Media Confidential

This week on Media Confidential, Alan and Lionel discuss the top story of the week—Peter Mandelson’s failed security vetting before he was appointed as ambassador to the United States.

As Keir Starmer goes toe-to-toe with the Foreign Office, the hosts discuss the excellent coverage of Guardian journalists Pippa Crerar, Paul Lewis and Henry Dyer.

They also speculate on King Charles’s upcoming state visit to the US and an inevitably fraught White House correspondents’ dinner, where the president will be making an appearance.

Plus, Alan and Lionel discuss the Atlantic, which faces a $250m defamation suit from the head of the FBI, Kash Patel.
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This week on Media Confidential, Alan and Lionel are joined by Sidney Blumenthal, journalist and former adviser to the Clintons.

As a judge throws out a $10bn claim from the president against the Wall Street Journal, the trio discuss Trump’s legal battles with the media, including the BBC. Is there hope for the British broadcaster?

They also address the president’s mental state and how coverage compares to that of Joe Biden, while he was running for a second term. Is the American media biased towards Trump? And, if Sidney were an editor, how would he advise journalists to report?

Plus, they examine what prompted Melania’s unexpected statement on convicted child sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
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In this episode of Media Confidential, Alan and Lionel reflect on the results of election in Hungary, and how the media coverage of Viktor Orbán’s foreign dealings and corruption allegations may have contributed to his downfall.

They'll also discuss why British investor and alleged sexual predator Crispin Odey abandoned his £79m libel claim against the Financial Times—across the pond—whether the legal feud between Melania Trump and journalist Michael Wolff will have its day in court.

Alan and Lionel also bet on whether the Telegraph sale will go through.

Plus, a very serious discussion on whether Gail’s will stock the Observer alongside its baked goods. A win for currant affairs?
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In this week’s episode of Media Confidential, Alan and Lionel are joined by Rainey Reitman, writer and civil liberties advocate.

She is the co-founder and president of the board of Freedom of the Press Foundation and is the author of Transaction Denied: Big Finance’s Power to Punish Speech.

The three explore financial censorship: how companies like Visa, PayPal, and Mastercard have cut off support for journalists, activists and small media outlets and use their power to silence dissenting voices. What effect does this have on democracy?

They discuss a number of cases, including the historic banking blockade that crippled WikiLeaks.
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In this episode of Media Confidential, Alan and Lionel discuss the reporting on the “madness of ‘King Trump’”, the war in Iran and the developments since the last episode, in which journalist Susan Glasser described the president as “the big, fat, naked emperor in the room”.

As a surprising pick is announced as the new Ofcom chair, the editors spill the beans on what they know about him and their hopes for his tenure.

They also talk about Sam Altman and the furore surrounding his departure from (and subsequent rehiring by) OpenAI, following a lengthy New Yorker article discussing the many faces of the tech titan.

And they answer a listener’s question on why US police are releasing videos on social media from the arrests of public figures like Justin Timberlake and Tiger Woods—would it happen in the UK?
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