Pete Hegseth, the US secretary of war, was one of the most controversial picks in Trump’s cabinet. But as Trump’s foreign adventures have come to define his second term, Hegseth is not just more visible, he’s become the Iran war’s main cheerleader. So who is he?

This podcast was brought to you thanks to the support of readers of The Times and The Sunday Times. Subscribe today: http://thetimes.com/thestory

Guest: Katy Balls, Washington editor and columnist, the Times and the Sunday Times. 

Host: Manveen Rana

Producers: Harry Stott and Micaela Arneson

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Read more: Pete Hegseth, the former soldier and TV host selling Trump’s war

Further listening: Q&A: What we know (and don't know) about Trump's Iran talks

Clips: FOX, BBC, Forbes, CBS, SKY.

Photo: Getty Images.

This podcast was brought to you thanks to subscribers of The Times and The Sunday Times. To enjoy unlimited digital access to all our journalism subscribe here.

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As AI seeps into every corner of art, film and social media, up next, it's podcasts. An AI-generated show called The Epstein Flies topped the Apple series charts last week, bringing you the very latest on the colossal 3.5 million documents, in a time frame that most journalists could only dream of. Even the hosts are AI. But does it work? And what does AI-led journalism mean for the future of investigations and the search for truth? We tracked down its creator.

This podcast was brought to you thanks to the support of readers of The Times and The Sunday Times. Subscribe today: http://thetimes.com/thestory

Host: Manveen Rana

Producer: Robert Wallace

We want to hear from you - email: [email protected]

Photo: Getty Images.

This podcast was brought to you thanks to subscribers of The Times and The Sunday Times. To enjoy unlimited digital access to all our journalism subscribe here.

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This week, Channel 5 broadcast a dramatisation of the downfall of former BBC news anchor Huw Edwards, with Martin Clunes in the lead role. The programme traces the events that led to his sudden and very public fall from grace. Andrew Billen, veteran journalist who specialises in interviews with celebrities, politicians and writers at The Times, met Edwards on several occasions, including the day before his world came crashing down. In a compelling piece published this week, Billen reflects on the man he thought he knew.

This podcast was brought to you thanks to the support of readers of The Times and The Sunday Times. Subscribe today: http://thetimes.com/thestory

Read by: Andrew Billen, features writer, The Times.

Producer: Dave Creasey.

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Read more: I’ve met Huw Edwards, here’s what the TV drama gets right (and wrong)

Photo: Getty Images

This podcast was brought to you thanks to subscribers of The Times and The Sunday Times. To enjoy unlimited digital access to all our journalism subscribe here.

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Polymarket and Kalshi have become two of the fastest-growing online platforms in the prediction market, hosting bets where people can wager on the outcome of events, including on the conflict in Iran. But some observers have raised concerns that unusually precise, well-timed bets could point to insider dealings. So what exactly are prediction markets? And what does it mean for society when you can bet on almost anything?

This podcast was brought to you thanks to the support of readers of The Times and The Sunday Times. Subscribe today: http://thetimes.com/thestory

Guest: Chris Stokel-Walker, technology journalist and author.

Host: Manveen Rana.

Producer: Sophie McNulty & Julia Webster.

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Read more: Dollars and death threats: the dark side of prediction markets

Further listening: How AI helped Trump attack Iran

Clips: FRENCH 24 English, CNN, 60 Minutes, CBS News, Fox 10 Phoenix, iSpot, The Times, Coinbase. 

Photo: Getty Images.

This podcast was brought to you thanks to subscribers of The Times and The Sunday Times. To enjoy unlimited digital access to all our journalism subscribe here.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

As the war with Iran rumbles on, are ceasefire talks back on or is that ‘fake news’? What’s in America’s 15 point peace plan? Could an Iranian missile reach the UK? And how long can Iran keep fighting? Hosts Manveen Rana and Luke Jones are here to answer your questions, in our monthly Q&A. 

This podcast was brought to you thanks to the support of readers of The Times and The Sunday Times. Subscribe today: http://thetimes.com/thestory

Hosts: Manveen Rana and Luke Jones. 

Producer: Olivia Case.

We want to hear from you - email: [email protected]

Read more: Iran war latest: US ‘negotiating with itself’, Tehran claims

Further listening: Inside Lebanon as Israel and Hezbollah wage war

Photo: Getty Images and The Times' designer Dana Chan.

This podcast was brought to you thanks to subscribers of The Times and The Sunday Times. To enjoy unlimited digital access to all our journalism subscribe here.

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In the final episode of our county lines series, we hear how county lines drug gangs are continuing to shift their business model to avoid detection. Policing minister, Sarah Jones, explains how the government is planning to fight back. Plus, The Times’ crime editor David Woode sits down with The Sunday Times’ northern editor David Collins to discuss what they've learnt about the inner workings of county lines gangs.

This is episode five of a five-part special investigation into county lines drug dealing, running in audio, video, print and digital from The Times and The Sunday Times.

This podcast was brought to you thanks to the support of readers of The Times and The Sunday Times. Subscribe today: http://thetimes.com/thestory

Host: David Woode

Producers: Kate Lamble, Edward Drummond, and Taryn Siegel

We want to hear from you - email: [email protected]

Read more: I joined the police on a county lines crackdown

Photo: Getty Images.

This podcast was brought to you thanks to subscribers of The Times and The Sunday Times. To enjoy unlimited digital access to all our journalism subscribe here.

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Mike started selling drugs for a county lines gang when he was just a teenager. After being arrested and getting stabbed, he left that life behind. But he's been willing to share his experiences with The Times’ crime editor David Woode for the first time, explaining how he got caught 'under a spell'.  

This is episode four of a five-part special investigation into county lines drug dealing, running in audio, video, print and digital from The Times and The Sunday Times.

This podcast was brought to you thanks to the support of readers of The Times and The Sunday Times. Subscribe today: http://thetimes.com/thestory

Host: David Woode

Producers: Kate Lamble and Taryn Siegel. 

With thanks to the St Giles Trust

We want to hear from you - email: [email protected]

Read more: Inside the case of a 15-year-old caught with a machete and pistol

Further listening: Why I carried a knife

Photo: Getty Images.

This podcast was brought to you thanks to subscribers of The Times and The Sunday Times. To enjoy unlimited digital access to all our journalism subscribe here.

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Children aren't just running drugs for county lines gangs - sometimes they're running the lines themselves.

Today The Sunday Times's northern editor David Collins talks to the police officers who worry laws designed to protect victims of exploitation might actually encourage gang leaders to promote teenagers into higher positions in their criminal organisation.

This is episode three of a five-part special investigation into county lines drug dealing, running in audio, video, print and digital from The Times and The Sunday Times.

This podcast was brought to you thanks to the support of readers of The Times and The Sunday Times. Subscribe today: http://thetimes.com/thestory

Read more: Drug gangs swamped York. This is how police stopped them | I was a county lines drug runner. I tried to quit, then I was stabbed

Watch: School-age kingpins: why children now hold the key to county lines

Host: David Collins

Producers: Kate Lamble and Taryn Siegel

Executive producers: Tim Walklate and Dan Box

We want to hear from you - email: [email protected]

Photo: Getty Images.

This podcast was brought to you thanks to subscribers of The Times and The Sunday Times. To enjoy unlimited digital access to all our journalism subscribe here.

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Today we go inside Operation Titan, as North Yorkshire Police fight back against county lines drugs gangs. But with each line the police shut down, another pops up in its place, sometimes within days. The Sunday Times' northern editor David Collins investigates how to break the cycle. 

This is episode two of a five-part special investigation into county lines drug dealing, running in audio, video, print and digital from The Times and The Sunday Times.

This podcast was brought to you thanks to the support of readers of The Times and The Sunday Times. Subscribe today: http://thetimes.com/thestory

Read more: Drug dealers use anti-slavery law to escape prosecution | I was a county lines drug runner. I tried to quit, then I was stabbed

Watch: School-age kingpins: why children now hold the key to county lines

Host: David Collins.

Producers: Kate Lamble and Taryn Siegel

Executive producers: Tim Walklate and Dan Box

We want to hear from you - email: [email protected]

Photo: Getty Images.

This podcast was brought to you thanks to subscribers of The Times and The Sunday Times. To enjoy unlimited digital access to all our journalism subscribe here.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Part one of a five-part special investigation into county lines drug dealing, running in audio, video, print and digital from The Times and The Sunday Times.

Today we reveal how police took down the family controlling the drug trade in one British city, creating a power vacuum that was filled by a new breed of violent, criminal operation - county lines.

The Sunday Times' northern editor David Collins is given unprecedented access to North Yorkshire Police as they fight back against the drug gangs. 

This podcast was brought to you thanks to the support of readers of The Times and The Sunday Times. Subscribe today: http://thetimes.com/thestory

Read more: Exposed: how drug gangs deal without fear as the law can’t keep up | I was a county lines drug runner. I tried to quit, then I was stabbed

Watch: School-age kingpins: why children now hold the key to county lines

Host: David Collins

Producers: Kate Lamble, Taryn Siegel

Executive producers: Tim Walklate, Dan Box

We want to hear from you - email: [email protected]

Photo: Getty Images.

This podcast was brought to you thanks to subscribers of The Times and The Sunday Times. To enjoy unlimited digital access to all our journalism subscribe here.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

After years in hiding, The Sunday Times has obtained images of Christy and Daniel Kinahan, leaders of the all-powerful Kinahan cartel, living freely in Dubai. They are some of the most wanted criminals in the world. So why aren’t they in custody?

This podcast was brought to you thanks to the support of readers of The Times and The Sunday Times. Subscribe today: http://thetimes.com/thestory

Guest: John Mooney, Investigative reporter, The Sunday Times.

Host: Luke Jones.

Producer: Taryn Siegel.

We want to hear from you - email: [email protected]

Read more: The world is looking for the Kinahan drug lords. We found them

Further listening: Gourmet gangster: Could Kinahan be caught by his Google reviews?

Clips: 971 FC, Irish Gangland, FM Boxing, Storyful.

This podcast was brought to you thanks to subscribers of The Times and The Sunday Times. To enjoy unlimited digital access to all our journalism subscribe here.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.