I’ll be jammed: electronic warfare in Ukraine

American fighters shot down a balloon that China says was monitoring the weather, but America insists was spying. It was a minor incident, but it highlights the relationship of a great-power rivalry with inadequate guardrails. Our correspondent visits a market in Mumbai to see what might be lost as India’s economy formalises. And some surprising—and worrying—data puncturing the myth about the skinny French.For full access to print, digital and audio editions of The Economist, subscribe here www.economist.com/intelligenceoffer Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

6 Feb 202321min

As part of The Economist’s new series on the remaking of the country's economy, our correspondent looks at the Biden administration’s audacious industrial plans. Russia’s media outlets have been relentlessly squeezed, so many have set up newsrooms in exile; we examine the rise of “offshore journalism”. And reflecting on the life of Gina Lollobrigida, a remarkable, irrepressible, impenitent Italian actress.For full access to print, digital and audio editions of The Economist, subscribe here www.economist.com/intelligenceoffer Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

3 Feb 202327min

The country remains riven by unrest since the “self-coup” and subsequent arrest of its president in December; only an early election might bring a return to calm. Our correspondent goes shopping to discover the spending habits of Generation Z and millennials. And examining the work of Tom Lehrer, a mathematician who was an unlikely midwife at the birth of modern satire.For full access to print, digital and audio editions of The Economist, subscribe here www.economist.com/intelligenceoffer Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

2 Feb 202327min

The Adani Group, one of India’s biggest conglomerates, has come under fire from a tiny American research firm. A successful secondary share sale amid a rout in the markets leaves many questions—and proves revealing about India Inc. Our correspondent explains why Mexico is so well-placed to navigate the electric-vehicle transition. And the unlikely rise of MAGA rap artists.For full access to print, digital and audio editions of The Economist, subscribe here www.economist.com/intelligenceoffer Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

1 Feb 202324min

Fixing the complex, creaking pension system remains central to President Emmanuel Macron’s agenda of reforms. But leaving it alone is central to French identity—so workers are striking, again, in huge numbers. Our correspondent lays out why 2023’s first earnings season is so gloomy. And America is providing more legal protections for polyamorous “throuples”.For full access to print, digital and audio editions of The Economist, subscribe here www.economist.com/intelligenceoffer Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

31 Jan 202320min

The response to the death of the 29-year-old has differed from that of previous cases of police killings; we ask what the tragedy indicates about how America deals with police violence. Our correspondent says a lawmaker’s murder in Afghanistan highlights the misery of women under the Taliban. And why a decades-old model of animal and human learning is under fire. For full access to print, digital and audio editions of The Economist, subscribe here www.economist.com/intelligenceoffer Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

30 Jan 202327min

South Africa’s infrastructure—its ports, railways and power grid—are struggling and poorly managed. Ordinary South Africans are increasingly fed up. We profile Russia’s new military commander in Ukraine. And our obituaries editor remembers one of Britain’s finest rural writers.For full access to print, digital and audio editions of The Economist, subscribe here www.economist.com/intelligenceoffer Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

27 Jan 202323min

Israel’s right-wing coalition government has the country’s supreme court in its sights. Their proposal to effectively subjugate its independence to the legislature has sparked protests and stirred concern for the country’s democracy. Our correspondent reports from a newly reopened Shanghai. And how gas stoves became the latest battleground in America’s endless culture wars.For full access to print, digital and audio editions of The Economist, subscribe here www.economist.com/intelligenceoffer Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

26 Jan 202326min