The Slow Newscast

When Asha visited her new therapist during covid, little did she realise she was placing her faith in the wrong individual. Her story reveals the perils of an unregulated industry, where people can use and abuse the unique privileges that come with the label of 'therapist'.

Hosted on Acast. See https://acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Chancellor has delivered the first budget of Andy Burnham's premiership. But what does it reveal about their vision for the UK?

Hosted on Acast. See https://acast.com/privacy for more information.

When The Observer’s Technology Editor, Patricia Clarke began investigating a new phenomenon initially dubbed ‘AI psychosis’, she found lives upended by long, intimate conversations with chatbots. But as she followed the evidence from a psychiatric ward in Bristol to the safety teams in Silicon Valley, a far darker story emerged. Guided by AI industry whistleblowers, grieving families and hundreds of pages of chatbot transcripts, Spiral exposes how big tech is running an unprecedented experiment on the human mind.

This is episode one of Spiral, a six-part series from Tortoise Investigates and The Observer, produced in partnership with the Pulitzer Center’s AI Accountability Network.

Reported by Patricia Clarke

Produced by Katie Gunning

Sound design by Hannah Varrall

Development production by Jess Swinburne and Owen Thomas

Artwork by Jon Hill and Michelle Thompson

Narrative editor is Gary Marshall

Executive producers are Jasper Corbett and Basia Cummings

Spiral is a 4 part original series from Tortoise Investigates and The Observer.

To binge listen to all episodes today, ad-free,subscribe to The Observer.

Or subscribe to Observer+ on Apple Podcasts or Spotify to listen to all our podcasts, including this one, without any ads.

Hosted on Acast. See https://acast.com/privacy for more information.

Last week, a group of West Bank settlers attacked Palestinian farmers and veteran Washington Post photographer, Heidi Levine, who was there to cover the annual olive harvest. The assault left Levine in hospital with broken bones, but she is not the first foreigner to be caught in the middle of increasingly violent attacks by Israeli settlers on Palestinians in the West Bank.

Basia Cummings speaks to the Observer's Ruth Michaelson who is in Tel Aviv covering the upcoming elections, about what happened and whether it'll impact the outcome of the vote.

Producer: Ada Barume

Exec: Matt Russell

Hosted on Acast. See https://acast.com/privacy for more information.

In September 2025, religious leaders in the UK got a shock: protests at Tommy Robinson’s Unite the Kingdom rally were carrying crosses, and waving signs with Christian slogans. On stage, pastors led the crowd in song and prayer. One of those pastors is Rikki Doolan, who says he converted Tommy Robinson while he was in prison. This is the story of how the far-right found God.

Reporter: Kart Mathieson

Reporter/producer: Poppy Bullard

Sound design: Dominic Delargy

Artwork: Lucy Stevenson

Editor: Jasper Corbett

Hosted on Acast. See https://acast.com/privacy for more information.

For decades, Paul Skalnik made a living telling police and prosecutors that other prisoners had confessed to crimes. The former police turned con artist and jailhouse informant helped send a man called Jim Dailey to death row for the murder of a teenage girl.

Basia Cummings speaks to investigative journalist and author Pamela Colloff who spent years uncovering his deceptions, and his story exposes a criminal justice system prioritising winning convictions over the truth.

Producer: Amalie Sortland

Exec: Matt Russell

Hosted on Acast. See https://acast.com/privacy for more information.

Britain’s cultural institutions are wrestling with what to do with the human remains in their collections. But as they reckon with the ethical ramifications the sale of body parts remains largely unregulated. Who are the people selling? And why is it easier than ever to buy human remains?

Reporter: Evan Moffitt

Producer: Ada Barumé

Sound design: Dominic Delargy

Artwork: Blythe Walker Sibthorp

Exec producer: Matt Russell

Editor: Jasper Corbett

Hosted on Acast. See https://acast.com/privacy for more information.

The former Unite boss says the police investigation into alleged corruption during his tenure will clear his name after years of accusations. But whether it can erase this dark episode in British trade unionism is another matter. So will the reputation of someone who was one of the UK's most influential power brokers stand the test of time?

Hosted on Acast. See https://acast.com/privacy for more information.

The former Unite boss says the police investigation into alleged corruption during his tenure will clear his name after years of accusations. But whether it can erase this dark episode in British trade unionism is another matter. So will the reputation of someone who was one of the UK's most influential power brokers stand the test of time?

Hosted on Acast. See https://acast.com/privacy for more information.

James Tapper, The Observer's Science editor and a weight-loss jab user, tells the story of his journey using the weight-loss drugs. A journey that along with lost kilograms, led him to the godfather of these drugs: a man who discovered the hormone that led to the development of GLP-1s and who reveals his concerns about their widespread use.

Hosted on Acast. See https://acast.com/privacy for more information.

Kenyan men are leaving their country for work – and ending up on the frontlines of Russia’s war in Ukraine. This is the story of the recruiters, the promises and the poverty that keeps the pipeline moving.

Hosted on Acast. See https://acast.com/privacy for more information.

Stephanie Arcanjo spent three years building a life with her boyfriend, Eric. One day he vanished, and the police came knocking. Only then would she learn his true identity, and that their life together was a lie.

Basia Cummings speaks to Sao Paolo based reporter Oliver Basciano about Stephanie and hears her side of the story.

Oliver Basciano's reporting can be found at https://observer.co.uk/contributor/oliver-basciano

Hosted on Acast. See https://acast.com/privacy for more information.

Nkechi Simms is a successful actor who’s had parts in Top Boy and BBC comedy PRU. Outwardly life is good and at 26 she’s got everything going for her. But this hasn’t always been the case. When she was 12 Nkechi’s mother handed her over to Camden Council and she was placed in foster care. Now she wants to find out what happened to her and why. The only way she can do this is by getting hold of her care records. But that’s easier said than done. And will those records answer her questions?

Careless is a 4 part original series from Tortoise Investigates and The Observer.

To binge listen to all episodes today, ad-free,subscribe to The Observer.

Or subscribe to Observer+ on Apple Podcasts or Spotify to listen to all our podcasts, including this one, without any ads.

Reported by Ashley John-Baptiste and Madeleine Parr

Produced and written by Madeleine Parr

Sound design by Simon Panayi

Artwork by Jon Hill

The editor is Jasper Corbett

Hosted on Acast. See https://acast.com/privacy for more information.

What links a rare breed of flamingo and government corruption? In Albania, plans to redevelop Sazan, the country's biggest island, and disrupt the wildlife that lives there, caused protests. When it emerged that it was Donald Trump's daughter Ivanka who was behind the development, the protests became about not just than just wildlife, but about the way the country is run. Andrew Anthony visited the country to find out more.

Host: Basia Cummings

Reporter: Andrew Anthony

Producer: Poppy Bullard

Executive Producer: Matt Russell

Hosted on Acast. See https://acast.com/privacy for more information.

In Ben Stokes, England cricket created a star....and quickly lost control of that star. This is the story of how a maverick genius built and broke the team he created.

Hosted on Acast. See https://acast.com/privacy for more information.

What drove Syrians to rise up and overthrow a brutal dictator? ‘Days of Love and Rage’ by Anand Gopal is an intimate account of how one town in Syria joined a revolution. The book took him 8 years to report and write.

The Observer’s Basia Cummings and Chloe Hadjimatheou, reporter of the We Call Her Emma podcast series about Asma al-Assad, talk to Gopal about how Syrians took politics into their own hands while facing threats from their own government and then ISIS.

Anand Gopal's reporting on Syria and ISIS can be found here: https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2024/03/18/the-open-air-prison-for-isis-supporters-and-victims

His book, Days of Love and Rage, can be found here: https://www.plutobooks.com/product/days-of-love-and-rage/

Hosted on Acast. See https://acast.com/privacy for more information.

Ten years ago Kim Edwards and her boyfriend, Lucas Markham, who were both 14 at the time, stabbed Kim’s mother and Kim’s younger sister to death. They were both sentenced to life in prison and became the youngest, and among the most notorious, double murderers in Britain. For the first time Kim’s grandmother, Maxine Follows, tells her side of the story, and questions how the criminal justice system treats children.

Reporter: Katie Glass

Producer: Ada Barume

Sound Design: Dominic Delargy

Artwork: Lucy Stevenson

Executive Producer: Matt Russell

Editor: Jasper Corbett

Hosted on Acast. See https://acast.com/privacy for more information.

In the late 1980s 14-year-old Gareth had a sexual relationship with his 27-year-old chemistry teacher, Sally-Anne Bowen. His friends told him at the time that he was a ‘lucky boy’. Last week Sally-Anne Bown was convicted of seven counts of indecent assault. The Observer’s podcast series ‘Lucky Boy’ played a part in the case.

Basia Cummings is joined by Chloe Hadjimatheou, who reported the story, to discuss the conviction of Sally-Anne Bowen.

Hosted on Acast. See https://acast.com/privacy for more information.

Paolo Zampolli, the Italian modelling agent who introduced Donald Trump to his future wife, Melania, has gone from the 1990s fashion world to the very top of the Trump administration, joining the small circle of loyalists Trump likes to keep close to advance his brand and influence. It is a story about how power works at the White House and how the distinction between private interests and public office are increasingly blurred.

Reporter: Stephen Armstrong

Producer: Jonathan Lewis and Amalie Sortland

Sound Design: Dominic Delargy

Artwork: Emma O’Neill

Editor: Matt Russell

Hosted on Acast. See https://acast.com/privacy for more information.

Is ECT therapy safe? Postcode prescribing leaves patients at mercy of psychiatric opinions. Jessica Rawnsley has been investigating what this means for patients

Hosted on Acast. See https://acast.com/privacy for more information.