‘Despair is a luxury’: A year of hope with Zizek, Mehdi Hasan, Robert Macfarlane and others

‘Despair is a luxury’: A year of hope with Zizek, Mehdi Hasan, Robert Macfarlane and others

You’ve been listening to the Prospect Podcast, Media Confidential’s sister podcast. To subscribe on Spotify, click HERE. For Apple podcasts, click HERE.


In the final podcast of the year, Ellen and Alona look back at their favourite episodes from 2025. During a dark year, Prospect has been collecting glimmers of hope. They asked some of the most interesting thinkers today—from politics, to environment to tech—for their perspectives on hope and optimism. What keeps them fighting for a more just world?


Philosopher Slavoj Zizek and broadcaster Mehdi Hasan talk about the merits of pessimism. Human rights lawyer Philippe Sands discusses justice in the age of international impunity, while authoritarianism expert Ruth Ben-Ghiat considers the situation in the US.


Poet and writer Robert Macfarlane reflects on preserving nature in a time of destruction. Cory Doctorow and Laura Bates weigh in on transformations in technology and artificial intelligence. Yassmin Abdel-Magied discusses the humanitarianism crisis in Sudan, while Nicola Kelly explores the untold immigration story.


Plus, veteran journalist and outgoing Prospect editor Alan Rusbridger joins the podcast to reflect on his journey, his mistakes, and how he feels about the future—including the contentious thing that unexpectedly makes him feel hopeful.


You can revisit all our episodes from the past year here.

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Episoder(227)

Will the BBC cave in to Trump?

Will the BBC cave in to Trump?

In today’s Media Confidential, Alan and Lionel discuss Donald Trump’s court case against the BBC. As the broadcaster requests the president’s phone records from January 6th, some commentators think it...

2 Jul 20min

Vicious media: How the Murdoch press attacks its targets

Vicious media: How the Murdoch press attacks its targets

In this week’s Media Confidential, Alan Rusbridger talks to Andrew Dodd and Matthew Ricketson, authors of Getting Murdoched: How Murdoch’s Media Wields Power and Punishment.The three discuss the struc...

29 Jun 35min

Starmer’s downfall: Is the media to blame?

Starmer’s downfall: Is the media to blame?

In this week’s episode, Alan and Lionel chew over Keir Starmer's resignation. How does a modern politician feed the media—and avoid being eaten? If Andy Burnham becomes prime minister, will he be bett...

25 Jun 28min

Beeban Kidron: What the Online Safety Act gets right (and wrong)

Beeban Kidron: What the Online Safety Act gets right (and wrong)

This week on Media Confidential, Alan and Lionel speak to crossbench peer and activist Beeban Kidron about the Online Safety Act.Beeban has spent years advocating for children's rights in the digital ...

22 Jun 35min

Murdoch’s biggest deal yet

Murdoch’s biggest deal yet

This week on Media Confidential, Alan and Lionel discuss the Murdoch family’s biggest ever deal, as Lachlan Murdoch’s Fox TV buys streaming service Roku. What does it suggest about the company’s direc...

18 Jun 28min

The 60 Minutes meltdown: inside the power struggles reshaping America’s iconic news show

The 60 Minutes meltdown: inside the power struggles reshaping America’s iconic news show

In this Monday’s episode of Media Confidential Alan and Lionel are talking to NPR’s media correspondent David Folkenflik about what is actually happening at American broadcaster CBS.They discuss the p...

15 Jun 31min

Henry Nowak and how the media fuels racism

Henry Nowak and how the media fuels racism

In this episode of Media Confidential, Alan questions the quality of reporting around the Henry Nowak case, and questions why so many in the media are focusing on the cost of DEI training in the polic...

11 Jun 35min

Joshi Herrmann ‘If we're going to devolve more power to places like Greater Manchester we’re going to need to bulk up the quality of the local media.’

Joshi Herrmann ‘If we're going to devolve more power to places like Greater Manchester we’re going to need to bulk up the quality of the local media.’

In this week’s Media Confidential Alan and Lionel are joined by Joshi Hermann, founder of The Mill. The three discuss how The Mill has expanded out from Manchester to seven cities in just three years ...

8 Jun 37min

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