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The Observer

Every Monday and Friday three journalists battle it out to try and convince the editor that their pitch should lead the news. 

Discover what goes on behind the scenes in a newsroom. Why do some stories dominate, while others fail to make the cut?

Tell us if you agree with the final running order - email newsmeeting@tortoisemedia.com 

Book your place at a news meeting live in our newsroom - https://www.tortoisemedia.com/our-events 

Executive Producer: Rebecca Moore

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 Tortoise app – for a listening experience curated by our journalists

If you want to get in touch with us directly about a story, or tell us more about the stories you want to hear about contact hello@tortoisemedia.com

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

Tortoise News

Why are so many prisoners being released from prison by mistake? What happens if Arts Council England goes under? And what can the Democrats learn from Mamdani’s New York City mayoral election victory?

Rebecca Moore is joined by The Observer’s Deputy Sports Editor, Andrew Butler, Arts and Media Editor, Vanessa Thorpe, and reporter Jon Ungoed-Thomas as they pitch their top stories of the day.

Must Reads:

Days of wine and noses: the life of a critic

**We want to hear what you think! Email us at: newsmeeting@observer.co.uk 

Follow us on Social Media: 

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

Host: Rebecca Moore

Producer: Amalie Sortland

Executive Producers: Matt Russell and Poppy Bullard

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 Tortoise app – for a listening experience curated by our journalists

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

Can Zohran Mamdani take on President Trump?

Will there be any voter suppression in Tuesday’s US elections? Why did a British university prevent one of its academics from researching human rights abuses in China? Are Sudan’s rebels using British-made equipment on the battlefield?

Giles Whittell is joined by The Observer’s Data and Graphics editor, Katie Riley, Senior Audio Producer Katie Gunning, and Senior Researcher Serena Cesareo as they pitch their top stories of the day

Must Reads:

She Was Ready To Have Her 15th Child. Then The Felony Charges Began.The Great Ghosting ParadoxThe Cocaine Kingpin Living It Large In DubaiAssata Shakur Obituary

**We want to hear what you think! Email us at: newsmeeting@observer.co.uk 

Follow us on Social Media: 

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

Host: Giles Whitell

Producer: Poppy Bullard

Executive Producer: 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 

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

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

Is the UK indirectly implicated in the civil war in Sudan?

What do we do with the knowledge that climate change made Hurricane Melissa worse? Why was there such a deadly police raid in Brazil? And why isn’t hospice care treated as an essential part of healthcare? 

Rebecca Moore is joined by The Observer’s Data and Graphics editor, Katie Riley, and reporters James Tapper and Rachael Healy, as they pitch their top stories of the day.

Must Reads:

Some People Can’t See Mental ImagesPolitical Beliefs Dating App ExperimentPremiere League

**We want to hear what you think! Email us at: newsmeeting@observer.co.uk 

Follow us on Social Media: 

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

Host: Rebecca Moore

Producer: Amalie Sortland

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 Tortoise app – for a listening experience curated by our journalists

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

What’s behind Brazil’s deadly police raid?

The storm caused widespread damage in Jamaica and is making its way to Cuba; is climate change to blame for its power? What - or who - is behind Donald Trump’s obsession with Venezuela? Is it good news that a cargo ship has made it through the North East Passage for the first time?

Jeevan Vasagar is joined by the Observer’s Erica Wagner, Jessica Hayden and Chloe Hadjimatheou as they pitch their top stories of the day, live from the Observer newsroom. 

Must Reads:

JumpersThe House at Number 48Iran, Russia and the New Zealand insurer that kept their sanctioned oil flowing

**We want to hear what you think! Email us at: newsmeeting@observer.co.uk 

Follow us on Social Media: 

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

Host: Jeevan Vasagar

Producer: Poppy Bullard

Executive Producers: Rebecca Moore and 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 Tortoise app – for a listening experience curated by our journalists

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

Why is Hurricane Melissa so strong?

Which international peacekeeping forces might be present in Gaza, and what will their role be? Is the fact that kids on free school meals do worse in their GCSEs a symptom of a failed state? Does the Amazon outage show that the internet is too reliant on a small number of companies?

Rebecca Moore is joined by The Observer’s Stephen Armstrong, Bex Sander and Ruth Michaelson as they pitch their top story of the day. 

You can listen to We Have Notes HERE

Must Reads:

West End GirlLily Allen On Marriage, Motherhood And Her Music Comeback

**We want to hear what you think! Email us at: newsmeeting@observer.co.uk 

Follow us on Social Media: 

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

Host: Rebecca Moore

Producer: Poppy Bullard

Executive Producer: Gary Marshall

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 Tortoise app – for a listening experience curated by our journalists

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

Does Amazon control too much of the internet?

Trump imposed what he called “tremendous” sanctions on Russia’s two biggest oil companies. What’s next for the Trump-Putin rollercoaster? 

President Trump is planning to demolish the East Wing of the White House as early as this weekend. Who will pay for this 99,000ft ballroom? 

Two Metropolitan Police officers have been dismissed for gross misconduct following their appearance in a BBC Panorama undercover investigation that caught serving officers making racist and misogynistic comments. 

Giles Whittell is joined by journalist and author Ari Shapiro, former US representative to NATO and foreign policy advisor to Barack Obama Ivo Daalder and The Observer’s Jessica Hayden, as they pitch their top story of the day.

 **Join us at the next News Meeting Live! Get your tickets → HERE 

Must Reads:

 • Motherland: A Feminist History of Modern Russia, From Revolution to Autocracy by Jullia Loffe
The Trump Rules for Radical Schools

**We want to hear what you think! Email us at: newsmeeting@observer.co.uk 

Follow us on Social Media: 

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

Host: Giles Whittell 

Producer: Casey Magloire 

Executive Producer: Rebecca Moore 

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 Tortoise app – for a listening experience curated by our journalists

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

Is Vladimir Putin outsmarting Donald Trump?

Who is responsible for breaking the ceasefire in Gaza? How might the Louvre heist thieves get away with selling jewels belonging to Napoleon’s wife? Does Virginia Giuffre’s memoir shed new light on the allegations against Jeffrey Epstein, Ghislaine Maxwell and Prince Andrew?

Rebecca Moore is joined by The Observer’s Phoebe Davis and Stephen Armstrong, and the journalist and author Pete Apps, as they pitch their top story of the day.

You can buy Pete’s book Homesick HERE

Must Reads:

Among Portland Protests, it’s Frogs and Sharks and Bears, Oh My!We Found That More Than 170 U.S. Citizens Have Been Held by Immigration Agents. They’ve Been Kicked, Dragged and Detained for Days.Sustainability by Numbers

**We want to hear what you think! Email us at: newsmeeting@observer.co.uk 

Follow us on Social Media: 

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

Host: Rebecca Moore

Producer: Poppy Bullard

Executive Producer: 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 

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

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

What did we learn from Virginia Giuffre’s new memoir?

As more and more people turn to AI for news, how should journalists fight back and protect the human by-line? Will Donald Trump’s cosy relationship with FIFA president Gianni Infantino allow him to dictate which cities the World Cup will be held in the US? Will the British Museum win its £3.5 million battle to keep a rare gold Tudor Heart pendant?

Rebecca Moore is joined by The Observer’s Alex O’Connell, Vanessa Thorpe and Jessy Parker Humphreys, as they pitch their top story of the day.

Must Reads:

Is Nick Fuentes Winning Over Women on the Left?

**We want to hear what you think! Email us at: newsmeeting@observer.co.uk 

Follow us on Social Media: 

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

Host: Rebecca Moore

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 Tortoise app – for a listening experience curated by our journalists

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

Will Donald Trump move the World Cup?

One story is dominating the headlines today: the rapidly unfolding situation in the Middle East. This morning, Hamas released the last 20 living hostages; in return, Israel freed over 1,700 Palestinian detainees. We're devoting the entire episode to the latest from Gaza.

Rebecca Moore is joined by The Observer’s Narrative Editor Chloe Hadjimatheou and Middle East Correspondent Ruth Michaelson, to answer questions about the first part of Donald Trump’s peace deal in Gaza.

**We want to hear what you think! Email us at: newsmeeting@observer.co.uk 

Follow us on Social Media: 

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

Host: Rebecca Moore

Producer: Amalie Sortland

Executive Producer: Jasper Corbett and 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 Tortoise app – for a listening experience curated by our journalists

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

Gaza Special: What's next?

Why has Donald Trump sent hundreds of National Guards to Illinois? Should the UK look to France when it comes to tackling the far-right? Will the US-backed plan for peace in Gaza work?

Rebecca Moore is joined by The Observer’s Katie Riley and Poppy Bullard, and David Runciman, Honorary Professor of Politics at Cambridge University and host of the Past Present Future podcast, as they pitch their top story of the day.

**We want to hear what you think! Email us at: newsmeeting@observer.co.uk 

Follow us on Social Media: 

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

Host: Rebecca Moore

Producer: Casey Magloire

Executive Producer: 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 

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

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

Will Trump’s Gaza deal lead to lasting peace in the Middle East?

Could Europe unlock frozen Russian assets to support Ukraine’s fight against Putin? Why Elon Musk’s DOGE remains a mystery despite promises of transparency. And how climate change is reshaping Alaska’s iconic dog sled race.

Jasper Corbett is joined by Tortoise’s Chloe Hadjimatheou, Patricia Clarke and Katie Riley as they each pitch a story they think should lead the news. 

**Join us at the next edition of the News Meeting Live! 

Get your ticket for Wednesday 26th March in Bath here: https://www.tortoisemedia.com/our-events/the-news-meeting-live-3 

And our London live show on Tuesday 29th April here: 

https://www.tortoisemedia.com/our-events/the-news-meeting-live-2 

Want to learn more about what we discussed in this episode? Here’s everything you need:

 • What to know more about DOGE? Listen to Patricia’s episode of the Sensemaker: Musk, Trump, and the secretive government overhaul 
here

 • Read more of the reporting on DOGE by ProPublica 
here • and the New York Times 
here • and 
here • 

 • If you’re interested in the attention economy, Katie recommends reading Chris Hayes’ The Siren’s Call: How Attention Became the World's Most Endangered Resource

Follow us on Social Media: 

 • @tortoise on IG and X, 
 • @tortoisemedia on tiktok 
 • @tortoisemedia.bsky.social on bluesky 

Host: Jasper Corbett, Audio Editor at Tortoise

Email: newsmeeting@tortoisemedia.com

Producer: Casey Magloire

Executive Producer: Rebecca Moore 

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

Should Europe seize $220bn in frozen Russian assets and why an Alaskan dog sled race just got even longer?

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