Why does the Artemis II mission around the moon matter? Are concerns around Anthropic’s new AI model Mythos justified? And who has the upper hand in the ceasefire agreement between the US-Israel and Iran?

Giles Whittell is joined by The Observer’s technology reporter, Patricia Clarke, reporter Phoebe Davis and Deputy Comment Editor, Erica Wagner, to decide the top story of the day.

**We want to hear what you think! Email us at: [email protected] 

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Host: Giles Whittell 

Producer: Amalie Sortland

Executive Producer: Jasper Corbett

To find out more about The Observer:

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What can NASA's latest rocket launch teach us about our bodies? Is shared house ownership worth it? And what does the return of Kanye West tell us about our relationship with musicians?

Jeevan Vasagar is joined by Jessica Hayden, The Observer’s assistant sports editor; Ada Barumé, producer; and Phoebe Davis, reporter, to see who can pitch the top story of the day. 

**We want to hear what you think! Email us at: [email protected] 

Follow us on Social Media: 

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Host: Jeevan Vasagar

Producer: Jonathan Lewis

Executive Producer: Matt Russell

To find out more about The Observer:

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Head to our website observer.co.uk 

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What does AI chatbots have to do with violence against women and girls? Why have Meta and Google been found liable for social media addiction? And could Nigel Farage's visit to Ipswich Town's Portman Road be the start of Reform’s relationship with football?

Giles Whittell is joined by The Observer’s technology reporter, Patricia Clarke, deputy sports editor, Andrew Butler, and data reporter, Hannah Schuller, to see who can pitch the top story of the day. 

**We want to hear what you think! Email us at: [email protected] 

Follow us on Social Media: 

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Host: Giles Whittell 

Producer: Amalie Sortland

Executive Producer: Casey Magloire

To find out more about The Observer:

Subscribe to TheObserver+ on Apple Podcasts for early access and ad-free content

Head to our website observer.co.uk 

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Why did President Donald Trump postpone his deadline to strike Iranian power plants? How is the Iran war impacting the cost of living in the UK? And is there a pattern to anti-semitic attacks in the UK? 

To battle out who can pitch the story that should lead the news, Jasper Corbett is joined by The Observer reporter Stephen Armstrong, producer Ada Barumé and Head of Data and Graphics, Katie Riley.

Come along to the next The News Meeting LIVE, right in our newsroom, this Thursday at 6:30 pm! Get your ticket at observer.co.uk/our-events. 

**We want to hear what you think! Email us at: [email protected] 

Follow us on Social Media: 

• @ObserverUK on X 
• @theobserveruk on Instagram and TikTok
• @theobserveruk.bsky.social‬ on bluesky 

Host: Jasper Corbett

Producer: Amalie Sortland

Executive Producer: Casey Magloire

To find out more about The Observer:

Subscribe to TheObserver+ on Apple Podcasts for early access and ad-free content

Head to our website observer.co.uk 

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Why has a recent blackout in Cuba sparked questions about a potential conflict with the US? How concerned should we be about the spread of meningitis? And why did Kenya introduce menstrual leave for workers? 

Jeevan Vasagar is joined by The Observer’s Evan Moffit, Elaine McCallig and James Tapper as they battle it out and pitch the top stories of the day. 

**We want to hear what you think! Email us at: [email protected] 

Follow us on Social Media: 

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Host: Jeevan Vasagar

Producer: Casey Magloire 

Executive Producer: Matt Russell 

To find out more about The Observer:

Subscribe to TheObserver+ on Apple Podcasts for early access and ad-free content

Head to our website observer.co.uk 

Download the Observer app – for a listening experience curated by our journalists

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Why is President Donald Trump asking NATO for help in the Iran war? What’s going to happen with the hundreds of thousands who are displaced in Lebanon? And what is the Labour government going to do about the nearly one million young people who are out of work? 

To battle out who can pitch the story that should lead the news, Jasper Corbett is joined by The Observer reporters Stephen Armstrong, Hannah Schuller and Bex Sander.

**We want to hear what you think! Email us at: [email protected] 

Follow us on Social Media: 

• @ObserverUK on X 
• @theobserveruk on Instagram and TikTok
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Host: Jasper Corbett

Producer: Amalie Sortland

Executive Producer: Casey Magloire

To find out more about The Observer:

Subscribe to TheObserver+ on Apple Podcasts for early access and ad-free content

Head to our website observer.co.uk 

Download the Observer app – for a listening experience curated by our journalists

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

How did a British man end up being charged for allegedly filming Iranian missiles in Dubai? A tranche of new files raise questions about what the Labour government knew about Peter Mandelson’s relationship with Jeffrey Epstein before appointing him UK ambassador to the US. What could the files mean for Keir Starmer’s future as Prime Minister? And why is the Edinburgh International Festival facing backlash?

To battle out who can pitch the story that should lead the news, Giles Whittell is joined by The Observer’s Arts and Media Editor Vanessa Thorpe, News Reporter Jon Ungoed-Thomas and Assistant Sports Editor Jess Hayden.

**We want to hear what you think! Email us at: [email protected] 

Follow us on Social Media: 

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Host: Giles Whittell 

Producer: Amalie Sortland

Executive Producer: Casey Magloire

To find out more about The Observer:

Subscribe to TheObserver+ on Apple Podcasts for early access and ad-free content

Head to our website observer.co.uk 

Download the Observer app – for a listening experience curated by our journalists

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

How and why is the war in Iran impacting oil prices? What do we know about the new supreme leader of Iran? And how damaging will Keir Starmer's fracturing relationship with President Donald Trump prove to be?

To battle out who can pitch the story that should lead the news, Jasper Corbett is joined by The Observer reporters Poppy Bullard, Stephen Armstrong and Serena Cesareo.

Listen to ‘Stephen Miller’s America’ episode on the Slow Newscast HERE.

**We want to hear what you think! Email us at: [email protected] 

Follow us on Social Media: 

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Host: Jasper Corbett

Producer: Amalie Sortland

Executive Producer: Casey Magloire

To find out more about The Observer:

Subscribe to TheObserver+ on Apple Podcasts for early access and ad-free content

Head to our website observer.co.uk 

Download the Observer app – for a listening experience curated by our journalists

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Why has the Home Secretary banned student visa applications for people from Sudan, Afghanistan, Myanmar and Cameroon? How will the recent conflict between the US and Iran impact the Men’s Football World Cup? How are senior members of the US army using religious language to bolster support for the conflict with Iran?

Jasper Corbett is joined by The Observer’s Andrew Butler, Erica Wagner and Hannah Schuller, as they battle it out to see who can pitch the story that should lead the news.

**We want to hear what you think! Email us at: [email protected] 

Follow us on Social Media: 

@ObserverUK on X 

@theobserveruk on Instagram and TikTok

@theobserveruk.bsky.social‬ on bluesky 

Host: Jasper Corbett

Producer: Casey Magloire 

Executive Producer: Matt Russell and Jasper Corbett 

To find out more about The Observer:

Subscribe to TheObserver+ on Apple Podcasts for early access and ad-free content

Head to our website observer.co.uk 

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In this episode we discuss the US and Israeli strikes on Iran over the weekend. How did the situation unfold and what are the wider ramifications for the region?

Giles Whittell is joined by The Observer’s International Editor Steve Bloomfield, Narrative Editor Chloe Hadjimatheou and Middle East expert and author Jotam Confino. 

Subscribe to our newsletters HERE for a wide array of digital stories and columns straight from The Observer newsroom.

Listen to Chloe Hadjimatheou’s Slow Newscast documentary on ‘The hunt for Iran's next Supreme Leader’ HERE.

**We want to hear what you think! Email us at: [email protected] 

Follow us on Social Media: 

• @ObserverUK on X 
• @theobserveruk on Instagram and TikTok
• @theobserveruk.bsky.social‬ on bluesky 

Host: Giles Whittell 

Producer: Amalie Sortland

Executive Producer: Casey Magloire

To find out more about The Observer:

Subscribe to TheObserver+ on Apple Podcasts for early access and ad-free content

Head to our website observer.co.uk 

Download the Observer app – for a listening experience curated by our journalists

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

Politicians broke away from tradition and discussed Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor in Parliament this week - does this signal the end of deference? The number of people living in asylum hotels has dropped, but what’s behind this trend? Popular influencer Clavicular is the face of a growing community of looksmaxxers who are taking over the internet. What is looksmaxxing and why is it so popular? 

To battle out who can pitch the story that should lead the news, Giles Whittell is joined by The Observer’s Whitehall Editor Cat Neilan, and two newcomers; writer, journalist and host of Sky News’ Trevor Phillips on Sunday, Sir Trevor Phillips, and award-winning documentary maker and journalist, Benjamin Zand. 

Read ‘Clavicular didn’t invent ‘looksmaxxing’ – gay men have been at it for a long time’ on The Observer website HERE.

**We want to hear what you think! Email us at: [email protected] 

Follow us on Social Media: 

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• @theobserveruk on Instagram and TikTok
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Host: Giles Whittell 

Producer: Casey Magloire and Amalie Sortland

Executive Producer: Casey Magloire

To find out more about The Observer:

Subscribe to TheObserver+ on Apple Podcasts for early access and ad-free content

Head to our website observer.co.uk 

Download the Observer app – for a listening experience curated by our journalists

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