Tech, climate, illiberalism. Any one of those is enough to fill a policymaker’s plate. So why not take on all three at once? It’s actually six, if you listen to Johnny Ryan. He’s on the frontlines of the biggest developments that will alter European way of life as we know it — and in many ways already have. In an extensive interview, Ryan sheds light on the malicious actors and processes that underpin and exploit how we communicate, trade, and vote.

Just before you want to hide under the covers, we also discuss what we can do about it. It turns out, many of the tools necessary are already there. They just need to get used effectively.

Elsewhere on the episode, we can’t ignore the application for arrest warrants against Israeli and Hamas leadership, announced this weekend at the International Criminal Court in The Hague. Regardless how that develops, it’s a doozy. And we are eyeing developments in Georgia, particularly how they make the EU look fairly feckless.

Listen in and stay tuned as we further develop this venture with our partner, EUobserver. We welcome your feedback, so be in touch! You can subscribe hereand get us where your ears go for podcasts:

* Apple Podcasts

* Spotify

* EUObserver

Among other things, Martin Gak writes Inconclusive Thoughts; and William Glucroft writes The ‘Schland. We’d love to see you over there, too!

As a tiny operation, we do our best to spellcheck, factcheck, and contextualize all the information presented in the podcast. But pobody’s nerfect. If you hear something that doesn’t sound right — write! We welcome your feedback.

If your kind of music is the sort of derivative spectacle that sounds like something you could have asked ChatGPT for (fwiw, I did that here), then the Eurovision Song Contest is for you. If your kind of values culture seems confused about what artistic expression is for, then you may want to consider a job with the European Broadcasting Union, which puts on the annual event.

At least EVSC gives us plenty to talk about. And we do with EUobserver editor and friend of the pod, Andrew Rettman, as we imagine a world where people vote with as much enthusiasm in elections as they do for woah-oh-oh. If it were up to me, I’d say these Finnish guys for president; at least they were fun. But it seems I am in the minority on that one.

While on the topic of those vaunted European values, we also look at a Eurovision finalist that is going the other way: Georgia. Despite its European Union candidacy and widespread public gaze westward, its leaders thought they might mix things up with a “foreign agents” law. That can’t end well.

Another political surprise: The socialists take Catalonia. Not gonna lie, I did not see that coming. Add to that the double-whammy verdicts against Germany’s Alternative for Germany, and it was something of a good week for progressive and lefty-ish forces across the bloc. Let’s see if they can keep up that momentum as we lumber towards European elections in early June.

For the inside track on what’s up in Brussels, we chat with Hugo Ortiz Dubon, a former ambassador to the EU from El Salvador who’s heading up diplomatic dialogue via The Brussels Times.

Finally: Just as we wrapped up recording, two big European news items broke. Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico was shot in an assassination attempt and, in the Netherlands, Geert Wilders got his right-wing coalition deal. Who will lead it remains TBD.

So, clearly lots already there for next week’s episode. As they say, stay with us!

Listen in and stay tuned as we further develop this venture with our partner, EUobserver. We welcome your feedback, so be in touch! You can subscribe hereand get us where your ears go for podcasts:

* Apple Podcasts

* Spotify

* EUObserver

Among other things, Martin Gak writes Inconclusive Thoughts; and William Glucroft writes The ‘Schland. We’d love to see you over there, too!

As a tiny operation, we do our best to spellcheck, factcheck, and contextualize all the information presented in the podcast. But pobody’s nerfect. If you hear something that doesn’t sound right — write! We welcome your feedback.

Germany’s national rail company, Deutsche Bahn, is not known for the most reliable infrastructure — physical or digital. So we rolled the dice running an episode from a high-speed train to Munich. Come along for the ride!

The European Union has bigger problems than delayed trains — and so does Germany. Just weeks ahead of European elections, politicians are coming under attack. We look at what’s behind these incidents — violence begets violence.

Two interviews shed further light on the state of solidarity and cohesion in the European Union. First, literally: Greece-based journalist Konstantina Maltepioti has an in-depth report about EU cohesion policy and what enlarging the bloc might do to it. Martin then speaks to André Wilkens about how a tenuous political situation looks from the world of culture.

Chinese leader Xi Jinping paid the EU a visit for the first time in years, so we have a wrap of that. Plus other stories causing a stir in, to, and from Europe.

Stay with us for some other stories happening around the EU this week, plus an interview with Constance Sommerey and Darian Meacham from the University of Maastricht. They host the university’s podcast, “Woke as Science.”

Listen in and stay tuned as we further develop this venture with our partner, EUobserver. We welcome your feedback, so be in touch! You can subscribe here and get us where your ears go for podcasts:

* Apple Podcasts

* Spotify

* EUObserver

Among other things, Martin Gak writes Inconclusive Thoughts; and William Glucroft writes The ‘Schland. We’d love to see you over there, too!

As a tiny operation, we do our best to spellcheck, factcheck, and contextualize all the information presented in the podcast. But pobody’s nerfect. If you hear something that doesn’t sound right — write! We welcome your feedback.