The Media Show

This week on The Media Show, Ros Atkins is in Washington DC, speaking to some of the most influential voices in American journalism. He talks to Jeffrey Goldberg, Editor in Chief of The Atlantic, Mehdi Hasan, Editor in Chief and CEO of Zeteo, the BBC’s North America Editor Sarah Smith, and filmmaker and YouTube creator Johnny Harris. Together, they reveal how very different media organisations are covering President Trump’s war with Iran and how they see the US media landscape at this moment.
Producer: Lisa Jenkinson
Content Producer: Lucy Wai

Katie Razzall hears how the conflict in the Middle East is being covered across the region with staff from the BBC Monitoring Unit.
Christina Lamb, Chief Foreign Correspondent at the Sunday Times, Aaron Bastani from Novara Media and broadcaster Sir John Tusa discuss whether day to day crisis reporting is crowding out the deeper story of geopolitical realignment.
We also discuss whether the were media blind spots behind the Green Party’s shock win in Gorton and Denton.
And Sir John Tusa returns to talk about his new podcast The Best Is Yet to Come - why he’s interviewing the over 90s, and what a lifetime in broadcasting has taught him about how the media should evolve.
Producer: Lisa Jenkinson
Content Producer: Lucy Wai

Katie Razzall and Ros Atkins on the biggest media stories of the week, including:
Jake Kanter from Deadline on the racial slur shouted during the Baftas ceremony which made it into the BBC’s broadcast.
Anthony Loyd, special correspondent at The Times, reflects on his latest trip to Ukraine, while the BBC’s Olga Malchevska discusses how the anniversary is being covered across Eastern Europe and the personal impact of reporting on her home country.
Suzanne Plunkett, Chief Photographer at Reuters, and Arthur Edwards, long serving royal photographer for The Sun, explain how the now viral picture of Prince Andrew leaving police custody was taken and why royal photos matter more than ever. And the BBC’s Sean Coughlan and Ingrid Seward, editor in chief of Majesty Magazine, explore how the palace press team manages public messaging and whether a more direct communication style is now unavoidable.
Producer: Lisa Jenkinson
Assistant Producer: Lucy Wai

On this edition of The Media Show, Ros Atkins examines the continuing public interest in the Lucy Letby case, as a new Netflix documentary reaches the top of the UK viewing rankings. He speaks to Josh Halliday, North of England Editor at The Guardian, and Dr Bethany Usher of Newcastle University, whose work focuses on the ethics of true‑crime storytelling and the development of new guidelines for the genre.
Tom Freston, co‑founder of MTV, reflects on how the channel’s launch in 1981 transformed popular culture and what its closure in the UK and Europe signifies for its legacy.
And we assess the state of the advertising industry following one of its most challenging years on record. James Kirkham, founder of Iconic, discusses his view that the traditional agency model is in steep decline, while Becky Owen, Chief Marketing Officer at Billion Dollar Boy, outlines the rapid expansion of influencer marketing and the new dynamics shaping the sector.
Producer: Lisa Jenkinson

Gabriel Sherman joins Katie Razzall and Ros Atkins to discuss the real‑life Murdoch family battle at the heart of his new book , Bonfire of the Murdochs, including the secret Nevada court case that pitted Rupert Murdoch against his own children.
We assess the reporting of a turbulent week in Westminster with Catherine Neilan, Whitehall Editor at The Observer and Simon Nixon, publisher of the Wealth of Nations newsletter and a former journalist at the Wall Street Journal and The Times.
As The Washington Post lays off around 300 staff, we talk to one of them, reporter Marissa Lang and former senior managing editor, Cameron Barr, assesses what comes next.
And we discuss the issue of balance and due impartiality in the digital age as Ofcom faces criticism for declining to investigate a GB News interview with Donald Trump.

Producers: Lisa Jenkinson & Dan Hardoon