Media Confidential

Alan and Lionel are joined by Janine Gibson, editor of the Weekend FT, to look ahead to what promises to be a “yuge” year for journalists.As Trump enters his second term in the White House, should we expect authoritarian clamp-downs on the press? And as Meta’s Mark Zuckerberg promises free-speech and the end of fact-checking at Facebook, will opinion trump truth?The editors also discuss new media stars, from Joe Rogan to gamer “ConnorEatsPants”, who has interviewed everyone from Joe Exotic to Sesame Street’s Elmo…and even the mysterious Adrian Dittmann, rumoured to be Elon Musk’s alter-ego.Plus, will Prince Harry have his day in court to take on Murdoch over phone-hacking? One of our editors receives some tantalising hints that he may not go through with it after all…

Would legalising assisted dying end unnecessary suffering? Or would it instead enable the abuse of some of society’s most vulnerable people?Kim Leadbeater’s assisted dying bill has passed its second reading. Back in September, Prospect invited two of our most profound thinkers—Rowan Williams and Brenda Hale—to debate the issue. As archbishop of Canterbury, Rowan Williams led a Church that publicly opposes any form of assisted dying, while, as a Supreme Court judge, Brenda Hale was involved in life-or-death judgements.In a moving exchange, Hale discusses her own Christian faith, while Williams shares his pastoral experience in the company of the dying. They joined Prospect’s editor Alan Rusbridger and commissioning editor Emily Lawford for a thoughtful and vitally important conversation.This episode was first published on Media Confidential's sister podcast, the Prospect podcast. To read this conversation from the magazine, visit our website.

For our final episode of 2024, Alan and Lionel look back at their Media Confidential year. They’ve tackled a huge range of stories: from phone-hacking and the rise of AI, to Ofcom’s battles with GB News. They’ve analysed elections on both sides of the Atlantic, were joined by Toby Jones on the Post Office scandal, and heard from courageous reporters working inside Gaza.There’s been an assassination attempt on Donald Trump, and a crisis at the Washington Post… but which episodes do they find the most memorable?Michael Lewis came to Prospect Towers in September to promote his new book about Sam Bankman-Fried, Going Infinite. But when Alan started reading out criticism of the book, the temperature dropped several degrees. The heated resulting exchange is hard to forget.Ahead of the US election, Rebecca Solnit joined Alan and Lionel to discuss her concerns about the American media “sanewashing” Donald Trump.Finally, James Harding and Carole Cadwalladr recently appeared on the show to tell-all about Tortoise's controversial decision to buy the Observer. James received a grilling from our hosts. Now, with Observer journalists striking, who’s to say who was right?2025 promises to be a heck of a ride.

Could machine-generated articles replace those created by human beings?After their series on AI in the media, Alan and Lionel now turn to listeners’ questions.There's no question that AI could help to make journalists lives easier, but what sort of practical uses will there be on a day-to-day basis? Is there a risk that AI will take over the creative roles of writers and reporters? And what are the main threats to media employees?Alan and Lionel remain cautiously optimistic about the future of the tools that will become more and more available.They’re convinced that the subtlety, wit and nuance of real-life journalists will win out and cannot be replaced by machines. At least not yet…Follow us on BlueSky @prospectmagazine.bsky.social and stay up to date with all our latest stories by signing up to our new daily newsletter Lightbulb—simply click on the newsletter tab on our website and enter your email address to register.

Can traditional journalism survive when ChatGPT is able to produce copy in a matter of seconds?In Media Confidential’s third episode in a series exploring the world of artificial intelligence, Alan and Lionel are joined by Felix Simon, an AI expert and research fellow at the Reuters Institute of Journalism.He shares how the technology could transform the way newsrooms operate, and why this might actually be a good thing.Meanwhile, despite ongoing deals between AI companies, publishers and news organisations, data scraping and the future of copyright ownership remains a grey area. Why does it matter?To watch this video, head to our YouTube channel, where Media Confidential is published every Thursday.Not sure what to gift this Christmas? Why not make use of Prospect’s discounted subscription offer here.

What do you do if a big story breaks on Christmas Day and there's a skeleton crew running the newsroom?That's just one of the seasonal questions put to Alan and Lionel in this week's Q&A episode.The editors also discuss Mishal Husain's departure from the BBC's Today programme, characterising her as one of the best interviewers of recent times.Finally, they reflect on how reporting has changed since the #MeToo movement. One feature of the Daily Mail, in particular, is singled out as being stuck in the 1980s.If you're after Christmas gift ideas, look no further than our very own Lionel Barber's recent book Gambling Man, or why not try a discounted subscription to Prospect magazine? (Listener Annie Day's dad will be very happy this year!)https://subscription.prospectmagazine.co.uk/dec24off/prospect-magazine/de24nl

In the second episode on our series focusing on AI's impact on the media industry, Alan and Lionel talk to the executive chairman of Sky News, David Rhodes.David has expressed support for AI advancements, as long as publishers are compensated fairly. He’s keen to promote transparency, support credible journalism, and combat fake news. Noble ambitions...but how does he intend to carry them out?Now that the Observer has finally been sold to James Harding's Tortoise Media, Alan and Lionel discuss the next stage in an unfolding saga.Finally, in the Murdoch empire, life imitates art. The latest developments sound like a plot straight from the series Succession: Alan and Lionel discuss who might take on the mantle once Rupert passes away. Could he rule his empire from beyond the grave?Keep your media questions coming. Send them to Mediaconfisdential@prospectmagazine.co.uk and follow us on BlueSky @ prospectmagazine.bsky.socialAlso, stay up to date with all our latest stories by signing up to our new daily newsletter, Lightbulb - simply click on the newsletter tab on our website and enter your email address to register.

Office streakers, whiskey before lunchtime, and untimely deaths: with Christmas party season almost upon us, Alan and Lionel get nostalgic for the old-fashioned newsroom on this week’s Media Confidential Q&A.Plus, your weekly update on the contested Observer sale, amidst disquiet amongst journalists at the paper. After grilling Tortoise’s James Harding on the podcast, plenty of questions still remain...Meanwhile, down under, the Australian ban on social media for under 16s sparks discussion, and it becomes clear that one of our hosts is not a social media fan. But this “dinosaur” can still bite—listen to the episode to hear his objections. 

In the first of three special editions on artificial intelligence and the media, Alan and Lionel are joined by the CEO of ProRata.ai, Bill Gross.Artificial intelligence poses a serious threat to the survival of news organisations. Last year, the New York Times sued Microsoft over AI models secretly scraping its copyrighted work. Millions of articles from the Times were used to train chatbots, which now compete with the paper, the lawsuit claimed.How can be affected newspapers be identified and compensated for the use of their stories? Bill offers a novel solution, which is being taken up by some of the biggest names in the media: the Guardian, Sky News, the FT, the Daily Mail’s publisher, as well as Prospect.Also this week: updates on the ongoing Observer saga, and Lionel and Alan discuss the scandal involving BBC presenter Gregg Wallace.To watch this interview, and many more, head over to YouTube and search for ‘Prospect Magazine’.