Global News Podcast - Thailand launches air strikes on Cambodia

Tensions escalate again between Thailand and Cambodia after violent clashes on the border. The Thai military says it is hitting military targets to suppress attacks by Cambodian forces. Both accuse each other of breaching a ceasefire agreement brokered by President Trump just two months ago. Also: as Syria marks the first year anniversary of the fall of the Assad regime, our International Editor, Jeremy Bowen, looks at how Syrians are dealing with challenges after the civil war. An attempted coup in Benin is thwarted with the help of Nigeria and other West African countries; Lando Norris is the new Formula One champion after a dramatic race in Dubai - his mentor Trevor Carlin tells us all about him; and the British documentary photographer Martin Parr - known for his humour and capturing the quirkiness of British life - has died.

Risky Business with Nate Silver and Maria Konnikova - Deep Cover Presents: Snowball [ft. Maria Konnikova]

We’re sharing a preview of another podcast, Deep Cover Presents: Snowball, that Maria participated in. Snowball follows journalist Ollie Wards as he unravels the wild story of how his family lost everything after their brush with a charming Californian con woman. He embarks on a question to find out how she did it, why she did it, and where she is now. Here’s a preview of Snowball. If you can’t wait to find out what happens, binge episodes of Deep Cover Presents: Snowball early and ad-free with a Pushkin+ subscription. Find Pushkin+ on the Deep Cover show page in Apple Podcasts or at pushkin.fm/plus.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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It Could Happen Here - Arab Israeli Peace and New Visions for Gaza feat. Dana El Kurd

Dana El Kurd speaks with Matan Kaminer and Ben Schuman-Stoler, hosts of the new podcast series Bad Cousins. They discuss the Abraham Accords, the new plan for Gaza, and what the Abrahamic framing allows for and obfuscates. 

Sources:

Bad Cousins - https://badcousins.show/

GREAT Trust Plan - https://www.washingtonpost.com/documents/f86dd56a-de7f-4943-af4a-84819111b727.pdf 

A Plan to Rebuild Gaza Lists Nearly 30 Companies. Many Say They’re Not Involved  - https://www.wired.com/story/a-plan-to-rebuild-gaza-lists-nearly-30-companies-many-say-theyre-not-involved/

Paradox of Peace - https://academic.oup.com/isagsq/article/3/3/ksad042/7280243 

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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Good Bad Billionaire - Elon Musk: Money, memes and Mars

Elon Musk’s extraordinary rise, from a troubled childhood in apartheid-era South Africa to becoming the first person to amass half a trillion dollars.

BBC business editor Simon Jack and journalist Zing Tsjeng chart Elon Musk's journey to becoming a multi-billionaire entrepreneur: from tech giant PayPal, to revolutionising electric cars at Tesla, and launching rockets at SpaceX. But becoming the richest person in the world comes with plenty of boardroom drama and controversy.

Good Bad Billionaire is the podcast that explores the lives of the super-rich and famous, tracking their wealth, philanthropy, business ethics and success. There are leaders who made their money in Silicon Valley, on Wall Street and in high street fashion. From iconic celebrities and CEOs to titans of technology, the podcast unravels tales of fortune, power, economics, ambition and moral responsibility. Simon and Zing put their subjects to the test with a playful, totally unscientific scorecard — then hand the verdict over to you: are they good, bad, or simply billionaires?

We're taking a break over the next few weeks but we'll be back in the New Year with a host of new billionaires. You can still contact the team: email goodbadbillionaire@bbc.com or send a text or WhatsApp to +1 (917) 686-1176. Find out more about the show and read our privacy notice at www.bbcworldservice.com/goodbadbillionaire

The Economics of Everyday Things - 117. Cut Flowers

Grab a simple bouquet from your local grocery store and you're activating a global network of farms, shipping companies, wholesalers, distributors, and retailers. Zachary Crockett stops to smell the roses.

 

 

 


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The Allusionist - 222. A Christmas Carol

Today, we read the novelisation of The Muppet Christmas Carol, also known as the 1843 festive lit hit A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens. Read by me, Helen Zaltzman; music, sound effects and additional vocals are by Martin Austwick of palebirdmusic.com.

Content warning: 200-year-old attitudes towards disability. Also warning for GHOSTS.

Scroll way down your podfeed or go to theallusionist.org/dickens-christmas to listen to the episode called How The Dickens Stole Christmas, which is about just why this book has such a big influence on festivities even nearly two centuries later. And it features podcasting luminaries Greg Jenner, Katie Mingle and Avery Trufelman.

There are also several other festive episodes of the show, including ones about why Santa St Nick Father Christmas Kringle Klaas has so many names, Christmas song lyrics where the letters sent to Santa go, and a portmanteau word that kicked off a lot of War On Christmas. They're all gathered at theallusionist.org/festivelusionist.

Support the show at theallusionist.org/donate and as well as keeping this independent podcast going, you also get to list your creative works in this year's Allusioverse Gift Guide, plus you receive bonus written material about every episode; regular livestreams with me and Martin reading from my ever-growing collection of dictionaries; and the charming and nurturing Allusioverse Discord community, where among daily sharing of thoughts and amusements, this month we will be watching The Muppet Christmas Carol and Knives Out.

Find the Allusionist at youtube.com/allusionistshow, instagram.com/allusionistshow, facebook.com/allusionistshow, @allusionistshow.bsky.social… If I’m there, I’m there as @allusionistshow. 

Our ad partner is Multitude. If you want me to talk compellingly about your product, sponsor an episode: contact Multitude at multitude.productions/ads. This episode is sponsored by:

• Greenwood Lake Roasters, purveyors of small batch craft coffee roasted just outside of NYC. Go to GreenwoodLakeRoasters.com to place your order - do it between now and December 31st and use the checkout code ALLUSIONIST to get 10% off small batch coffee and subscription orders.

• Squarespace, your one-stop shop for building and running your online forever home. Go to squarespace.com/allusionist for a free trial, and get 10 percent off your first purchase of a website or domain with the code allusionist.

• Rosetta Stone, immersive and effective language learning. Allusionist listeners get 50% off lifetime membership - that's unlimited access to all 25 language courses, for life - at rosettastone.com/allusionist.

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Newshour - Syrians mark one year since the fall of Bashar al-Assad

UN human rights investigators have said that the cycles of vengeance and reprisal must be brought to an end in Syria, as the country commemorates the first anniversary of the overthrow of Bashar al-Assad. A UN independent commission of inquiry commended the steps taken by Syria's new leadership to address the crimes and abuses of the Assad era. But it said violent incidents in the past year had raised worries about the future direction of the country. Newshour's Lyse Doucet is in Damascus.

Also in the programme: we profile Formula 1's new champion Lando Norris; and a new documentary looks at what senior US military officials know about UFOs. (Photo: A drone view shows the parliament in Damascus, Syria, September 21, 2025. Credit: Reuters/Mahmoud Hassano)