The Global Story

Since World War Two ended, most people living in the United States or Europe have generally upheld a consensus about its morality; that it was a just war fought against an evil Nazi regime, and the allies were right to fight it.
But in a viral podcast debate with the British conservative Sir Jacob Rees-Mogg, Tucker Carlson seemed to disagree with that narrative, causing deep consternation within the wider conservative movement.
The Global Story’s Tristan Redman speaks to BBC Newscast’s Adam Fleming about Sir Jacob Rees-Mogg and the strand of British conservatism he represents. We also hear from the Conservative politician and Times of London columnist Lord Daniel Finkelstein - whose parents were survivors of a Nazi concentration camps and a Russian gulag - about why he thinks one of America’s most influential right-wing voices is casting doubt on World War Two history.
(Photo: Tucker Carlson speaks at the Republican National Convention (RNC) in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, US, 18 July, 2024. He has short brown hair with side parting. He gestures with both arms outstretched to the side as he speaks into a mic. He wears a dark blue jacket, a blue and white gingham shirt and a dark blue tie with yellow, diagonal stripes. Credit: Mike Segar/Reuters)
Producer: Aron Keller and Cat Farnsworth
Executive producer: James Shield
Digital producer: Sam Gruet
Sound engineer: Travis Evans
Senior news editor: China Collins

Politicians and commentators keep telling us we are living through unprecedented times. But how unusual is the world we are living in, really?
John Simpson has spent 60 years reporting for the BBC, witnessing some of the most consequential moments in modern history. He was on the plane that brought Ayatollah Khomeini back to Iran during the 1979 revolution. He watched the Berlin Wall come down. And he reported from Beijing during the protests in Tiananmen Square.
Those experiences have left Simpson with a perspective that is not entirely pessimistic. Having lived through the Cold War, the collapse of the Soviet Union and the end of apartheid, Simpson has seen seemingly entrenched systems change in ways few thought possible.
Now, as wars rage and the global order shifts again, he joins The Global Story’s Asma Khalid to reflect on what those moments can tell us about the present and whether today’s conflicts are repeating familiar patterns.
(Photo: John Simpson enters Kabul, 2001)
Producer: Xandra Ellin and Mhairi MacKenzie
Executive producer: James Shield and Martine Powers
Digital producer: Charlie Firth
Sound engineer: Travis Evans
Senior news editor: China Collins

A plague scare in Siberia has become a Rorschach test for public health fears in a post-Covid world.
Russian officials are investigating the death of a worker at a plague research laboratory. They say she died of pneumonia. But speculation online has suggested she may have died from pneumonic plague.
Russian authorities deny this and say there is no risk of an outbreak. So why has the story sparked so much alarm? And how has the legacy of the Covid pandemic played into people's fears of another global health crisis?
The BBC’s health reporter, Jim Reed, joins The Global Story’s Tristan Redman to explain what we know about the case in Russia – and whether the world is prepared for a potential outbreak.
Producers: Hannah Moore and Cat Farnsworth
Executive producer: Martine Powers
Digital producer: Charlie Firth
Technical producer: Mike Regaard
Mix: Travis Evans
Senior news editor: China Collins
Photo: Plague bacteria (Yersinia pestis), computer illustration. The bacterium causes bubonic plague. Credit: Getty Images.

What began as a revolt over public school funding has spilled into a much bigger fight over the future of France.
Now, hundreds of thousands of people have taken to the streets, and clashes with police have left teenagers and officers injured. More than 6,000 people have been arrested, most of them minors.
But what sparked these demonstrations? How could they shape next year’s election in France? And why have they become a conservative political talking point in the US?
The Global Story’s own Tristan Redman — a Paris resident himself — speaks with co-host Asma Khalid about the history of Parisian street protests, what he’s heard from students on the ground, and what this movement could mean for France’s future.
Producers: Mhairi MacKenzie and Xandra Ellin
Executive producer: Martine Powers
Digital producer: Mel Stewart-Smith
Technical producer: Mike Regaard
Mix: Travis Evans
Senior news editor: China Collins
Photo: A student holds up a French national flag while demonstrating outside the Carmes campus of the Institut Catholique de Paris (ICP), in Paris, France. (Firas Altoukhi/EPA/Shutterstock)

Israel is marking three years since the 7 October attacks, in which around 1,200 people were killed by Hamas-led attackers and a further 251 hostages were taken back to Gaza.
The commemorations come in the final weeks of a pivotal election campaign. Benjamin Netanyahu’s record on national security is coming under immense scrutiny, amid reports that the government failed to act on warnings in the months leading up to the 2023 attacks – allegations that the prime minister has strongly denied.
Tristan Redman speaks to BBC correspondent Jon Donnison, who is in East Jerusalem.
Producer: Sam Chantarasak
Executive producer: James Shield
Sound engineer: Travis Evans
Senior news editor: China Collins
(Photo: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu attends a memorial ceremony for the three year anniversary of the October 7 attack. Credit: Debbie Hill/Reuters)