The Explanation

BBC World Service

Where the world is explained. Making sense of the big stories - looking behind the spin. Exploring the important questions about long-running stories and the latest global news. An honest, unvarnished, explanation of the world.

Featuring new episodes of The President's Path, Unspun World with John Simpson, and The Media Show.

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346 episodes
Updated Friday

Episodes346

Newest first

May 2, 2024 · 22 min
The Media Show: Behind the information iron curtain
How freedom of the press no longer exists in many parts of the world
Apr 30, 2024 · 17 min
Goodbye to the International Space Station
It was a triumph of international collaboration - a laboratory for hundreds of astronauts
Apr 27, 2024 · 51 min
The Global Jigsaw: Deconstructing Iran’s ‘Axis of Resistance’: Part two
The loose coalition of allies and proxies, sworn against Israeli and US influence
Apr 25, 2024 · 22 min
The Media Show: Secrets of the Celebrity Interview
Coaxing megastars to say things they’ll later regret, and can you teach creativity?
Apr 23, 2024 · 17 min
Nuclear weapons - which countries have them?
We look at the nuclear powers and those who want to join their club
Apr 20, 2024 · 32 min
The Global Jigsaw: How drones have changed war
Drones have reshaped the battlefield in Ukraine - and created new challenges
Apr 18, 2024 · 22 min
The Media Show: How Taylor Swift conquered the media
A lesson in “Swiftonomics” from the journalists who report on the pop phenomenon
Apr 16, 2024 · 17 min
How does the New York Stock Exchange work?
Valued at over $25 trillion, does it spread wealth or increase inequality?
Apr 14, 2024 · 39 min
The Global Jigsaw: Sudan: A year of war
Sudan faces the largest humanitarian and displacement crisis in the world
Apr 11, 2024 · 22 min
The Media Show: Building Trump's social media app
Billy Boozer tells the story behind the creation of Truth Social
Apr 7, 2024 · 29 min
The Global Jigsaw: Deconstructing Iran’s 'Axis of Resistance': Part one
The origins of the Iran-cultivated alliance of like-minded states and groups.
Apr 4, 2024 · 22 min
The Media Show: Fear, threats and intimidation
Have US diplomats been targeted by Russian sonic weaponry?
Mar 31, 2024 · 32 min
The Global Jigsaw: Moscow attack: disinfo wars
Who is behind the Crocus City Hall attack? We track the blame game.
Mar 24, 2024 · 25 min
The Global Jigsaw: Contested waters: Helmand
How the waters of the Helmand river have driven tensions between Afghanistan and Iran
Mar 23, 2024 · 27 min
Unspun World: What's next for President Putin after winning re-election?
Plus, as Biden and Trump compete for the presidency, is the US close to civil unrest?
Mar 17, 2024 · 28 min
The Global Jigsaw - Contested waters: Crimea
How water is used as a weapon of war following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine
Mar 16, 2024 · 27 min
Unspun World: Has Russia turned the tide in its war in Ukraine?
Plus, gang violence in Haiti, and the possibility of unmanned ships on the oceans
Mar 10, 2024 · 28 min
The Global Jigsaw: What hope for Haiti?
Gang violence has turned the small Caribbean nation into a “living nightmare”
Mar 9, 2024 · 27 min
Unspun World: What's life like on the ground in Gaza and the West Bank?
What will it take to bring peace to both Gaza and Ukraine?
Mar 2, 2024 · 27 min
Unspun World: Is a ceasefire in Gaza within reach?
Plus, Donald Trump's legal problems, and European farmers protest