The Listening Post

Episodes

• Netanyahu's fight to own the election narrative | The Listening PostWith elections one month away, the media discourse in Israel has narrowed in on one question about one man: What did Benjamin Netanyahu know before October 7? The prime minister is suing the Israeli newspaper that reported the claim, while the right-wing Channel 14 insists none of it matters. Missing from the coverage is any reckoning with what Israel has done in Gaza. Contributors: Dan Perry – Author, Ask Questions Later on Substack Diana Buttu – Human rights lawyer Ron Skolnik – Political consultant, Partners for Progressive Israel Yael Berda – Associate professor, Hebrew University of Jerusalem On our radar Donald Trump gathered some of the biggest names in AI this week and got them to agree to regulate themselves. Meenakshi Ravi examines the “morally binding” pact. Kidfluencers: The business of broadcasting childhood One of the most popular genres of online content these days is made by children – or rather, made of them. Family vlogging has become one of the internet’s most profitable genres. But questions remain over its stars’ labour protections and ability to consent to what is published about them. The Listening Post’s Tariq Nafi looks at the business of broadcasting childhood. Featuring: Caymi Barrett – Former child influencer Fortesa Latifi – Author, Like, Follow, Subscribe Sarah Adams – Founder, Mom.Uncharted

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• The media battle behind Brazil’s election | The Listening PostAs Brazilians head into national elections, there’s a familiar name on the ballot: Bolsonaro. Not former President Jair Bolsonaro. It’s his son Flavio, who is presenting himself to the electorate as a more moderate version of his father. Election coverage has been dominated by a major corruption scandal - the biggest banking fraud case in the country’s history. Brazilians are accustomed to corruption scandals involving political figures. The coverage tends to be framed as: they’re all equally corrupt. Contributors: Andrew Fishman – President & co-founder, Intercept Brasil David Nemer – Professor, University of Virginia Andre Pagliarini – Professor, Louisiana State University Natalia Portinari – Reporter, O Globo Presenter: Richard Gizbert Producers: Iraklis Taxiarchis, Monazza Farooqi and Kritika Jindal Editor: Sidney Sonnerberg On our radar: Donald Trump’s decision to bar three news outlets from the White House appears to have backfired after journalists organised a media boycott and a judge overturned the ban. Tariq Nafi has been tracking the latest duel between the US president and the media. Reporter: Tariq Nafi Producer: Elettra Scrivo Editor: Haim Litani Spain's neo-Nazis: spectacle vs reality A fringe neo-Nazi movement in Spain, Nucleo Nacional, has attracted a growing online following by packaging incendiary and slickly produced content. The mainstream media attention the group has received has made a marginal organisation appear far larger and more influential than it is. The Listening Post’s Elettra Scrivo travels to Madrid - where she comes face-to-face with Nucleo Nacional’s members - to look at the reality that lies behind the spectacle. Featuring: Miquel Ramos – Author, 'Antifascistas' Urszula Mrozowska – Digital researcher in hate speech and extremism Producer / Reporter: Elettra Scrivo Editor: Sidney Sonnerberg / ajlisteningpost / ajlisteningpost https://bsky.app/profile/ajlisteningp... https://x.com/ajlisteningpost https://www.threads.net/@ajlisteningpost #aljazeeraenglish #brazil #politics #breakingnews

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• The media battle behind Brazil's election | The Listening PostAs Brazilians head into national elections, there’s a familiar name on the ballot: Bolsonaro. Not former President Jair Bolsonaro. It’s his son Flavio, who is presenting himself to the electorate as a more moderate version of his father. Election coverage has been dominated by a major corruption scandal - the biggest banking fraud case in the country’s history. Brazilians are accustomed to corruption scandals involving political figures. The coverage tends to be framed as: they’re all equally corrupt. Contributors: Andrew Fishman – President & co-founder, Intercept Brasil David Nemer – Professor, University of Virginia Andre Pagliarini – Professor, Louisiana State University Natalia Portinari – Reporter, O Globo Presenter: Richard Gizbert Producers: Iraklis Taxiarchis, Monazza Farooqi and Kritika Jindal Editor: Sidney Sonnerberg On our radar: Donald Trump’s decision to bar three news outlets from the White House appears to have backfired after journalists organised a media boycott and a judge overturned the ban. Tariq Nafi has been tracking the latest duel between the US president and the media. Reporter: Tariq Nafi Producer: Elettra Scrivo Editor: Haim Litani Spain's neo-Nazis: spectacle vs reality A fringe neo-Nazi movement in Spain, Nucleo Nacional, has attracted a growing online following by packaging incendiary and slickly produced content. The mainstream media attention the group has received has made a marginal organisation appear far larger and more influential than it is. The Listening Post’s Elettra Scrivo travels to Madrid - where she comes face-to-face with Nucleo Nacional’s members - to look at the reality that lies behind the spectacle. Featuring: Miquel Ramos – Author, 'Antifascistas' Urszula Mrozowska – Digital researcher in hate speech and extremism Producer / Reporter: Elettra Scrivo Editor: Sidney Sonnerberg / ajlisteningpost / ajlisteningpost https://bsky.app/profile/ajlisteningp... https://x.com/ajlisteningpost https://www.threads.net/@ajlisteningpost #aljazeeraenglish #brazil #politics #breakingnews

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• The media battle behind Brazil’s election | The Listening PostAs Brazilians head into national elections, there’s a familiar name on the ballot: Bolsonaro. Not former President Jair Bolsonaro. It’s his son Flavio, who is presenting himself to the electorate as a more moderate version of his father. Election coverage has been dominated by a major corruption scandal - the biggest banking fraud case in the country’s history. Brazilians are accustomed to corruption scandals involving political figures. The coverage tends to be framed as: they’re all equally corrupt. Contributors: Andrew Fishman – President & co-founder, Intercept Brasil David Nemer – Professor, University of Virginia Andre Pagliarini – Professor, Louisiana State University Natalia Portinari – Reporter, O Globo On our radar: Donald Trump’s decision to bar three news outlets from the White House appears to have backfired after journalists organised a media boycott and a judge overturned the ban. Tariq Nafi has been tracking the latest duel between the US president and the media. Spain's neo-Nazis: spectacle vs reality A fringe neo-Nazi movement in Spain, Nucleo Nacional, has attracted a growing online following by packaging incendiary and slickly produced content. The mainstream media attention the group has received has made a marginal organisation appear far larger and more influential than it is. The Listening Post’s Elettra Scrivo travels to Madrid - where she comes face-to-face with Nucleo Nacional’s members - to look at the reality that lies behind the spectacle. Featuring: Miquel Ramos – Author, 'Antifascistas' Urszula Mrozowska – Digital researcher in hate speech and extremism

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• Doomsday AI: panic, regulation and the China fear | The Listening PostAI’s existential threat to humanity is dominating headlines across the globe. But with so much attention on the fear of a future AI apocalypse, is the media ignoring the damage AI is already causing? And as AI CEOs join forces to call for regulations, is their motivation about public safety or to secure their grip on the technology’s future? Contributors: Leo Schwartz – Reporter, The Information Sarah Myers West – Co-executive director, AI Now Aaron Mak – Technology reporter, Politico Cori Crider – Executive director, Future of Tech Institute On our radar NAZA, a documentary that lifts the lid on Israel’s calculated killing of Palestinians, has sparked outrage in Israel and accusations of treason against its Israeli filmmakers. They’ve faced threats from senior government and military officials, as well as journalists and online activists. Elettra Scrivo reports. Who gets to publish Africa? Cassava Republic Press and the politics of storytelling Literature can shape how people see themselves - and how they’re seen by the rest of the world. But before a story reaches a reader, someone - an editor - has to decide if it is worth publishing. For decades, much of African literature was published outside the continent. Twenty years ago, Cassava Republic Press set out to change that, by building a publishing house rooted in Africa. Tariq Nafi examines how the publisher has helped reshape the industry and whether control over African stories has really come home. Featuring: Bibi Bakare-Yusuf – Co-founder and publishing director, Cassava Republic Press Chika Unigwe – Author and professor of creative writing Tinashe Mushakavanhu – Assistant professor, Harvard University

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• Selling the war: Purges, polygraphs and propaganda | The Listening PostWith the US midterm elections just weeks away, Donald Trump’s administration is trying to put a positive spin on a war with Iran that shows no sign of letting up. Climbing fuel and grocery prices, the president’s provocative social media posts and the Pentagon’s combative relationship with the media are making that story harder to sell. Contributors: Laicie Heeley – Editor-in-chief, Inkstick Mark Kimmitt – Former US Assistant Secretary of State Negar Mortazavi – Host, The Iran Podcast Samira Mohyeddin – Founder, On The Line Media On our radar Revelations from Israeli newspaper Haaretz about what Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu knew before the October 7 attacks have ignited a firestorm in the country. Netanyahu calls the reporting fabricated and is threatening to sue. Ryan Kohls reports. How COVID coverage broke trust in the US Six years on from the start of the pandemic, COVID-19 is back in the headlines - and so are questions about how newsrooms covered it. The Listening Post's Nicholas Muirhead on how the pandemic broke trust in the US. Featuring: Amesh Adalja – Infectious Disease Physician, Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security Frances E Lee – Co-author, In COVID’s Wake: How Our Politics Failed Us Jeanne Lenzer – Investigative Medical Journalist

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• How the media manufactured consent for genocide | The Listening PostAssal Rad built a reputation on social media as the “headline fixer” for her work correcting journalistic sins at major news outlets. The historian joins presenter Richard Gizbert to discuss her new book, ‘Don’t Say Palestine - How the Media Manufactured Consent for Genocide.’ In it, Rad traces the role mainstream media played in normalising the dehumanisation of Palestinians and whitewashing Israel’s genocidal campaign in Gaza. Contributor: Assal Rad – Author ‘Don’t say Palestine: How the media manufactured consent for genocide.’ Journalist Ameed Shehade: “I escaped death four times.” Over the past few weeks, Israel has intensified its efforts to make life unbearable in the Occupied West Bank, where settlers - protected by the army - have been besieging, attacking and killing Palestinians. Journalist Ameed Shehade, correspondent for Al Araby TV, speaks with us about what it is like to live - and work - with a target on his back. Featuring: Ameed Shehade – West Bank Correspondent, Al Araby TV

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• Trump’s war loop: Escalate, retreat, repeat | The Listening PostFor decades, much of the United States media adopted Washington’s framing of US conflicts in the Middle East. But the US-Israel war against Iran is defying that trend. US news outlets are increasingly challenging President Donald Trump on his declarations of victory and absence of a clear strategy. Meanwhile, Iran’s military remains operational, Tehran retains control of the Strait of Hormuz and fears are mounting that the disruption to global energy supplies will drag on. Contributors: Mohamad Elmasry - professor of media studies, Doha Institute for Graduate Studies Negar Mortazavi - host, Iran Podcast Maral Karimi - lecturer, Toronto Metropolitan University Sultan Barakat - senior professor in public policy, Hamad Bin Khalifa University On our radar Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s foreign trips are usually tightly choreographed affairs. But his trip to Norway did not go according to plan when a journalist named Helle Lyng asked him an unscripted question. Lyng was later criticised by Indian news outlets for that exchange. Norway’s news media also came under fire after the country’s largest newspaper published an orientalist caricature of Modi. Tariq Nafi has been following the story. The dark side of Kenya’s digital age Kenya is the tech hub of East Africa and has built a thriving digital economy. But alongside that growth has come an expanding surveillance apparatus. After antigovernment protests in 2024, President William Ruto’s administration is accused of intensifying its monitoring of civilians. Critics say the government is trying to quell online dissent before it reaches the streets. Nicholas Muirhead reports on how surveillance tools designed to combat "terrorism" are being turned on Kenya's citizens. Featuring: Victor Ndede - Amnesty International Nanjala Nyabola - author, Digital Democracy Thomas Mukhwana - investigative journalist, Africa Uncensored

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• Israel's Image Crisis: Becoming Too Big to Spin?As criticism of Israel mounts over its wars on Gaza, Lebanon and Iran, along with the escalating settler violence in the occupied West Bank, the country is ramping up its PR offensive. From a carefully managed appearance of Benjamin Netanyahu on CBS’s 60 Minutes to a major expansion of Israel’s Hasbara operation, the push includes pouring money into digital campaigns and media messaging. The goal is to reverse the collapse of public support for Israel, especially in the US, but no amount of spin can make audiences unsee what they have watched in real time. Contributors: Miriyam Aouragh - Professor of digital anthropology, University of Westminster Matt Lieb - Host, Bad Hasbara podcast Emily Schrader - Journalist, ILTV News Oren Ziv - Reporter, Local Call On our radar Israeli officials have dismissed a recent New York Times report on sexual violence against Palestinians as “blood libel”. But while the government denounces the allegations, many of the claims in the report have been openly discussed in the Israeli media. Nicholas Muirhead reports. Zaragoza Data Farms The generative AI boom is prompting a global race to build vast, energy-hungry data centres. In Spain’s Aragon region, authorities have welcomed tech giants and the jobs, investment and digital transformation they claim to bring. But behind the glossy narrative lies a different reality - one in which enormous facilities consume natural resources and exploit legal loopholes, often at the expense of the communities that live alongside them. Featuring: Alonso Llorente - Journalist, Arainfo Pablo Jimenez Arandia - Investigative reporter Mar Vaquero - Vice president, Aragon Minister of Economy, Employment & Industry

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• Iran's Infowar: Lego, AI and ever tightening control | The Listening PostThe information front has been central to the Iranian government’s war effort. For an external audience, there is an innovative online strategy that has consisted of AI Lego, memes and hip hop diss tracks directed at Donald Trump and the MAGA base. But this coexists with more brutal domestic tactics: crackdowns, arrests and internet blackouts. The result has been the Iranian authorities making use of the internet for PR internationally, while simultaneously preventing the Iranian people from openly accessing the net themselves. Contributors: Ali Hashem – Correspondent, Al Jazeera English Mehran Kamrava – Professor of Government, Georgetown University in Qatar Tara Kangarlou – Journalist & Author, The Heartbeat of Iran Maral Karimi – Lecturer, Toronto Metropolitan University On our radar The killing of Lebanese journalist Amal Khalil unfolded in the manner that so many Israeli assassinations of journalists in Gaza have - minute by minute, hour by hour, in a pattern that has become shockingly familiar. There's the surveillance, the strike, the obstruction of rescue and then, the denial - Israel's insistence that it does not target journalists, medics or rescue workers. Meenakshi Ravi reports. Pakistan’s peacemaker moment and the missing stories Pakistan has found itself at the centre of one of the world’s most consequential stories - by hosting talks between the United States and Iran, brokering ceasefires, earning the very public praise of Donald Trump and making headlines around the world. But this PR moment is obscuring a great deal, including an undercover war with Afghanistan and a crushing cost-of-living crisis at home. We speak to Amber Rahim Shamsi about the domestic politics behind Pakistan’s diplomatic moment in the sun. Featuring: Amber Rahim Shamsi – Pakistan Editor, Nukta

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