Shows / The News Meeting
The News Meeting
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…
Episodes
The News MeetingSensemaker: Israel and the UN’s Gaza relief agency
Disputes between UNWRA and Israel are stopping aid from reaching millions of people in the Gaza strip. What does the aid agency do and why does it matter? To…
The News MeetingNews Meeting: What the Moscow attack means for Putin and Chinese hacking
What should lead the news? Three people pitch the story they think matters most to Tortoise’s deputy editor Giles Whittell. Barrister and broadcaster Hashi…
The News MeetingSensemaker: Bitcoin is back
The cryptocurrency surged to a new record value against the dollar. What caused it and how far could it fall? To find out more about Tortoise: - Download the…
The News MeetingEditor's Voicemail: Why it's wrong to suggest the BBC is antisemitic
We should worry about people putting the self-serving values of WhatsApp tribalism ahead of the difficult business of common understanding. To find out more…
The News MeetingNews Meeting: Men-only clubs and a smoking ban for for some, but not all
What should lead the news? Three people pitch the story they think matters most to Tortoise’s editor-in-chief James Harding. Businessman John Rose and Labour…
The News MeetingSensemaker: Frank Hester: The race row and the rise of the mega donor
The Conservative donor was someone very few people had heard of until an investigation revealed his racist comments towards MP Diane Abbott. What role will…
The News MeetingTrendy: The general election campaign starts here
There’s feverish speculation about the timing of the next election, so in this episode Rachel and John look at how campaigns have changed with the help of Kate…
The News MeetingSensemaker: Indefinite jail terms: ‘a stain on our justice system’
What the death of one man tells us about the continued impact of indefinite prison sentences that were abolished more than a decade ago. To find out more about…
The News MeetingNews Meeting: Lessons from a World War Two disinformation campaign
Are we living through an information war? Sefton Delmer was a British propagandist who targeted the Nazi regime. In this bonus episode, the journalist Peter…
The News MeetingSensemaker: Elon Musk takes on OpenAI
Elon Musk is suing the creators of ChatGPT, accusing OpenAI of straying from its original mission to build AI that will benefit humanity. What is his lawsuit…
The News MeetingSensemaker: Putin's sham election
Russia’s president has won a fifth term in an election viewed by many as neither free nor fair. What does Vladimir Putin’s victory mean for the world? To find…
The News MeetingNews Meeting: Boris Johnson’s Venezuela meeting and should we change the way we fund the police?
What should lead the news? Three people pitch the story they think matters most to Tortoise’s editor-in-chief James Harding. In this episode he’s joined by…
The News MeetingSensemaker: Family fractured after suspected illegal abortion
Tortoise spent six months fighting to report that a British mother being investigated for a suspected illegal abortion had her existing children removed from…
The News MeetingEditor's Voicemail: The princess and the tortoise
Who decides what's real? James Harding reflects on the challenges that modern newsrooms face when trying to provide accurate information. He also has some news…
The News MeetingNews Meeting: Disgraced Tory donor Frank Hester and has levelling-up made any difference?
Tortoise understands that the Conservatives have received an as-yet-undeclared £5 million sum from Frank Hester, the party donor embroiled in a race row. In…
The News MeetingSensemaker: Will the US ban Tik Tok?
The US House of Representatives has overwhelmingly voted in favour of a landmark bill that could see TikTok banned in America. To find out more about Tortoise…
The News MeetingTrendy: Where’s all the money gone?
The state of public finances is dire: government debt is high and so too are taxes. How did we get into this mess and what choices does the next government…
The News MeetingSensemaker: Lee Anderson’s political journey
Lee Anderson began his political life as a member of Arthur Scargill’s mineworkers union. He was a Labour councillor before joining the Conservatives and has…
The News MeetingNews Meeting: Who is the real Keir Starmer?
Tom Baldwin has written a biography about the Labour leader. In this bonus episode he tells Giles Whittell and Cat Neilan how the book came about, Keir…
The News MeetingSensemaker: Kate’s photo-editing experiment blows up
The Princess of Wales admitted that she edited an image of her and her three children after international news agencies withdrew the picture over concerns it…
The News MeetingSensemaker: Getting aid into Gaza
There are reports of malnutrition and even starvation in Gaza. Why isn’t aid getting in and what’s being done to provide the relief that’s needed? To find out…
The News MeetingNews Meeting: That Kate photo and Sathnam Sanghera on slavery reparations
What should lead the news? Three people pitch the story they think should lead the news to Tortoise’s editor James Harding. In this episode the team are joined…
The News MeetingSensemaker: How spies recorded a German military meeting
A recording of a private call between German air force officials where they discussed sensitive and secret information relating to the war in Ukraine has been…
The News MeetingEditor's Voicemail: An economy built on fellowship
After this week's budget and Labour's response, James Harding found himself wishing for new ideas for the economy. In this week's Editor's Voicemail he…
The News MeetingNews Meeting: Starvation in Gaza and why pensioners are the biggest budget losers
What should lead the news? Three people pitch the story they think should lead the news to Tortoise’s deputy editor Giles Whitttell. Torsten Bell, chief…
The News MeetingSensemaker: How Raye broke a Brits record
The singer-songwriter made history when she beat the record for the most wins in one year, but why did she have to ditch her record label to do it? To find out…
The News MeetingTrendy: Britain’s Covid hangover
Four years on from the start of the pandemic we’re still living with the consequences. In this episode, John Curtice and Rachel Wolf discuss Covid’s legacy…
The News MeetingSensemaker: Haiti’s state of anarchy
Haiti’s prime minister appears to be unable to return to his country after gangs stormed two of its biggest prisons, allowing thousands of criminals to escape…
The News MeetingSensemaker: Border farce: the sacked Home Office inspector
The Home Office has now published 13 reports by the independent immigration and borders watchdog, but only after sacking him for speaking to the media about…
The News MeetingSensemaker: Why Wayne Couzens wasn't stopped
An inquiry into the police officer who murdered Sarah Everard has found that there were several opportunities to stop him in his tracks. To find out more about…
The News MeetingNews Meeting: Hopes for a Gaza ceasefire and Joe Biden’s political problems
What should lead the news? Three people pitch the story they think matters most to Tortoise’s editor-in-chief James Harding. In this episode, David Rhodes…
The News MeetingSensemaker: What George Galloway’s return means for British politics
Rochdale’s new MP is a pro-Palestinian agitator who now has a parliamentary platform from which to exploit Labour’s divisions ahead of the general election…
The News MeetingEditor's Voicemail: Jacob Rothschild
The financier and philanthropist, who died this week at the age of 87, was an enthusiastic supporter of Tortoise. In this Editor's Voicemail James Harding…
The News MeetingNews Meeting: The Couzens report, America’s airports and Taylor Swift’s political power
What should lead the news? Three people pitch the story they think matters most to Tortoise’s editor-in-chief James Harding. In this episode James Harding is…
The News MeetingSensemaker: A spike in spiking?
A recent report suggested there was a “hidden epidemic” of spiking in the UK, but the data is complicated and often misunderstood. What’s really going on? To…
The News MeetingTrendy: The race for the White House
The US presidential election is shaping up to be a repeat of 2020: Joe Biden vs Donald Trump. How does America choose its candidates and what’s likely to…
The News MeetingSensemaker: How to hack the hackers
Last week the world’s largest ransomware gang was taken over in an extensive, international police operation. What does the infiltration of LockBit tell us…
The News MeetingNews Meeting: Chris Anderson on why the internet is making us meaner
The head of TED sits down with Tortoise editor James Harding to discuss his concerns about artificial intelligence and how his religious upbringing made him…
The News MeetingSensemaker: How Birmingham went bust
People living in Birmingham are paying more for less after the city council effectively declared itself bankrupt. To find out more about Tortoise: - Download…
The News MeetingSensemaker: When egg freezing goes wrong
A hospital in London has told more than 130 patients that their eggs and embryos might have accidentally been damaged. What does this incident tell us about…
The News MeetingNews Meeting: Sudan’s forgotten war and Britain’s drink spiking epidemic
What should lead the news? Chris Anderson, head of TED and author of Infectious Generosity, pitches his story to Tortoise’s editor-in-chief James Harding. The…
The News MeetingSensemaker: The case against Julian Assange
British judges are deciding whether the founder of WikiLeaks should be allowed to appeal his extradition to the United States. What is he accused of doing? To…
The News MeetingNews Meeting: Investigating a failing children’s prison and a nuclear missile misfires
What should lead the news? Three people pitch the story they think matters most to Tortoise’s editor-in-chief James Harding. In this episode the team are…
The News MeetingSensemaker: The university that contributed to a student’s death
A landmark judgement has found that the University of Bristol contributed to the death of a student called Natasha Abrahart by discriminating against her. What…
The News MeetingTrendy: Good times, bad times
What do you do all day? Data suggests the average time people spend on leisure has decreased since the 1980s. John and Rachel explain what’s going on and what…
The News MeetingSensemaker: Why Trump is selling golden trainers
Donald Trump is on the campaign trail for the Republican Party’s presidential nomination, so why did he take time out to promote a new Trump-branded footwear…
The News MeetingSensemaker: How The Body Shop lost its sheen
The business known for its natural and ethical beauty products has been a staple of the British high street for the past 50 years. Now it’s closing half of its…
The News MeetingSensemaker: Russia after Navalny
Kremlin critic and Russian opposition figure Alexei Navalny has died in prison. As questions swirl about his death and world leaders condemn Vladimir Putin…
The News MeetingNews Meeting: Alexei Navalny’s death and the fake restaurants on Companies House
What should lead the news? Three people pitch the story they think matters most to Tortoise’s editor-in-chief James Harding. The team discusses what we know…
The News MeetingSensemaker: Biden: too old to be president?
When Joe Biden won the election in 2020 he was seen by many as the ‘safe’ option compared to Donald Trump. But during his presidency he’s become well-known for…
The News MeetingNews Meeting: UK in recession and has the vegan bubble burst?
What should lead the news? Three people pitch the story they think matters most to Tortoise’s deputy editor Giles Whittell. In this episode the Tortoise team…
The News MeetingSensemaker: Labour, Rochdale and the anti-Semitism row
Defending Labour’s long-held seat in Rochdale should have been a walk in the park. But with a fortnight still to go before the by-election there, the party has…
The News MeetingTrendy: A home of your own
One of the biggest policy challenges Britain faces right now is its housing crisis. How did we get into such a mess and how do we get out of it? John Curtice…
The News MeetingSensemaker: Zelensky fires his top general
After a year of tension between the two men, the Ukrainian president fired his top military commander. What does it tell us about Volodymyr Zelensky’s plan for…
The News MeetingSensemaker: Asylum hotels: hundreds evicted with a week’s notice
At the end of January almost 400 asylum seekers were given less than a week to leave the hotel they were being housed in. Where did they go and what does it…
The News MeetingSensemaker: EU farmers ramp up protests
Farmers across the European Union are throwing eggs at buildings and setting tires on fire. What do they want? To find out more about Tortoise: Download the…
The News MeetingNews Meeting: Israel’s Rafah offensive and Keir Starmer under pressure over antisemitism
What should lead the news? Three people pitch the story they think matters most to Tortoise’s deputy editor Giles Whittell. In this episode he’s joined by…
The News MeetingSensemaker: Keir Starmer and the mysterious case of the £28bn green plan
Keir Starmer finally killed off Labour’s £28bn green plan. This may have ended months of will-he-won’t-he speculation about the future of the policy - but it…
The News MeetingNews Meeting: A Labour u-turn and a failed peace agreement
What should lead the news? Three people pitch the story they think matters most to Tortoise’s editor James Harding In this episode the team discuss the news…
The News MeetingSensemaker: 23andMe’s cybercrime crisis
A new class-action lawsuit is accusing the genetic testing company 23andMe of failing to protect the privacy of millions of its customers after the data…