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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

MPs voted in favour of proposals to legalise assisted dying in England and Wales. The bill has many more stages to pass before it becomes law. So what happens next? 

Writer: Phoebe Davis

Producer: Casey Magloire

Executive Producer: Rebecca Moore 

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

Sensemaker: The assisted dying bill has passed its first House of Commons hurdle, what happens next?

Giles Whittell is joined by three guests pitching an angle on the toppling of the Syrian regime - the only story leading the news. 

Guests:

 • Charlene White, Loose Women panellist
 • Chloe Hadjimatheou, narrative editor at Tortoise 
 • Cat Neilan, political editor at Tortoise 

Host: Giles Whittell, deputy editor at Tortoise

Email: newsmeeting@tortoisemedia.com

Producer: Eleanor Biggs 

Executive producer: Jasper Corbett

To find out more about Tortoise:

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

- Subscribe to Tortoise+ on Apple Podcasts for early access and exclusive content

- Become a member and get access to all of Tortoise's premium audio offerings and more

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.

The News Meeting: The end of the house of Assad

For more than half a century, the Assad family ruled Syria with brutality and repression. It took less than two weeks for rebels to bring that rule to an end. What does this mean for Syria and the region?

Writer: Xavier Greenwood

Producer: Xavier Greenwood

Host: Claudia Williams

Photography: Jon Jones

Executive Producer: Jasper Corbett

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

Sensemaker: How did Syrian rebels overthrow Bashar al-Assad?

France’s government has been toppled, making Michel Bernier the shortest serving prime minister in the history of the modern French Republic. What does it mean for France – and the rest of Europe?

Writer: Claudia Williams

Producer: Claudia Williams

Photography: Jon Jones

Executive producer: Rebecca Moore

To find out more about Tortoise:

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

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

Become a member and get access to all of Tortoise's premium audio offerings and more

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.

Sensemaker: France’s political tailspin

Tech billionaire Elon Musk and property tycoon Nick Candy have been named as considering multi-million-pound contributions, which could change the face of British politics forever. Reform could become the best-funded political party in the UK. 

Writer: Cat Neilan.

Producer: Katie Gunning.

Photography: Jon Jones. 

Executive producer: Rebecca Moore.

To find out more about Tortoise:

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

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

Become a member and get access to all of Tortoise's premium audio offerings and more

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.

Sensemaker: Could Nigel Farage’s Reform party be backed by mega donors?

The ousting of Syria’s Bashar al-Assad has revealed the full scale of how he used the prison system to lock up, torture and execute his opponents. What do we now know about what went on? 

Producer: Eleanor Biggs 

Photography: Jon Jones

Host: Tomini Babs

Executive Producer: Rebecca Moore

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

Sensemaker: Syria’s prisons

Jess Winch and guests debate what should lead the news. They discuss the thousands of people disappeared by Bashar al-Assad’s regime, the controversy surrounding Saudi Arabia hosting the tournament amid human rights concerns, and a proposed new law banning marriages between first cousins.

Guests:

 • Dr Adam Rutherford, scientist, broadcaster and scientist
 • Basia Cummings, editor at Tortoise 
 • Claudia Williams, reporter at Tortoise 

Host: Jess Winch, news editor at Tortoise

Email: newsmeeting@tortoisemedia.com

Producer: Casey Magloire

Executive producer: Rebecca Moore 

To find out more about Tortoise:

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

- Subscribe to Tortoise+ on Apple Podcasts for early access and exclusive content

- Become a member and get access to all of Tortoise's premium audio offerings and more

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.

News Meeting: Syria’s disappeared and Fifa’s 2034 World Cup in Saudi Arabia

Billionaire rapper Jay-Z is the first celebrity to be named as a co-defendent in an allegation concerning Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs. Jay-Z vehemently denies the allegation – that he raped a 13 year old girl in 2000 along with Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs. Jay-Z’s legal team has sued the attorney who filed the claim against him. So who is the lawyer bringing multiple lawsuits against Sean Combs and his associates?

Writer: Eleanor Biggs

Photography: Jon Jones

Host: Claudia Williams

Executive Producer: Rebecca Moore

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

Sensemaker: Who is the lawyer suing Jay-Z?

Giles Whittell and guests debate what stories should lead the news. They discuss calls for Stephen Cottrell to step down over his handling of a sexual abuse case, failures of the UK’s privatised water industry, and ABC News’s $15 million defamation settlement with Donald Trump.

Guests:

 • Pete Apps, Inside Housing contributing editor and Orwell Prize winning author
 • Basia Cummings, editor at Tortoise
 • Stephen Armstrong, reporter at Tortoise 

Host: Giles Whittell, deputy editor at Tortoise

Email: newsmeeting@tortoisemedia.com

Producer: Casey Magloire

Executive producer: Rebecca Moore 

To find out more about Tortoise:

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

- Subscribe to Tortoise+ on Apple Podcasts for early access and exclusive content

- Become a member and get access to all of Tortoise's premium audio offerings and more

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.

News Meeting: Rising water bills and the future of the Archbishop of York

A new cryptocurrency linked to the identity of Luigi Mangione, the suspected killer of Brian Thompson, has reached a market value of $76 million.

Writer: Barney Macintyre

Producer: Matt Russell

Photography: Joe Mee

Host: Claudia Williams

Executive Producer: Rebecca Moore

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

Sensemaker: The rise of memecoins

Will President Trump’s global tariff hike force countries to forge new alliances beyond the US? What is the government’s plan to tackle the problems involving young boys in Netflix’s Adolescence? And why are doctors sounding the alarm over the return of Victorian-era diseases?

Jess Winch is joined by the Observer’s Rebecca Myers, along with Jasper Corbett and Stephen Armstrong from Tortoise, as they battle to pitch the top story of the day.

**Join us at the next edition of the News Meeting Live on Tuesday 29th April here: https://www.tortoisemedia.com/our-events/the-news-meeting-live-2 

Get in touch and let us know what you think should lead the news. Send a voice note to newsmeeting@tortoisemedia.com 

Follow us on Social Media: 

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

Host: Jess Winch, news editor at Tortoise 

Email: newsmeeting@tortoisemedia.com

Producer: Casey Magloire

Executive Producer: Rebecca Moore

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

Are Trump’s tariffs the beginning of the end for the global economic order?

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