University Challenges

Today, Kemi Badenoch, gave a speech addressing Conservative defectors and detractors. Adam chats to Alex, in Westminster about how Kemi Badenoch’s speech accused her opponents of ‘psychodrama’, called defectors ‘drama queens’ and presented her vision for the future of the Conserv ...  Show more

We’re only four weeks into the new year, but it feels like a year’s worth of news has happened already. So Radio 4 asked us to do a (very early) review of 2026 so far, and we thought we’d put it in your feed as a bonus episode. Adam and Henry are in the studio. Chris joins from h ...  Show more

Pro-Palestine encampments and protests at universities continue to spread across the US. Students at Columbia University have been threatened with expulsion and arrest. The Take spoke with Mariam Said, an alumna of Columbia, for her advice to student activists. 

Amol and Nick review the year in news, featuring the biggest moments and their favourite interviews from the Today programme in 2023. They’re joined by some familiar voices including Chris Mason, Martha Kearney and friend of the pod, statistician Prof Sir David Spiegelhalter. Wit ...  Show more

The College Board piloted an AP course on African American Studies. Then, after conservative pushback, it debuted a revised curriculum. But the group insists it’s not caving to political pressure. This episode was produced by Siona Peterous and Hady Mawajdeh, fact-checked by Laur ...  Show more

Response to student protests across the US have escalated to violence this week, with students clashing, and arrests now exceeding 1,000. We hear from students and BBC colleagues from across the States.And the Americast team speaks to Niall Ferguson, historian and senior fellow a ...  Show more