding. Public broadcasting has been a longtime bugbear for many conservatives, who say it is tainted by a liberal bias. So, as pressure mounts, can these organisations survive?

On today's episode, Lucy Hockings speaks to Micah Loewinger, co-host of On the Media, a podcast covering the intersection between politics and the media – it's made by WNYC, a member station of NPR. They discuss the resilience of public media, and consider what defunding it could mean for free speech and accountability in the modern political landscape.

Producers: Laurie Kalus and Peter Goffin

Technical producer: Mike Regaard

Assistant editor: Sergi Forcada Freixas

Senior news editor: China Collins

The Republican crusade against public media

Malcolm and Simone Collins hope to have 10 children to help avoid what they see as a pending demographic collapse. They tell Lucy Hockings that as pronatalists they want to promote the dangers of falling fertility rates and encourage other people to have more children.

Whereas many people might see their lifestyle as extreme, pronatalism seems to be gaining support at the heart of the Trump administration. But some people worry that some pronatalist practices cross the line into eugenics and that the far right are also adopting the ideology. Our correspondent in Washington, Nomia Iqbal, helps us to put it all in context.

Producers: Richard Moran and Mhairi MacKenzie

Technical producer: Frank McWeeny

Assistant editor: Sergi Forcada Freixas

Senior news editor: China Collins

Pronatalism: Make America procreate again?

The baby boomer generation has become the richest in history. In recent years there has been some degree of animosity between the boomer generation and their younger millennial counterparts. The millennial generation have been much less well off than their parents and are often stereotyped as living beyond their means. But this could all be about to change. Now younger people are expected to inherit billions from their parents. It’s expected to be the largest transfer of wealth in human history. But that won’t be shared out equally… So, what are the social and economic implications of The Great Wealth Transfer? 
Lucy Hockings speaks with BBC business correspondent Erin Delmore and the BBC's population correspondent Stephanie Hegarty. They discuss what The Great Wealth Transfer could mean for the millennial generation.

Producers: Richard Moran, Eleanor Sly and Alice Aylett Roberts

Sound engineer: Ricardo McCarthy

Assistant editors: Richard Fenton-Smith and Sergi Forcada Freixas

Senior news editor: China Collins

The Great Wealth Transfer: Will it divide millennials?

London Heathrow saw all its flights cancelled on Friday after a fire at a local power supply station. The news led to rampant speculation online – rumours of foreign interference, accusations against executives, and angry questions about who was to blame. So why wasn’t there a contingency plan to keep such an essential transport hub running?

Caitríona Perry is joined by Theo Leggett, the BBC’s international business correspondent, to discuss Heathrow’s temporary closure and what it says about the vulnerabilities of our major infrastructure.

Producers: Laurie Kalus and Alice Aylett Roberts

Sound engineer: Stephen Bailey

Assistant editors: Richard Fenton-Smith and Sergi Forcada Freixas

Senior news editor: China Collins

How did one fire paralyse Europe's busiest airport?

The mayor of Istanbul, Ekrem Imamoglu, was arrested on Wednesday on corruption and terror charges he insists are politically motivated. Considered the leading candidate to face Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan at the next election, Mr Imamoglu's eligibility had been thrown into doubt after his university degree was annulled earlier this week. His detention is being compared to President Erdogan's own arrest when he was Istanbul mayor more than a quarter of a century ago - a moment widely seen as the catalyst for his rise to national stardom.

On this episode, Jonny Dymond is joined by journalist and author Elcin Poyrazlar, and BBC Monitoring's Dilay Yalcin. They discuss how Turkey has changed under Erdogan’s leadership, and consider what the arrest of his rival says about his fears for future.

Producers: Laurie Kalus, Tom Kavanagh and Eleanor Sly

Sound engineers: Jack Graysmark and Mike Regaard

Assistant editors: Richard Fenton-Smith and Sergi Forcada Freixas

Senior news editor: China Collins

Turkey: Erdogan's political deja vu

We spend around a third of our lives sleeping. But many people struggle with insomnia or have difficulty staying asleep, and research shows that bad sleep can increase the risk of multiple health conditions. How harmful is bad sleep to our health? And what can we do about it?
Jonny Dymond speaks with Professor Russell Foster, Director of the Sleep and Circadian Neuroscience Institute at the University of Oxford, and author and sleep expert Dr Nerina Ramlakhan about how people can get enough sleep.

The Global Story brings you trusted insights from BBC journalists worldwide. We want your ideas, stories and experiences to help us understand and tell #TheGlobalStory. Email us at theglobalstory@bbc.com

Producers: Alice Aylett Roberts and Beth Timmins

Sound engineers: Mike Regaard

Assistant editors: Richard Fenton-Smith and Sergi Forcada Freixas

Senior news editor: China Collins

Are we really getting enough sleep?

On Tuesday night, Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced that combat against Hamas in Gaza had resumed in full force.

This followed several hours of early morning air strikes targeting Gaza, which killed more than 400 people, according to the Hamas-run health ministry, making it one of the deadliest days of the conflict so far. 

Jonny Dymond speaks to the BBC’s Jon Donnison, who witnessed the strikes from the Israeli border town of Sderot. He helps us to understand this latest escalation and why Israel has decided to return to war. 

Producers: Richard Moran, Mhairi MacKenzie and Tom Kavanagh

Assistant editors: Richard Fenton-Smith and Sergi Forcada Freixas

Senior news editor: China Collins

Why has Israel gone back to war?

The Russian leader has been mulling a 30-day ceasefire proposal put forward by the US, ahead of talks with Donald Trump on Tuesday. Will Vladimir Putin accept a temporary pause in fighting, let alone a long-term deal? What are the pressures that could sway him toward peace, or cause him to drag out the war in Ukraine? 

On this episode, presenter Jonny Dymond speaks to journalist Owen Matthews, author of the book “Overreach: The Inside Story of Putin’s War”.

The Global Story brings you trusted insights from BBC journalists worldwide. We want your ideas, stories and experiences to help us understand and tell #TheGlobalStory. Email us at theglobalstory@bbc.com You can also message us or leave a voice note via WhatsApp on +44 330 123 9480.

Producers: Peter Goffin and Tom Kavanagh

Sound engineers: James Piper and Mike Regaard

Assistant editors: Richard Fenton-Smith and Sergi Forcada Freixas

Senior news editor: China Collins

Putin: War or peace?

Argentina’s football star Diego Maradona is once again back in the spotlight as a long-delayed trial examining the circumstances around his death gets underway in Buenos Aires. When Diego Maradona died in 2020, Argentinians took to the streets, united in both grief and in the celebration of a soccer legend. But it didn’t take long before suspicions around his death started to circulate. In today’s episode, we look at the trial involving his medical team and ask why Maradona’s legacy is still so strong. 

Lucy Hockings is joined by Marcela Mora y Araujo. She’s a journalist based in Buenos Aires who translated Diego Maradona’s autobiography.

Producers: Laurie Kalus and Alice Aylett Roberts

Sound engineers: Mike Regaard and Jonny Hall

Assistant editors: Richard Fenton-Smith and Sergi Forcada Freixas

Senior news editor: China Collins

Maradona and the trial transfixing Argentina

Over the past decade fentanyl use has spiked, leading to tens of thousands of deaths in the United States. Most of the deadly drug enters the US via its border with Mexico, concealed deep within vehicles and even hidden inside food packages. The Trump administration has previously accused the Mexican government of colluding with the drug cartels. He’s now hoping that the threat of import tariffs on Mexico will stem the flow of the deadly drug into the US. 
 
The Mexican government has responded to potential import tariffs by deploying national guard troops along its northern border. So can Mexico’s new president Claudia Sheinbaum get the fentanyl crisis under control?

Jonny Dymond is joined by the BBC’s special correspondent Quentin Sommerville, who has been on the ground at the US-Mexico border and has visited one of the drug cartels’ operations. He also speaks to the BBC's Mexico and Central America correspondent Will Grant.

Producers: Richard Moran, Alice Aylett Roberts and Eleanor Sly

Sound engineer: James Piper 

Assistant editors: Richard Fenton-Smith and Sergi Forcada Freixas 

Senior news editor: China Collins

Can tariffs convince Mexico to stem the flow of fentanyl?

BBC World Service

How disinformation and advanced technology might influence the 2024 vote. Why do people fall for online conspiracy theories, and what happens when disinformation shapes real-world events?

On this episode, Lucy Hockings is joined by the BBC's disinformation and social media correspondent, Marianna Spring, to explore how conspiracy theories and the rise of AI could shape the upcoming election in the United States. They discuss the role disinformation played in the 2020 vote, leading to real-world consequences, and how these conspiracies continue to undermine the US election system today. They also examine the growing influence of AI in generating and spreading false narratives, and what this could mean for the upcoming presidential race.

You can listen to Marianna Spring’s series ‘Why Do You Hate Me? USA’ on BBC Sounds, or wherever you get your podcasts. 

Producers: Pete Ross and Alix Pickles

Sound engineer: Mike Regaard

Assistant editor: Sergi Forcada Freixas

Senior news editor: Sara Wadeson

Could conspiracy theories and AI impact the US election?

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