Briefed - Your Daily European Podcast

can a European social platform compete with X?

After X by Elon Musk, here comes “W”, or “We”, by privacy and technology expert Anna Zeiter. The “We” project was unveiled in Davos at the end of January. Its goal is to create a European alternative to X. But this is not the first attempt to create a large-scale European social media platform. Can it be the first one to actually succeed? Are Europeans able to compete with US platforms?

Is the EU well prepared for a threat from Russia?

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy stated on Wednesday that “he had the feeling that Europeans were not able to understand that an attack could happen to their country too.” Are Europeans really facing a concrete threat, and are they preparing themselves enough?

How did radical far right parties become central to Europe’s political scene?

A few days ago, a former general and member of the far-right party Lega in Italy announced his ambition to launch a new movement, even further to the right: Il Futuro Nazionale. The initiator, Roberto Vannacci, is known for his extremist views and his lenient stance on fascism. Meanwhile, Poland is witnessing the rise of an ultra-nationalist party that is openly antisemitic and pro-Russia. How did these highly extremist parties become so central to the political scene?

What can the EU do about Israel’s violation of the peace plan in Gaza?

While the EU is celebrating the reopening of the Rafah crossing point between Gaza and Egypt, Israeli authorities are preventing many NGOs from providing humanitarian aid in Gaza — a move which violates the agreed peace plan. What are the EU's options to confront Israel over its violations of human rights?

Will the EU compromise on green policies to mine critical raw materials?

Across the Atlantic, American President Donald Trump has just ordered that deep-sea mining be sped up, which is believed to be highly damaging for the ocean.

Meanwhile, every raw material extraction project in Europe meets with strong social opposition. This leaves the EU in a delicate situation when it comes to producing solar panels or batteries without relying on China. Will Europe edge toward a more US-style approach to resource extraction?

Can the EU ensure safe abortion for women everywhere in the EU?

In Poland in 2024, 99% of abortions took place outside hospitals, outside the legal framework. Polish women find alternatives to the near-total ban on abortion, but sometimes in ways that are either dangerous or very costly. That is why the European Parliament is asking for an European mechanism to allow every single woman in the EU to have access to safe and free abortion. This episode unpacks this proposal to see if it can come to light.

Can we, Europeans, do something to stop the bloodshed in Iran?

30,000. This is the figure circulating about the number of people who might have been killed by the Iranian regime since the start of the protests at the end of December last year. The EU has just decided to tag the Islamic Revolutionary Guards as a terrorist organization. What does it mean, and is there something the European Union could do to avoid this bloodshed?

Spain wants to regularize half a million undocumented migrants, in full contrast with European migration policies

Spain wants to regularize half a million undocumented migrants. Meanwhile, the rest of Europe is busy toughening migration rules. So is Spain the very last country on the continent to have a positive message around migration?

Is it realistic to ban kids from social media?

Kids under 15 should not access social media. That’s how France sees it. Its government is pushing for a full ban below this age. However, France, just like any other EU country, cannot force social media platforms to effectively restrict access for kids. Only the European Union can. Is the EU willing to do so?

Police violence - is Europe behaving better than the US?

René Good, and now Alex Pretti. The people of Minneapolis are counting a second person killed by the border control agency, ICE, in just one month.

Meanwhile, both in the US and in Europe, some hard-right politicians are openly congratulating the agents who killed Alex Pretti. This episode looks at how Europe differs or not from the US in terms of police violence.

Train crashes in Spain: A testing ground for political exploitation

Whether it is train accidents or floods - every disaster in Spain strongly reignites political battles.

Using tragedy for political gain is widely condemned in European countries. Is this a typical Spanish thing, or is the taboo weakening?

This episode looks at how political exploitation is becoming more and more common as the extreme right parties gain ground in Europe.

Could the EU court of justice kill the EU-Mercosur trade agreement?

Members of the European Parliament, alongside farmers from all over Europe, claim a victory in the fight against the EU/Mercosur trade agreement. On Wednesday 21 January, the Parliament voted to challenge the controversial trade deal before the EU Court of Justice.

What will happen if the judges rule against the treaty?

Trump’s threats deepen differences between Macron and Merz

Germany and France have been trying to maintain a friendship since the 1960s — a friendship that is supposed to guide the rest of the continent. However, this doesn’t really work anymore. Why do they struggle to find a united position on Donald Trump’s ongoing threats? Could this lack of unity hamper Europe’s response?

Teaser - Briefed

Discover Briefed, Europod’s new daily podcast covering stories around Europe.

In just five minutes, host Léa Marchal brings a fresh perspective on European politics and major news happening in European countries.

On issues like tech sovereignty, climate scepticism or the rise of the extremes, the podcast brings you a different angle than your national one.

Starting January 22nd, episodes of Briefed will be released at 6:00 AM CET, Monday through Friday.

[REUPLOAD] Should zoos be banned?

Zoos bring us much closer to wildlife, but their existence is a controversial topic. Go online and it’s easy to find groups that advocate for the closure of zoos, assessing that they do more harm than good to animals.

Complaints usually relate to confinement, the lack of space, unnatural environments and crowded conditions as the main problems against animal well-being. But experts working in zoos think differently. So the question boils down to: are zoos actually beneficial to animals? Do they have a role to play in conservation? And what can we learn from zoos on the impact of human beings on animals still living in the wild?

In this episode, we will investigate these questions with Martin Boye, President of the European Association for Aquatic Mammals, and Kate Werner, Senior Campaign Manager at PETA UK.

Join us on our journey through the events that shape the European continent and the European Union.

[REUPLOAD] About the racist origins of fatphobia

[REUPLOAD] Digital rights and the EU

In this episode we’ll be speaking with 2 experts from the human rights space to unpack what we mean by our digital rights, how they are being protected or violated and who gets to decide what technology is needed for or against whom. Kahina Rabahi representing the European Anti-Poverty Network and Bibbi Abruzzini representing Forus, a global network of civil society organisations — will help us uncover how digitalisation impacts essential services and civic space.

Tune into episode 10 now!

Join us on our journey through the events that shape the European continent and the European Union.

[REUPLOAD] The fight of Lgbtq+ people in Europe

This episode uncovers the real threat trans- and non-binary persons face, often due to the actions of far-right groups and a climate of hate which can also be traced back to political discourses. We hear from Patricia Reguero, a Spanish journalist from El Salto, and her Greek colleague, Anastasia Vaitsopoulou, who work for the media outlet Propaganda.

Tune into episode 9 now!

Join us on our journey through the events that shape the European continent and the European Union.

[REUPLOAD] Far right groups in Europe

In this episode, we delve into what unites far-right groups in Europe and how they have been capitalising on cultural tools like social media and aesthetics to particularly target and successfully recruit young men and women.

We hear from Michael Colborne, a journalist and researcher with Bellingcat, an investigation journalism organisation based in the Netherlands. His work focuses on the far right where he oversees and leads investigations and trains journalists in digital investigative techniques.

Tune into episode 8 now!

Join us on our journey through the events that shape the European continent and the European Union.

[REUPLOAD] A new generation of student-led protests

In today’s episode we'll look into the new generation of student, university and worker led protests that are shaping up across Europe, from France to Poland. And we’ll also discuss how this trend relates to a global narrative change around the future of work.

We'll hear from journalists Samuele Maccolini from the Italian outlet VD News and Maciej Domagała, from the Polish outlet Krytyka Polityczna. We met with them in Budapest, during a live show produced by the Sphera Network project to discuss this topic.

This is the first episode of a special series dedicated to themes relevant to the run-up and context of the upcoming European elections.

Tune into episode 7 now!

Join us on our journey through the events that shape the European continent and the European Union.

[REUPLOAD] Is gentrification a dirty word?

In this episode, we’re going to tackle the rapid spread of gentrification. Let’s deconstruct this term and look at the human impact of taking from communities to serve mostly financial interests.

Join our host of Europe Talks Back season 3, Gail Rego as she has a conversation with our guest activists and scholars activists and scholars Jordi González Guzmán and Rita Silva.

Tune into episode 6 now!

Join us on our journey through the events that shape the European continent and the European Union.

[REUPLOAD] The dark sides of the algorithm

Artificial Intelligence is all the rage and most of us use it every day knowingly whether it's to get music recommendations or unlock our phones. But how far has IA gotten? Do we know when AI is being used and by whom? And most importantly is AI neutral?

Join us on our journey through the events that shape the European continent and the European Union.

[REUPLOAD] Let's talk about digital gender based violence

According to the UN, 73% of women worldwide have experienced digital gender-based abuse: non-consensual intimate image-sharing, gender-based slurs or threats, online harassment, and unsolicited pornography. The consequences of this type of abuse go beyond the digital space, posing a threat to victim’s rights, health and safety both online and offline.

Join our host of Europe Talks Back season 3, Gail Rego as she has a conversation with our guest activists and scholars Lilia Giugni and Silvia Semenzin.

Tune into episode 4 now!

Join us on our journey through the events that shape the European continent and the European Union.

[REUPLOAD] Western feminism has a whiteness problem

White feminism is a self-proclaimed feminism shaped by the priorities of white, upper-middle-class, cisgender women. It assumes that all women experience misogyny in the same way - but it’s not.” What’s the point of breaking the glass ceiling if other women are left to pick up the pieces?

Join our host of Europe Talks Back season 3, Gail Rego as she has a conversation with our guest French activist, feminist, journalist, filmmaker and writer Rokhaya Diallo. Tune into episode 3 now

This series is produced in partnership with Sphera Network.

Join us on our journey through the events that shape the European continent and the European Union.

[REUPLOAD] What is Integration?

What is integration? What does it mean to you and the people who are expected to “integrate” into our societies?

Having been born and raised as a migrant for her whole life, join our new host Gail Rego of Europe Talks Back as she unfolds the harmful and unreasonable expectations placed on people with a migration history and how this term is often used against people who migrate.

Tune in and join our guests Razan Ismail and Hasnain Syed in this episode!

Join us on our journey through the events that shape the European continent and the European Union.

[REUPLOAD] Social media and mental health

Reupload - [AWARD WINNING INVESTIGATION 2/2] Investigating Green Finance made in Europe

Reupload - [AWARD WINNING INVESTIGATION] Investigating Green Finance made in Europe

A huge congratulations to Stefano for this well-deserved recognition, and a big thank you to the team for helping bring this important investigation to our listeners!

Stefano investigated a case of greenwashing involving the French tyre producer Michelin for the pan-European online media, Voxeurop.

This episode explores Stefano’s groundbreaking work and emphasises the importance of tackling environmental challenges and the efforts being made to drive change. A huge congratulations to Stefano for this well-deserved recognition, and a big thank you to the team for helping bring this important investigation to our listeners!

In collaboration with Sphera.

Reupload - Dieselgate Reloaded - Part 2

Reupload - Dieselgate Reloaded - Part 1