Podcasts about European Broadcasting Union

The Eurovision Song Contest has been thrown into turmoil after four nations said they would boycott next year's event. Ireland, Spain, the Netherlands and Slovenia had wanted Israel to be excluded because of the war in Gaza, but a meeting of the European Broadcasting Union said it could take part. Other countries, including Germany, had threatened to walk out if Israel could not participate. Also: A prominent Palestinian militia leader and Hamas opponent has been killed in Gaza. The US military says it conducted another deadly strike on a boat suspected of carrying illegal narcotics as questions mount over the legality of previous attacks. Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of Congo sign a peace deal in Washington. A British inquiry has found that Vladimir Putin bears "moral responsibility" for the poisoning of a woman in England with the nerve agent Novichok in 2018. And how a volcanic eruption may have helped spread the Black Death in the 1300s.The Global News Podcast brings you the breaking news you need to hear, as it happens. Listen for the latest headlines and current affairs from around the world. Politics, economics, climate, business, technology, health – we cover it all with expert analysis and insight. Get the news that matters, delivered twice a day on weekdays and daily at weekends, plus special bonus episodes reacting to urgent breaking stories. Follow or subscribe now and never miss a moment. Get in touch: globalpodcast@bbc.co.uk

Ua lagolagoina e fa'alapotopotoga fa'asalalau i Siamani ma Austria le faai'uga a le Iuni o Fa'asalalauga i Europa, le European Broadcasting Union, e lē fa'alavelave pe tete'e ai i le ‘auai o Isara'elu i le tauvaga pese le Eurovision Song Contest o le 2026.

Meta has begun limiting certain accounts ahead of the official start of the Social Media Ban on 10 December. Platforms that violate the law could face fines of up to 50 million dollars. Israeli media say Yasser Abu Shabab, a Bedouin tribal leader who led an anti-Hamas faction in Gaza, has been killed in Rafah. The European Broadcasting Union has confirmed that Israel will be allowed to take part in next year's Eurovision Song Contest. - 16歳未満のソーシャルメディア利用を制限する法律「ソーシャルメディア・バン」の施行まで1週間を切った今週、ソーシャルメディア大手・メタは、一部アカウントの制限を開始しました。法律が施行される12月10日以降、違反した企業には最大5,000万ドルの罰金が科される可能性があります。ガザで反ハマス勢力を率いていたベドウィン部族の指導者、ヤセル・アブ・シャバブ氏が、ラファで殺害されました。イスラエルのメディアが伝えています。欧州最大級の国別対抗ソングコンテスト「ユーロビジョン」の来年の大会をめぐり、ヨーロッパ放送連合（EBU）がイスラエルの参加を認めました。1週間を振り返るニュースラップです。

Europe's largest cultural event is once again confronting the tension between entertainment and geopolitics. After the European Broadcasting Union formally confirmed Israel's eligibility for the 2026 Eurovision Song Contest, four countries - Spain, the Netherlands, Ireland and Slovenia - immediately withdrew. Their walkout has triggered one of the most serious disputes in the contest's modern history, raising questions about neutrality, artistic expression and how far Eurovision can distance itself from real-world conflicts.

Broadcasters in Ireland, The Netherlands, Slovenia and in Spain announced that they would neither show nor take part in next year's competition, due to be held in Vienna. Members of the European Broadcasting Union, which organises the contest, had earlier decided not to hold a vote on barring Israel from competing. Also on the programme: Vladimir Putin is feted by Narendra Modi on his visit to India; and we hear what the late Steve Cropper, legendary session guitarist, taught Otis Reading.(Picture: Israeli entrant Yuval Raphael ahead of the 2025 Eurovision Song Contest, in Basel, Switzerland, May 14, 2025 Credit: REUTERS/Denis Balibouse)

Spain, Ireland, Slovenia and the Netherlands have all said they won't send acts to the Eurovision Song Contest next May in protest at Israel's participation. There have been calls for Israel to be excluded because of the war in Gaza, but members of the European Broadcasting Union, which organises the contest, rejected a push for a vote on the issue. Also on the programme: an Inquiry finds the Russian President Vladimir Putin "morally responsible" for the death by poisoning of Dawn Sturgess in Salisbury; and we remember Steve Cropper, the legendary guitarist who's died at the age of 84.

Møde nr. 10 i salen 1) Besvarelse af oversendte spørgsmål til ministrene (spørgetid)Spørgetid. 1.1) Spm. nr. S 134 om en løsladelse af den danske statsborger Abdulhadi al-KhawajaSpm. nr. S 134 Til udenrigsministeren af: Trine Pertou Mach (EL): Hvilke skridt kan og bør Danmark tage for at udvirke en løsladelse af den danske statsborger Abdulhadi al-Khawaja, der har siddet som fange i Bahrain siden 2011 som følge af sit arbejde for menneskerettigheder?1.2) Spm. nr. S 111 om statsbudgettet prioriteres fornuftigtSpm. nr. S 111 Til finansministeren af: Astrid Carøe (SF): Mener ministeren, at statsbudgettet prioriteres fornuftigt, når pengene – jf. årets finanslov – bruges på at uddele skattelettelser og gøre fredagsslik billigere, samtidig med at børnefamilier i hele landet kæmper for at få enderne til at mødes i en tid med historisk høje fødevarepriser?1.3) Spm. nr. S 133 om regeringen vil hjælpe Fredericia økonomisk, hvis sagen med Ørsted tabes af statenSpm. nr. S 133 Til finansministeren af: Pelle Dragsted (EL): Vil regeringen hjælpe Fredericia økonomisk, hvis sagen med Ørsted tabes af staten, så de ikke sidder tilbage med en millionregning, der vil ramme deres ældre, børn og velfærd?1.4) Spm. nr. S 70 om at bekæmpe utryghed i nærområdetSpm. nr. S 70 Til justitsministeren af: Peter Skaarup (DD): Hvad mener regeringen om, at vold, stoffer og et enormt antal af butikstyverier er blevet hverdagen for naboer til bostedet på Granvej 12 i Bagsværd, og hvad vil regeringen gøre for at bekæmpe utrygheden i området?1.5) Spm. nr. S 71 om chikane af kandidater til byrådet i OdenseSpm. nr. S 71 Til justitsministeren af: Alex Ahrendtsen (DF): Hvad er ministerens holdning til, at Dansk Folkepartis spidskandidat til byrådet i Odense, Signe Keldorff, bliver truet, chikaneret og passet op af indvandrerbander på grund af hendes politiske tilhørsforhold, og hvad agter ministeren at gøre ved dette, så kandidater kan være politisk aktive uden at blive chikaneret?1.6) Spm. nr. S 101 om brugen af genetisk slægtsforskningSpm. nr. S 101 Til justitsministeren af: Mette Thiesen (DF): Mener ministeren, at brugen af genetisk slægtsforskning bør blive udvidet, således at metoden også skal kunne bruges til f.eks. at kunne identificere et uidentificeret lig, hittebørn eller lignende?1.7) Spm. nr. S 116 om at DR bruger fotos af alvorligt syge børn til at underbygge påstanden om, at børn dør af sult i GazaSpm. nr. S 116 Til kulturministeren af: Katrine Daugaard (LA): Når DR tilsyneladende gentagne gange bruger fotos af alvorligt syge børn til at underbygge påstanden om, at børn dør af sult i Gaza, mener ministeren så, at det er udtryk for en faktabaseret journalistisk tilgang, eller mener ministeren snarere, at det er udtryk for forsøg på bevidst manipulation?1.8) Spm. nr. S 135 om Israel bør deltage i Det Europæiske Melodi Grand Prix i Wien i 2026Spm. nr. S 135 Til kulturministeren af: Trine Pertou Mach (EL): Mener ministeren, at Israel på baggrund af den israelske regerings krigsforbrydelser i Gaza siden 2023 bør deltage i Det Europæiske Melodi Grand Prix i Wien i 2026, og vil ministeren opfordre DR til at arbejde for at udelukke Israel, når European Broadcasting Union holder generalforsamling i december 2025, og til at trække sig fra konkurrencen, medmindre Israel udelukkes i 2026?1.9) Spm. nr. S 132 om at få priserne ned på danskernes madSpm. nr. S 132 Til erhvervsministeren af: Pelle Dragsted (EL): Hvad vil ministeren gøre for at få priserne ned på danskernes mad og bekæmpe spekulation og unfair prissætning i supermarkederne?1.10) Spm. nr. S 17 om at indføre et dansk forbud mod eksport af sprøjtemidler, som det er forbudt at anvende i EUSpm. nr. S 17 Til miljøministeren af: Claus Jørgensen (SF): Vil regeringen indføre et dansk forbud mod eksport af sprøjtemidler, som det er forbudt at anvende i EU?1.11) Spm. nr. S 113 om Naturpark SvanegrundSpm. nr. S 113 Til miljøministeren af: Søren Egge Rasmussen (EL): Mener ministeren, at det er foreneligt med ambitionerne for Naturpark Svanegrund – Danmarks største naturpark – at der er fem havbrug i Horsens Fjord, som ikke kan opnå nye tilladelser, fordi de tilsammen har negativ påvirkning på Natura 2000-området i Horsens Fjord?1.12) Spm. nr. S 141 om den nye emballageafgift der trådte i kraft den 1. oktoberSpm. nr. S 141 Til miljøministeren af: Hans Kristian Skibby (DD): Hvad er ministerens holdning til den nye emballageafgift, der trådte i kraft den 1. oktober, og som volder erhvervsvirksomheder administrativt bøvl og ekstra udgifter, og som i sidste ende vælter højere priser over på landets forbrugere, og hvad vil ministeren konkret gøre for at afhjælpe konsekvenserne?1.13) Spm. nr. S 137 om at prioritere, at der gøres mere for kvinder, som oplever gener og komplikationer efter fødslenSpm. nr. S 137 Til ministeren for ligestilling af: Astrid Carøe (SF): Vil ministeren være med til at prioritere, at der gøres mere for kvinder, som oplever gener og komplikationer efter fødslen – såsom nedsunket underliv, bækkenproblemer, delte mavemuskler, bristninger og inkontinens – og som i dag alt for ofte står uden hjælp, f.eks. ved at arbejde for landsdækkende efterfødselsklinikker, så alle kvinder uanset bopæl kan få adgang til den nødvendige behandling og genoptræning?1.14) Spm. nr. S 142 om at danske vognmænd og transportvirksomheder nu tanker diesel i SverigeSpm. nr. S 142 Til skatteministeren af: Hans Kristian Skibby (DD): Hvad er ministerens holdning til, at danske vognmænd og transportvirksomheder nu tanker diesel i Sverige i stedet for i Danmark på grund af den forhøjede dieselafgift og indførelse af godstransportafgift, begge pr. 1. januar 2025, med det resultat, at statskassen står til at miste over 0,5 mia. kr. årligt, og mener ministeren, at en forhøjet brændstofafgift og indførelse af en godstransportafgift har været fornuftig?1.15) Spm. nr. S 76 om at elever med særlige behov skal søge om hjælp til hver enkelt prøve de aflægger i folkeskolenSpm. nr. S 76 Til børne- og undervisningsministeren af: Sigurd Agersnap (SF): Mener ministeren, at det er rimeligt, at elever med særlige behov, herunder elever med ordblindhed, skal søge om særlige vilkår for at få hjælp til hver enkelt prøve, de aflægger i folkeskolen?1.16) Spm. nr. S 146 om ufrivilligt skolefraværSpm. nr. S 146 Til børne- og undervisningsministeren af: Sigurd Agersnap (SF): Mener ministeren, at problemerne med ufrivilligt skolefravær var mindre i 1980'erne?1.17) Spm. nr. S 124 om at nedlægge Danmarks Evalueringsinstitut (EVA)Spm. nr. S 124 Til børne- og undervisningsministeren af: Sofie Lippert (SF): Vil ministeren forklare det fuldstændig ubegribeligt ulogiske i at koble forskning sammen med administrative besparelser i staten og dernæst beslutte at nedlægge Danmarks Evalueringsinstitut (EVA), som vil være et farvel til 25 års videnproduktion og videnindsamling og en reduktion af midler til evalueringer i en tid, hvor regeringen har vedtaget store reformer af både folkeskolen, gymnasierne og de videregående uddannelser?1.18) Spm. nr. S 143 om at Kolding Kommune pålægger alle dagtilbud styrings- og datakonceptet »Læringsledelse«Spm. nr. S 143 Til børne- og undervisningsministeren af: Lotte Rod (RV): Hvad er ministerens holdning til, at Kolding Kommune ved at pålægge alle dagtilbud styrings- og datakonceptet »Læringsledelse« forbryder sig mod dagtilbudsaftalen fra 2017, hvoraf det fremgår, at staten og kommunerne som udgangspunkt ikke skal pålægge dagtilbuddene tiltag som lokale læreplaner, mål eller koncepter, der rækker ud over den pædagogiske læreplan, og hvad vil ministeren gøre for at indskærpe, at kommuner skal stoppe med at pålægge koncepter?1.19) Spm. nr. S 82 om stigning i antallet af ikkevestlige indvandrere og efterkommere på førtidspensionSpm. nr. S 82 Til beskæftigelsesministeren af: Nick Zimmermann (DF): Har de socialdemokratisk ledede regeringers udlændinge- og beskæftigelsespolitik fejlet, når antallet af ikkevestlige indvandrere og efterkommere på førtidspension er steget med 32 pct. siden 2019, svarende til en stigning på mere end 10.000 personer?1.20) Spm. nr. S 131 om afskaffelsen af støtten til særlig vanskeligt stillede borgere med høje boligudgifterSpm. nr. S 131 Til beskæftigelsesministeren af: Victoria Velasquez (EL): Hvordan vurderer ministeren de individuelle og samfundsmæssige konsekvenser af afskaffelsen af støtten til særlig vanskeligt stillede borgere med høje boligudgifter, som regeringen har fået gennemført, og hvordan kan regeringen forsvare, at familier med børn, der i forvejen har svært ved at få økonomien til at hænge sammen, mister støtten til at betale deres husleje?1.21) Spm. nr. S 138 om regeringens kontanthjælpsreformSpm. nr. S 138 Til beskæftigelsesministeren af: Victoria Velasquez (EL): Mener ministeren stadig, at regeringens kontanthjælpsreform »ikke vil føre til flere hjemløse« nu, hvor udenrigsminister Lars Løkke Rasmussen erkender, at reformen »lader de allermest udsatte havne i en situation, hvor de ikke kan blive skrevet op til en bolig, fordi de ikke kan betale den«, og Venstre selv erkender, at reformen »gør, at nogle kan have svært ved at betale huslejen«, og agter ministeren nu at gøre noget, så udsatte borgere og børnefamilier ikke er hjemløse?1.22) Spm. nr. S 136 om at sikre elektrificering af jernbanen nord for AalborgSpm. nr. S 136 Til transportministeren af: Peder Hvelplund (EL): Vil ministeren sikre elektrificering af jernbanen nord for Aalborg – både af hensyn til borgerne i Vendsyssel og for at sikre mulighed for elektrificeret godstransport på skinner fra Skandinavien til resten af Europa – som foreslået af BRN-netværket (Business Region North Denmark)?1.23) Spm. nr. S 140 om den planlagte motorvej mellem Næstved og RønnedeSpm. nr. S 140 Til transportministeren af: Peter Skaarup (DD): Er det ministerens holdning, at den planlagte motorvej mellem Næstved og Rønnede skal etableres i sin helhed som en fuldt tosporet motorvej?1.24) Spm. nr. S 145 om en mindre grad af løbende statslig opfølgning og evaluering af reformer og politiske aftalerSpm. nr. S 145 Til uddannelses- og forskningsministeren af: Sofie Lippert (SF): Er ministeren i lyset af nedlæggelsen af Danmarks Evalueringsinstitut (EVA) enig med børne- og undervisningsministeren i, at det er godt for udviklingen af vores samfund med en mindre grad af løbende statslig opfølgning og evaluering af reformer og politiske aftaler?1.25) Spm. nr. S 139 om at reglerne for korttidsudlejning i praksis omgås på systematisk visSpm. nr. S 139 Til ministeren for byer og landdistrikter af: Lisbeth Bech-Nielsen (SF): Hvordan kan ministeren acceptere, at reglerne for korttidsudlejning i praksis omgås på så systematisk vis, at et enkelt firma uden problemer kan leje 170 lejligheder ulovligt ud på Airbnb, og hvornår vil regeringen tage ansvar og sikre en reel indberetningspligt for udlejningsplatforme som Airbnb, sådan som vi i SF allerede har foreslået i vores beslutningsforslag, så vi kan få sat en stopper for disse systematiske lovovertrædelser?1.26) Spm. nr. S 127 om, at Haderslev Kommune har fået hjælp fra en imam i det kommunale forebyggelsesarbejdeSpm. nr. S 127 Til udlændinge- og integrationsministeren af: Peter Kofod (DF): Hvad mener ministeren om, at Haderslev Kommune har fået hjælp fra en imam i det kommunale forebyggelsesarbejde? 1.27) Spm. nr. S 128 om, at Haderslev Kommune har fået hjælp fra en imam i det kommunale forebyggelsesarbejdeSpm. nr. S 128 Til udlændinge- og integrationsministeren af: Peter Kofod (DF): Hvad mener ministeren om, at Socialdemokratiets borgmesterkandidat i Haderslev, Marie Skødt, på kommunalbestyrelsesmødet den 28. oktober udtaler følgende om kommunens brug af en imam i forebyggelsesarbejdet: »Skal vi virkelig afvise sådan en hjælp, bare fordi den kommer fra en muslim? Det er ikke danske værdier – det er frygt forklædt som politik«? 2) 1. behandling af L 17 om delvis udmøntning af aftale om reform af professionsbachelor- og erhvervsakademiuddannelser i Danmark m.v.Forslag til lov om ændring af lov om erhvervsakademiuddannelser og professionsbacheloruddannelser og lov om akkreditering af videregående uddannelsesinstitutioner. (Nye praksisrettede professionsmasteruddannelser og andre elementer fra aftale om reform af professionsbachelor- og erhvervsakademiuddannelser i Danmark m.v.). Af uddannelses- og forskningsministeren (Christina Egelund).3) 1. behandling af L 18 om forskellige ændringer for Danmarks Frie ForskningsfondForslag til lov om ændring af lov om Danmarks Forsknings- og Innovationspolitiske Råd og Danmarks Frie Forskningsfond. (Begrænsning af visse ansøgninger til Danmarks Frie Forskningsfond, fondens samarbejde med andre offentlige og private bevillingsgivere samt forlængelse af fondens strategiperiode). Af uddannelses- og forskningsministeren (Christina Egelund).4) 1. behandling af L 8 om fremtidens S-bane, støj fra jernbaneaktiviteter, ekspropriation m.v.Forslag til lov om ændring af jernbaneloven og lov om DSB. (Fremtidens S-bane, støj fra jernbaneaktiviteter, ekspropriation m.v.). Af transportministeren (Thomas Danielsen).5) 1. behandling af L 47 om de færøske myndigheders etapevise overtagelse af sagsområdet luftfart m.v.Forslag til lov om ændring af lov om luftfart. (De færøske myndigheders etapevise overtagelse af sagsområdet luftfart m.v.). Af transportministeren (Thomas Danielsen).

Møde nr. 10 i salen 1) Besvarelse af oversendte spørgsmål til ministrene (spørgetid)Spørgetid. 1.1) Spm. nr. S 134 om en løsladelse af den danske statsborger Abdulhadi al-KhawajaSpm. nr. S 134 Til udenrigsministeren af: Trine Pertou Mach (EL): Hvilke skridt kan og bør Danmark tage for at udvirke en løsladelse af den danske statsborger Abdulhadi al-Khawaja, der har siddet som fange i Bahrain siden 2011 som følge af sit arbejde for menneskerettigheder?1.2) Spm. nr. S 111 om statsbudgettet prioriteres fornuftigtSpm. nr. S 111 Til finansministeren af: Astrid Carøe (SF): Mener ministeren, at statsbudgettet prioriteres fornuftigt, når pengene – jf. årets finanslov – bruges på at uddele skattelettelser og gøre fredagsslik billigere, samtidig med at børnefamilier i hele landet kæmper for at få enderne til at mødes i en tid med historisk høje fødevarepriser?1.3) Spm. nr. S 133 om regeringen vil hjælpe Fredericia økonomisk, hvis sagen med Ørsted tabes af statenSpm. nr. S 133 Til finansministeren af: Pelle Dragsted (EL): Vil regeringen hjælpe Fredericia økonomisk, hvis sagen med Ørsted tabes af staten, så de ikke sidder tilbage med en millionregning, der vil ramme deres ældre, børn og velfærd?1.4) Spm. nr. S 70 om at bekæmpe utryghed i nærområdetSpm. nr. S 70 Til justitsministeren af: Peter Skaarup (DD): Hvad mener regeringen om, at vold, stoffer og et enormt antal af butikstyverier er blevet hverdagen for naboer til bostedet på Granvej 12 i Bagsværd, og hvad vil regeringen gøre for at bekæmpe utrygheden i området?1.5) Spm. nr. S 71 om chikane af kandidater til byrådet i OdenseSpm. nr. S 71 Til justitsministeren af: Alex Ahrendtsen (DF): Hvad er ministerens holdning til, at Dansk Folkepartis spidskandidat til byrådet i Odense, Signe Keldorff, bliver truet, chikaneret og passet op af indvandrerbander på grund af hendes politiske tilhørsforhold, og hvad agter ministeren at gøre ved dette, så kandidater kan være politisk aktive uden at blive chikaneret?1.6) Spm. nr. S 101 om brugen af genetisk slægtsforskningSpm. nr. S 101 Til justitsministeren af: Mette Thiesen (DF): Mener ministeren, at brugen af genetisk slægtsforskning bør blive udvidet, således at metoden også skal kunne bruges til f.eks. at kunne identificere et uidentificeret lig, hittebørn eller lignende?1.7) Spm. nr. S 116 om at DR bruger fotos af alvorligt syge børn til at underbygge påstanden om, at børn dør af sult i GazaSpm. nr. S 116 Til kulturministeren af: Katrine Daugaard (LA): Når DR tilsyneladende gentagne gange bruger fotos af alvorligt syge børn til at underbygge påstanden om, at børn dør af sult i Gaza, mener ministeren så, at det er udtryk for en faktabaseret journalistisk tilgang, eller mener ministeren snarere, at det er udtryk for forsøg på bevidst manipulation?1.8) Spm. nr. S 135 om Israel bør deltage i Det Europæiske Melodi Grand Prix i Wien i 2026Spm. nr. S 135 Til kulturministeren af: Trine Pertou Mach (EL): Mener ministeren, at Israel på baggrund af den israelske regerings krigsforbrydelser i Gaza siden 2023 bør deltage i Det Europæiske Melodi Grand Prix i Wien i 2026, og vil ministeren opfordre DR til at arbejde for at udelukke Israel, når European Broadcasting Union holder generalforsamling i december 2025, og til at trække sig fra konkurrencen, medmindre Israel udelukkes i 2026?1.9) Spm. nr. S 132 om at få priserne ned på danskernes madSpm. nr. S 132 Til erhvervsministeren af: Pelle Dragsted (EL): Hvad vil ministeren gøre for at få priserne ned på danskernes mad og bekæmpe spekulation og unfair prissætning i supermarkederne?1.10) Spm. nr. S 17 om at indføre et dansk forbud mod eksport af sprøjtemidler, som det er forbudt at anvende i EUSpm. nr. S 17 Til miljøministeren af: Claus Jørgensen (SF): Vil regeringen indføre et dansk forbud mod eksport af sprøjtemidler, som det er forbudt at anvende i EU?1.11) Spm. nr. S 113 om Naturpark SvanegrundSpm. nr. S 113 Til miljøministeren af: Søren Egge Rasmussen (EL): Mener ministeren, at det er foreneligt med ambitionerne for Naturpark Svanegrund – Danmarks største naturpark – at der er fem havbrug i Horsens Fjord, som ikke kan opnå nye tilladelser, fordi de tilsammen har negativ påvirkning på Natura 2000-området i Horsens Fjord?1.12) Spm. nr. S 141 om den nye emballageafgift der trådte i kraft den 1. oktoberSpm. nr. S 141 Til miljøministeren af: Hans Kristian Skibby (DD): Hvad er ministerens holdning til den nye emballageafgift, der trådte i kraft den 1. oktober, og som volder erhvervsvirksomheder administrativt bøvl og ekstra udgifter, og som i sidste ende vælter højere priser over på landets forbrugere, og hvad vil ministeren konkret gøre for at afhjælpe konsekvenserne?1.13) Spm. nr. S 137 om at prioritere, at der gøres mere for kvinder, som oplever gener og komplikationer efter fødslenSpm. nr. S 137 Til ministeren for ligestilling af: Astrid Carøe (SF): Vil ministeren være med til at prioritere, at der gøres mere for kvinder, som oplever gener og komplikationer efter fødslen – såsom nedsunket underliv, bækkenproblemer, delte mavemuskler, bristninger og inkontinens – og som i dag alt for ofte står uden hjælp, f.eks. ved at arbejde for landsdækkende efterfødselsklinikker, så alle kvinder uanset bopæl kan få adgang til den nødvendige behandling og genoptræning?1.14) Spm. nr. S 142 om at danske vognmænd og transportvirksomheder nu tanker diesel i SverigeSpm. nr. S 142 Til skatteministeren af: Hans Kristian Skibby (DD): Hvad er ministerens holdning til, at danske vognmænd og transportvirksomheder nu tanker diesel i Sverige i stedet for i Danmark på grund af den forhøjede dieselafgift og indførelse af godstransportafgift, begge pr. 1. januar 2025, med det resultat, at statskassen står til at miste over 0,5 mia. kr. årligt, og mener ministeren, at en forhøjet brændstofafgift og indførelse af en godstransportafgift har været fornuftig?1.15) Spm. nr. S 76 om at elever med særlige behov skal søge om hjælp til hver enkelt prøve de aflægger i folkeskolenSpm. nr. S 76 Til børne- og undervisningsministeren af: Sigurd Agersnap (SF): Mener ministeren, at det er rimeligt, at elever med særlige behov, herunder elever med ordblindhed, skal søge om særlige vilkår for at få hjælp til hver enkelt prøve, de aflægger i folkeskolen?1.16) Spm. nr. S 146 om ufrivilligt skolefraværSpm. nr. S 146 Til børne- og undervisningsministeren af: Sigurd Agersnap (SF): Mener ministeren, at problemerne med ufrivilligt skolefravær var mindre i 1980'erne?1.17) Spm. nr. S 124 om at nedlægge Danmarks Evalueringsinstitut (EVA)Spm. nr. S 124 Til børne- og undervisningsministeren af: Sofie Lippert (SF): Vil ministeren forklare det fuldstændig ubegribeligt ulogiske i at koble forskning sammen med administrative besparelser i staten og dernæst beslutte at nedlægge Danmarks Evalueringsinstitut (EVA), som vil være et farvel til 25 års videnproduktion og videnindsamling og en reduktion af midler til evalueringer i en tid, hvor regeringen har vedtaget store reformer af både folkeskolen, gymnasierne og de videregående uddannelser?1.18) Spm. nr. S 143 om at Kolding Kommune pålægger alle dagtilbud styrings- og datakonceptet »Læringsledelse«Spm. nr. S 143 Til børne- og undervisningsministeren af: Lotte Rod (RV): Hvad er ministerens holdning til, at Kolding Kommune ved at pålægge alle dagtilbud styrings- og datakonceptet »Læringsledelse« forbryder sig mod dagtilbudsaftalen fra 2017, hvoraf det fremgår, at staten og kommunerne som udgangspunkt ikke skal pålægge dagtilbuddene tiltag som lokale læreplaner, mål eller koncepter, der rækker ud over den pædagogiske læreplan, og hvad vil ministeren gøre for at indskærpe, at kommuner skal stoppe med at pålægge koncepter?1.19) Spm. nr. S 82 om stigning i antallet af ikkevestlige indvandrere og efterkommere på førtidspensionSpm. nr. S 82 Til beskæftigelsesministeren af: Nick Zimmermann (DF): Har de socialdemokratisk ledede regeringers udlændinge- og beskæftigelsespolitik fejlet, når antallet af ikkevestlige indvandrere og efterkommere på førtidspension er steget med 32 pct. siden 2019, svarende til en stigning på mere end 10.000 personer?1.20) Spm. nr. S 131 om afskaffelsen af støtten til særlig vanskeligt stillede borgere med høje boligudgifterSpm. nr. S 131 Til beskæftigelsesministeren af: Victoria Velasquez (EL): Hvordan vurderer ministeren de individuelle og samfundsmæssige konsekvenser af afskaffelsen af støtten til særlig vanskeligt stillede borgere med høje boligudgifter, som regeringen har fået gennemført, og hvordan kan regeringen forsvare, at familier med børn, der i forvejen har svært ved at få økonomien til at hænge sammen, mister støtten til at betale deres husleje?1.21) Spm. nr. S 138 om regeringens kontanthjælpsreformSpm. nr. S 138 Til beskæftigelsesministeren af: Victoria Velasquez (EL): Mener ministeren stadig, at regeringens kontanthjælpsreform »ikke vil føre til flere hjemløse« nu, hvor udenrigsminister Lars Løkke Rasmussen erkender, at reformen »lader de allermest udsatte havne i en situation, hvor de ikke kan blive skrevet op til en bolig, fordi de ikke kan betale den«, og Venstre selv erkender, at reformen »gør, at nogle kan have svært ved at betale huslejen«, og agter ministeren nu at gøre noget, så udsatte borgere og børnefamilier ikke er hjemløse?1.22) Spm. nr. S 136 om at sikre elektrificering af jernbanen nord for AalborgSpm. nr. S 136 Til transportministeren af: Peder Hvelplund (EL): Vil ministeren sikre elektrificering af jernbanen nord for Aalborg – både af hensyn til borgerne i Vendsyssel og for at sikre mulighed for elektrificeret godstransport på skinner fra Skandinavien til resten af Europa – som foreslået af BRN-netværket (Business Region North Denmark)?1.23) Spm. nr. S 140 om den planlagte motorvej mellem Næstved og RønnedeSpm. nr. S 140 Til transportministeren af: Peter Skaarup (DD): Er det ministerens holdning, at den planlagte motorvej mellem Næstved og Rønnede skal etableres i sin helhed som en fuldt tosporet motorvej?1.24) Spm. nr. S 145 om en mindre grad af løbende statslig opfølgning og evaluering af reformer og politiske aftalerSpm. nr. S 145 Til uddannelses- og forskningsministeren af: Sofie Lippert (SF): Er ministeren i lyset af nedlæggelsen af Danmarks Evalueringsinstitut (EVA) enig med børne- og undervisningsministeren i, at det er godt for udviklingen af vores samfund med en mindre grad af løbende statslig opfølgning og evaluering af reformer og politiske aftaler?1.25) Spm. nr. S 139 om at reglerne for korttidsudlejning i praksis omgås på systematisk visSpm. nr. S 139 Til ministeren for byer og landdistrikter af: Lisbeth Bech-Nielsen (SF): Hvordan kan ministeren acceptere, at reglerne for korttidsudlejning i praksis omgås på så systematisk vis, at et enkelt firma uden problemer kan leje 170 lejligheder ulovligt ud på Airbnb, og hvornår vil regeringen tage ansvar og sikre en reel indberetningspligt for udlejningsplatforme som Airbnb, sådan som vi i SF allerede har foreslået i vores beslutningsforslag, så vi kan få sat en stopper for disse systematiske lovovertrædelser?1.26) Spm. nr. S 127 om, at Haderslev Kommune har fået hjælp fra en imam i det kommunale forebyggelsesarbejdeSpm. nr. S 127 Til udlændinge- og integrationsministeren af: Peter Kofod (DF): Hvad mener ministeren om, at Haderslev Kommune har fået hjælp fra en imam i det kommunale forebyggelsesarbejde? 1.27) Spm. nr. S 128 om, at Haderslev Kommune har fået hjælp fra en imam i det kommunale forebyggelsesarbejdeSpm. nr. S 128 Til udlændinge- og integrationsministeren af: Peter Kofod (DF): Hvad mener ministeren om, at Socialdemokratiets borgmesterkandidat i Haderslev, Marie Skødt, på kommunalbestyrelsesmødet den 28. oktober udtaler følgende om kommunens brug af en imam i forebyggelsesarbejdet: »Skal vi virkelig afvise sådan en hjælp, bare fordi den kommer fra en muslim? Det er ikke danske værdier – det er frygt forklædt som politik«? 2) 1. behandling af L 17 om delvis udmøntning af aftale om reform af professionsbachelor- og erhvervsakademiuddannelser i Danmark m.v.Forslag til lov om ændring af lov om erhvervsakademiuddannelser og professionsbacheloruddannelser og lov om akkreditering af videregående uddannelsesinstitutioner. (Nye praksisrettede professionsmasteruddannelser og andre elementer fra aftale om reform af professionsbachelor- og erhvervsakademiuddannelser i Danmark m.v.). Af uddannelses- og forskningsministeren (Christina Egelund).3) 1. behandling af L 18 om forskellige ændringer for Danmarks Frie ForskningsfondForslag til lov om ændring af lov om Danmarks Forsknings- og Innovationspolitiske Råd og Danmarks Frie Forskningsfond. (Begrænsning af visse ansøgninger til Danmarks Frie Forskningsfond, fondens samarbejde med andre offentlige og private bevillingsgivere samt forlængelse af fondens strategiperiode). Af uddannelses- og forskningsministeren (Christina Egelund).4) 1. behandling af L 8 om fremtidens S-bane, støj fra jernbaneaktiviteter, ekspropriation m.v.Forslag til lov om ændring af jernbaneloven og lov om DSB. (Fremtidens S-bane, støj fra jernbaneaktiviteter, ekspropriation m.v.). Af transportministeren (Thomas Danielsen).5) 1. behandling af L 47 om de færøske myndigheders etapevise overtagelse af sagsområdet luftfart m.v.Forslag til lov om ændring af lov om luftfart. (De færøske myndigheders etapevise overtagelse af sagsområdet luftfart m.v.). Af transportministeren (Thomas Danielsen).

AI assistants are currently misrepresenting news content 45% of the time, according to a study by the European Broadcasting Union. This research, which evaluated 3,000 responses from popular AI chatbots, including ChatGPT and Google Gemini, revealed that 31% of responses had serious sourcing issues, while 30% contained inaccuracies. Notably, Google's Gemini performed the worst, with 76% of its outputs flawed. This raises significant concerns about the reliability of AI in disseminating information, particularly as these tools increasingly serve as intermediaries between users and content.In addition to issues of accuracy, a study from Stanford and Harvard found that AI chatbots tend to flatter users rather than challenge them, validating user behavior 50% more than human counterparts. This tendency to agree rather than provide constructive feedback can lead to a lack of critical engagement, further complicating the role of AI in decision-making processes. Furthermore, the Wikimedia Foundation reported an 8% decline in human traffic to Wikipedia, attributed to generative AI chatbots and search engines that provide direct answers without redirecting users to original sources. This trend highlights the growing challenge faced by platforms reliant on user engagement.The episode also discusses advancements in AI capabilities from major players like Microsoft, OpenAI, and Anthropic. Microsoft has introduced updates to its CoPilot AI assistant, including a group chat feature and a new Real Talk mode that encourages more dynamic interactions. OpenAI's ChatGPT can now search across multiple applications, while Anthropic's Claude has introduced a memory feature that retains past conversations. These developments indicate a shift towards more integrated and context-aware AI systems that can enhance collaboration and user experience.For Managed Service Providers (MSPs) and IT service leaders, the implications are clear. The effectiveness of AI now hinges on context, governance, and integration rather than just model size. As AI tools become more prevalent, the responsibility for ensuring their safe and effective use falls on providers. This presents an opportunity for MSPs to develop new service lines focused on AI hygiene and governance, helping clients navigate the complexities of AI while maximizing its potential benefits.Four things to know today 00:00 The Limits of AI: Research Shows Chatbots Mislead, Overagree, and Undermine the Information Ecosystem04:27 A 1997 PC Running AI? The Future of Intelligence Might Be Smaller, Cheaper, and Closer to Home08:08 AI's Getting Personal — Microsoft, OpenAI, and Anthropic Roll Out Smarter, More Human Chatbots13:26 From Feedback to Fixes: Microsoft's New Copilot Brings AI to Customer Experience and Operational Intelligence This is the Business of Tech.    Supported by:  https://mailprotector.com/mspradio/

The European Broadcasting Union has postponed its plan to hold a membership vote to decide if Israel's broadcaster KAN will be allowed to compete in next year's Eurovision. While it remains unclear if the vote will still happen, it doesn't fully resolve how the EBU got to this point in the first place. We'll take a closer look at other times the EBU's non-political stance has been tested and see what lessons can be applied going forward. Responsive Summary Yugoslavia (3:20) Administrative Changes to the Contest (13:40) Armenia and Azerbaijan (16:42) Georgia (26:58) Final Thoughts (32:14) Subscribe The EuroWhat? Podcast is available wherever you get your podcasts. Find your podcast app to subscribe here (https://www.eurowhat.com/subscribe). Comments, questions, and episode topic suggestions are always welcome. You can shoot us an email (mailto:eurowhatpodcast@gmail.com) or reach out on Bluesky @eurowhat.bsky.social (https://bsky.app/profile/eurowhat.bsky.social). Join the EuroWhat AV Club! If you would like to help financially support the show, we are hosting the EuroWhat AV Club over on Patreon! We have a slew of bonus episodes with deep dives on Eurovision-adjacent topics.

The European Broadcasting Union will vote in November on whether Israel can compete in the 2026 Eurovision Song Contest in Vienna. Under a new rule, if more than 50% of members vote to exclude Israel, next year's contest will take place without Israel. And the vote, expected in December has now been brought forward to November. KAN's Mark Weiss spoke with Alon Amir, an expert and lecturer on the Eurovision and politics and a former spokesperson for Israel's Eurovision delegation. (Photo: Kan)See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The organisation behind the Eurovision Song Contest has confirmed it will hold a vote to determine whether Israel will participate next year. The European Broadcasting Union confirmed it will invite 68 member countries to give their view at a general assembly meeting in November. UK correspondent Gavin Grey says other countries - including Ireland, the Netherlands, Slovenia, Iceland and Spain have all said they would consider dropping out of the contest if Israel was allowed to stay involved. LISTEN ABOVESee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

We record a special episode discussing Martin Österdahl's Eurovision legacy and ask what could happen next for the European Broadcasting Union?Plus we identify some of the candidates we believe could be best placed to become the new Executive Supervisor.Click this link to sign up to The Euro Trip + on Patreon for just £4.99 a month.To support the podcast, head to Buy Me A Coffee.Follow us on Twitter, Instagram & TikTok or email hello@eurotrippodcast.com, and find us online at eurotrippodcast.com. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Better (a month) late than never, we're celebrating the competition that made superstars of Cliff Richard, ABBA and, erm, Daz Sampson. Both the Eurovision Song Contest itself, and those month's film ESC: The Story of Fire Saga will probably baffle our US listener but it's a must-see for any fans of the contest.Filmed in Iceland and the UK, it's definitely within our remit despite starring Will Ferrell as the international cast balance him out and the European Broadcasting Union itself has blurry borders, incorporating Russia and Australia along with the more traditional European countries. Settle down for a large helping of (Swiss?) cheese and join us as we award Douze points to Fire Saga!

Dal 1956 una volta l'anno una competizione tra canzoni coinvolge un intero continente e di più. L'Eurovision song contest entusiasma milioni di telespettatori e richiama appassionati di ogni angolo d'Europa: quest'anno a Basilea, dopo la vittoria di Nemo nella passata edizione. Non solo Europe, però, perché la European Broadcasting Union afferisce alla zona europea di radiodiffusione, che arriva in nordafrica e parte del Medio Oriente. A quello che un tempo si chiamava Concorso eurovisivo della canzone, e solo in Italia era noto - decenni fa - come Eurofestival partecipano Paesi europei, non europei, Paesi che vorrebbero essere europei. E gli intrecci della geopolitica non hanno mai abbandonato un evento che non è solo di spettacoli. Ne parliamo con Sashko Krapivkin, attore, cantante, creator ucraino, Keti Nogieva fondatrice della tv italo-georgiana KNTV, con Fabien Randanne, giornalista francese di 20minutes, autore del libro "Queerovison - histoires de la plus grande scène du monde" e con i fan alla St.Jakobshalle di Basilea, Svizzera.

Der ESC ist die größte Musikshow der Welt. Am Samstag (17. Mai) werden wohl wieder 150 Millionen Menschen zuschauen. Das schafft viel Aufmerksamkeit und viel Platz für Politik. Der Veranstalter, die European Broadcasting Union, will mit neuen Regeln das Chaos von 2024 vermeiden.**********Ihr könnt uns auch auf diesen Kanälen folgen: TikTok und Instagram .

Over 70 former Eurovision participants have called for the European Broadcasting Union to ban Israel's state broadcaster from contest. Emma O'Kelly reports.

RTÉ has asked the European Broadcasting Union for a discussion on Israel's inclusion in the Eurovision Song Contest that takes place later this month due to the ongoing war in Gaza.Johnny Fallon, strategy director at Carr Communications and Eurovision enthusiast, joins The Last Word to discuss the likelihood of Israel being excluded from the contest.Catch the full chat by pressing the 'Play' button on this page!

Previous Eurovision winners have signed a letter demanding the European Broadcasting Union ban Israel from the song contest. One of the signatories is Ireland's own Charlie McGettigan, who won Eurovision in 1994. Charlie spoke to Newstalk Breakfast this morning.

Previous Eurovision winners have signed a letter demanding the European Broadcasting Union ban Israel from the song contest. One of the signatories is Ireland's own Charlie McGettigan, who won Eurovision in 1994. Charlie spoke to Newstalk Breakfast this morning.

Schon der erste ESC war auf seine Art politisch. Und es gibt seit der Gründung 1956 dutzende Beispiele für politische Aktionen oder Statements. Früher schien das noch eher möglich als heute. Weshalb ist das so? Um beim ESC aufzufallen, müsse man entweder politisch oder sexuell provozieren, sagt ESC-Historiker Dean Vuletic. Das sei schon relativ früh so gewesen. Eines der ersten politischen Statements machte die junge Bundesrepublik Deutschland beim ersten ESC 1956, indem es Walter Andreas Schwarz, einen jüdischen Holocaustüberlebenden, nach Lugano an die erste Ausgabe des Musikwettbewerbs schickte. Immer wieder sorgte der ESC - ob subtil oder direkt - für politische Kontroversen. Und das, obschon das im Reglement der European Broadcasting Union so nicht vorgesehen ist. Ganz ohne Politik gehe es eben nicht, findet Dean Vuletic. Denn das sei das, was das Publikum verlange. Woran man festmache, dass ein Auftritt politisch sei, das sei gar nicht so einfach, sagt die Musikwissenschaftlerin Saskia Jaszoltowski. Sei es eine Friedensfahne, bestimmte Daten, die man verwende in den Songtexten oder andere Merkmale. Es sei eine grosse Verantwortung, so transparent wie möglich zu entscheiden, was erlaubt sei auf der Bühne und was nicht. Die politische Dimension des ESC war und ist letztlich sehr vielschichtig. Und ganz verhindern kann die EBU die politische Komponente wohl nie, sind sich die Experten einig. Politisch ist lange auch die Organisationsstruktur: Bis 1990 ist es den ehemaligen Ostblockstaaten nicht erlaubt, am ESC teilzunehmen. Deshalb wird dort einige Zeit lang ein eigener Wettbewerb durchgeführt: Der Intervision Song Contest. Karel Gott nimmt 1968 an beiden Wettbewerben teil. Beim westeuropäischen ESC mit einem sehr politischen Lied, das von der Trennung von Ost und West handelt. ____________________ Feedback oder Fragen? Wir freuen uns auf Nachrichten an geschichte@srf.ch ____________________ In dieser Episode sind zu hören: · Dean Vuletic, Historiker und ESC-Experte · Saskia Jaszoltowski, Musikwissenschaftlerin, Universität Graz ____________________ Links · https://www.srf.ch/audio · https://www.srf.ch/sendungen/eurovision-song-contest ____________________ Recherche, Produktion und Moderation: Silvan Zemp ____________________ Hier lernt ihr die Schweizer Geschichte so richtig kennen – mit all ihren Eigenarten, Erfolgen, Fails, Persönlichkeiten und Dramen. Im Podcast «Geschichte» (ehemals «Zeitblende») von SRF Wissen tauchen wir in die Schweizer Vergangenheit ein – und möchten verstehen, wie sie unsere Gegenwart prägt. Habt ihr Themenvorschläge oder Feedback? Meldet euch bei geschichte@srf.ch.

Eine offizielle ESC-App gibt es jedes Jahr, diese wird von der European Broadcasting Union lanciert. Basel Tourismus hat aber noch eine zweite App konzipiert. Diese weist, zusätzlichen zu den ESC-Events, auch auf Basler Sehenswürdigkeiten hin. Ausserdem: - Unternehmen im BL betroffen von US-Zöllen - Skulptur auf Basler Marktplatz

The European Broadcasting Union's 2025 News Report -- Leading Newsrooms in the Age of Generative AI -- has just been published. In this episode, Laurent Frat speaks with Dr Alexandra Borchardt, the lead author, and Olle Zachrison, Director of AI at Swedish Radio.  We dive into the insights and practical steps in the report -- from the tech advances, industry trends and public adoption of AI to the benefits and risks of integrating AI into newsgathering. Our conversation highlights the importance of quality journalism, human creativity and collaboration by public service media in navigating this new information age while protecting the integrity and reliability of the news. 

Spotlight auf Leonhard Baumgartner heißt es kommende Saison bei der Jeunesse. Mit dem Gewinn des Eurovision Young Musicians Wettbewerb der European Broadcasting Union hat sich der junge Wiener Geiger Leonhard Baumgartner letzten August einem internationalem Publikum vorgestellt. Damit tritt er auch in die Fußstapfen von Julian Rachlin oder Lydia Baich, die diesen Wettbewerb ebenfalls gewonnen haben. Für Furore sorgte zuletzt seine Weltersteinspielung von Mozarts neu entdeckter Serenade KV 648. Wir dürfen gespannt sein wie der junge Wiener Geiger Leonhard Baumgartner das Brahms Violinkonzert musizieren wird. Im kommenden Oktober musiziert er mit seinem Pantaleón Trio auch im Zyklus AnTasten im Ehrbar Saal Musik von Astor Piazzolla & Co.

In this episode, we're shining the spotlight on Henry Kelly, the Irish broadcaster best known for hosting the legendary quiz show Going for Gold. From his early career in journalism to becoming a household name on British television, we'll explore how Kelly's charm, wit, and distinctive presenting style helped make Going for Gold a daytime TV classic. While he had a successful career in radio and television beyond the show, it's his role as quizmaster that cemented his place in 80s and 90s pop culture. We'll take a deep dive into Going for Gold—how it was created as part of a European Broadcasting Union initiative, its unique format featuring contestants from across the continent, and why Kelly himself initially thought the idea was “nonsense.” Against all expectations, the show became a massive hit, particularly with students, and even led to Kelly being made honorary president of a student union. From its instantly recognisable theme tune (composed by none other than Hans Zimmer!) to the intense final round where contestants had to answer “four in a row,” Going for Gold stood out from other quiz shows of its time. We'll talk about Henry Kelly's iconic catchphrases, the occasional language barrier mishaps, and the time a Swedish contestant answered “the farmer” instead of “pawn” in a chess question—only to be proven technically correct! With its gold-and-blue futuristic set and its pan-European lineup, Going for Gold was unlike anything else on TV, and Kelly's enthusiastic hosting style was key to its success. Beyond Going for Gold, we'll touch on Kelly's broader career, including his early work as a journalist at The Irish Times, his time on Game for a Laugh, and his later years in radio, where he continued to entertain audiences with his signature charm. While Going for Gold ended in 1996 (with a brief revival in 2008), Kelly remains fondly remembered as one of British TV's great quizmasters.

Il Codacons ha presentato un esposto ufficiale all’European Broadcasting Union per escludere la canzone "Espresso macchiato" dalla competizione dell'Eurovision song contest. L'accusa contro l'autore, il cantante estone Tommy Cash, è di ironizzare sugli stereotipi dell'Italia style of life con riferimento al caffè, agli spaghetti e alla mafia. Sentiamo cosa ne pensano i nostri ascoltatori.

In a special episode from the host city of this year's contest, we bring you all the biggest names as we mark the official start of Switzerland's hosting of Eurovision 2025.Recorded just minutes after the end of the live broadcast, we catch up with Contest Producer Christer Björkman, while Executive Producer duo Reto Peritz and Moritz Stadler also update us on the progress of the host broadcaster as they continue to prepare for the live shows.Two of the European Broadcasting Union's most important people also join us as Eurovision Director Martin Green gives us his thoughts on recent developments, including the lack of accessible tickets for fans, and Martin Österdahl returns to the podcast to reflect on a difficult twelve months, and look ahead to the future.To support the podcast, head to Buy Me A Coffee.Follow us on Twitter, Instagram & TikTok or email hello@eurotrippodcast.com, and find us online at eurotrippodcast.com.This episode was brought to you in collaboration with This Is Basel. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Having a clear brand positioning is key to creating brand consistency and connection across time and touchpoints. The Eurovision song contest is hosted by a new country with a new campaign each year so creating brand clarity is especially key. In this episode, Lina Moussaoui, Brand Manager for the Eurovision Song Contest at the European Broadcasting Union and Marise Pronk, Senior Account Manager at Kantar talk to Lindsay Gorton-Lee, Brand Strategy Consultant at Kantar about how they unearthed the essence of the brand and created a clear framework to connect and inspire all their internal and external partners. The written case study, ‘Great brands are built on great stories' can be found in Kantar's Brand Strategy Unpacked booklet here. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In light of controversies at this year's Eurovision in Malmo, a new code of conduct is being introduced by the European Broadcasting Union...but what does it entail?Joining Seán to discuss is Richard Taylor, contributor to Eurovision Ireland - the official Irish Eurovision Blog.

It's been almost three months since the deadly shooting in Skärholmen in Stockholm's south west, where a father was killed in front of his 12-year-old son. We speak to the leaders of Blåuggla, a volunteer group that does night patrols in Skärholmen, to hear how the community's feeling. And: 50 years ago, Sweden became the first country in the world to introduce paid parental leave for both mums and dads — and now even grandparents and family friends will be able to take time off work for caring duties. We hear about this change to the parental leave scheme.Also: It's emerged that a fully-vaccinated child died after being infected with TBE last year, we speak to an expert on communicable diseases to find out more. And change is on the way for the Eurovision Song Contest following the controversies at this year's event in Malmö. We hear from the European Broadcasting Union's media director Jean Philip De Tender.Presenters: Michael Walsh and Dave RussellProducer: Dave Russell

The European Broadcasting Union has recently published its 2024 News Report entitled “Trusted Journalism in the Age of Generative AI.” In this episode, Laurent Frat speaks with Prof. Alexandra Borchardt, PhD, the report's lead author, and Ezra Eeman, Head of Strategy and Innovation at NPO.  They discuss how generative AI is widely believed to be a game-changer for media accessibility and inclusiveness; however, it may also present a significant challenge to the media sector by diminishing the visibility of journalism.  The conversation also touches on the growing reliance on the services of large tech conglomerates and the broader societal and environmental repercussions.  Acknowledging the challenges that AI can also bring, their exchange concludes with some advice on the role that journalists and media organizations have to play. Read the report here: News Report 2024: Trusted Journalism in the Age of AI

Eurovision might best be described as “the Olympics meets American Idol”: a singing contest where countries face off for the number one spot in musical glory. It's incredibly campy, silly, and mostly very fun.But this year's Eurovision — which wrapped on the weekend — was dogged by controversy, as organizers faced protests for allowing Israel to compete amid the ongoing war in Gaza.The European Broadcasting Union, which runs Eurovision, insists the contest is “non-political”. But our guest today argues that geo-political ideals and tensions have coursed through this competition since its inception in 1956.Tess Megginson — a PhD candidate studying central and eastern European history at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill — explains.For transcripts of Front Burner, please visit: https://www.cbc.ca/radio/frontburner/transcriptsTranscripts of each episode will be made available by the next workday.

We quiz the European Broadcasting Union on the uniquely complex situation presented by the contest in Sweden this year as we catch up with Communications and Digital Manager Dave Goodman.Later we look ahead to the second semi-final in Malmö as we chat to Saba from Denmark, songwriter and backing vocalist Melanie Wehbe, Keiino's Tom Hugo, and another member of team Kaleen, Eurovision winning songwriter Jimmy Joker.Grab yourself a free ticket to The Euro Trip: Live on Thursday 9th May.To support the podcast, head to Buy Me A Coffee.Follow us on Twitter, Instagram & TikTok or email hello@eurotrippodcast.com, and find us online at eurotrippodcast.com. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A group of 400 Irish artists have signed an online petition calling on singer Bambie Thug to boycott the Eurovision. The Macroom performer was chosen to represent Ireland in the upcoming competition in Sweden. But there have been persistent calls to refuse to take part as long as Israel is included in the line-up. The middle eastern country's participation has been described by protesters as 'art-washing.' It echoes similar campaigns across Europe for their respective entrants to drop out, following months of relentless bombardment of the Gaza strip. Bambie has expressed solidarity with the protesters and believes the European Broadcasting Union has made the wrong decision to allow Israel perform - but like their fellow competitors, the 'ouija pop' singer won't be boycotting the event in May. Irish Times reporter and Eurovision superfan, Laura Slattery, talks about Bambie's predicament, about the competition's long history of political controversy and what will happen in Malmo.Presented by Bernice Harrison. Produced by Aideen Finnegan. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This episode features a conversation with Katherine Dunn, Content Editor at the Oxford Climate Journalism Network, a program led by the University of Oxford's Reuters Institute. It was recorded in March 2024.Through her work at the Oxford Climate Journalism Network (or OCJN) Katherine has worked with more than 500 journalists from over 100 countries, seeking to improve climate literacy and climate storytelling. In 2023, she was a co-author of the European Broadcasting Union's, “Climate Journalism That Works”, a report on how newsrooms can better cover climate change and build a climate strategy. I actually discussed this amazing resource in a previous episode, with Alexandra Borchardt, so, though Katherine and I didn't talk about it here, if you're interested, you can find a link to that episode below.Before joining the Reuters Institute, Katherine spent the best part of a decade working as a reporter and editor in business journalism, with a focus on the energy and commodities markets and industries. This included a stint as editor at Fortune magazine, where she covered climate change and the energy transition. Amongst other things, Katherine and I discussed what makes an effective climate news story, the obligations of newsrooms when it comes to addressing climate issues, and the unique role of meteorologists in delivering relevant and actionable local climate insights.Additional links: About the Oxford Climate Journalism NetworkClimate news insights from The Reuters InstituteInsights on news avoidance from The Digital News Report“Find your mango” and other learnings from the OCJNThe BBC's “Life at 50C” seriesThe New Yorker's stories about electricians My interview with Alexandra Borchardt about the “Climate Journalism That Works” report.

Some people love Eurovision. Others don't get it. But beyond the camp and kitsch of the annual song contest there's much to observe about the politics of Europe and the wider region. In this episode, author and broadcaster Dave Keating starts with discord between Sweden and France over language. The sourest notes were struck in the mid-1970s after the Swedish group ABBA won with a song in English alluding to the historic French defeat at Waterloo. The French then stepped up their campaign against contestants using lyrics other than in their national languages. The so-called ban on English was only lifted in 1999 just as Sweden was once again emerging as a pop music powerhouse and as Eastern and Central Europe states were emerging from behind the Iron Curtain. They too were keen to sing in English. Since the turn of the century Eurovision has been buffeted by tensions between Russia and countries like Georgia and Ukraine that have used their performances to denounce Moscow. The dissonance has sorely tested the European Broadcasting Union, the state and public media alliance covering 56 countries behind Eurovision. Russia has traditionally been a major TV market for the contest and the Union only excluded Russian participation in 2022, after the full-scale invasion of Ukraine. In the build-up to this year's contest in Malmö, Sweden, on May 11, the focus has been on Israel's entrant Eden Golan amid the ongoing bloodletting in Gaza. Despite an outcry from artists and performers against the participation of Israel — and despite accusations of double standards now that Russia has been excluded — Golan looks set to perform. Israeli visitors to Malmö have been advised to keep a low profile while Swedish authorities have said they're well prepared for protests, including inside the contest arena. Read Dave's latest Substack about Eurovision.Support the show

In a world with countless subscription services the power of free-to-air broadcast is vital to the success of sports. In this episode of StreamTime Sports host Nick Meacham is joined by Glen Killane, executive director for the European Broadcasting Union. Talking points: Who is the European Broadcast Union and who do they work with? – (6:06) Why did the EBU decide to launch its own Eurovision Sport OTT service ? – (19:10) How will Eurovision Sport be monetised? – (33:23) What is the future role of free-to-air in sports? – (36:59)

As war continues in Gaza, a cultural row is flaring on the other side of the world over Israel's involvement in the 2024 edition of the Eurovision Song Contest. The country's act was initially blocked from entering the world's largest music competition as its proposed lyrics were deemed too political, but they have since been cleared to compete. This has outraged many on social media, with some fans calling for other countries to boycott the event.Eurovision's organisers, the European Broadcasting Union, insist the contest is apolitical, but they have invited scrutiny in recent years particularly over the decision to ban Russia from competing due to its ongoing invasion of Ukraine. On this episode James Reynolds discusses the fallout with Eurovision reporter Daniel Rosney, and they consider whether it's ever possible for Eurovision to stay out of politics.The Global Story brings you trusted insights from BBC journalists worldwide. We're keen to hear from you, wherever you are in the world. We want your ideas, stories and experiences to help us understand and tell The Global Story. Email us at theglobalstory@bbc.com You can also message us or leave a voice note via WhatsApp on +44 330 123 9480. #TheGlobalStoryThis episode was made by Laurie Kalus and Alix Pickles. The technical producers were Mike Regaard and Matt Hewitt. The assistant editor is Sergi Forcada Freixas and the senior news editor is Jonathan Aspinwall.

As war continues in Gaza, a cultural row is flaring on the other side of the world over Israel's involvement in the 2024 edition of the Eurovision Song Contest. The country's act was initially blocked from entering the world's largest music competition as its proposed lyrics were deemed too political, but they have since been cleared to compete. This has outraged many on social media, with some fans calling for other countries to boycott the event.Eurovision's organisers, the European Broadcasting Union, insist the contest is apolitical, but they have invited scrutiny in recent years particularly over the decision to ban Russia from competing due to its ongoing invasion of Ukraine. On this episode James Reynolds discusses the fallout with BBC News Eurovision Reporter Daniel Rosney, and they consider whether it's ever possible for Eurovision to stay out of politics.If you like this episode then you can hear more episodes from The Global Story by subscribing to the podcast.

EP 12: The Spin-Offs   Riker Lynch (Glee, Dancing With The Stars, American Song Contest) John D. Carrion, Executive Director of The NYC Gay Men's Chorus   On this episode, we're talking about the numerous times that the European Broadcasting Union (or EBU) has tried to spin-off the Eurovision concept. We start by taking about the European spin-offs that were started under the EBU's network of national broadcasters, including Eurovision Young Musicians, Eurovision Young Dancers, and Junior Eurovision. We then talk about the complications of exporting the Eurovision brand under a commercial model abroad, focusing in on the American Song Contest-- hosted by Kelly Clarkson and Snoop Dogg.   We then interview American Song Contest runner-up Riker Lynch as he pulls back the curtain on the process of bringing the Eurovision concept to American audiences.   Finally, Executive Director of the NYC Gay Men's Chorus and Eurovision fan John D. Carrion stops by to play a game about the American Song Contest called Eurovision: Lost In Translation. John uses his knowledge of Eurovision to evaluate ASC numbers and analyze what it is about the Eurovision format that's so difficult to export.   Riker Lynch, Feel The Love: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=of46fG2nl3s   LOST IN TRANSLATION WITH JOHN CARRION:   Michael Bolton, Beautiful World: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s9ES-AmDLBo Macy Gray, Every Night: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hSz20WF2fo8 AleXa, Wonderland: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Wyjs37rHy8 Sisqo, It's Up: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JDkyzOMozVc Jewel, The Story: https://www.facebook.com/nbc/videos/761038514913774/ Tenelle, Full Circle: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eeWlPwUl2mQ  

With hundreds of hours of video uploaded to social platforms every minute, eyewitness media is playing an ever-increasing role within newsrooms. Eyewitness Videos from bystanders and activists are emerging from all over the world, in real time, as events unfold.  With this influx of real-time content, newsrooms are presented with both opportunities and challenges. In this episode, Laurent Frat speaks with Derek Bowler, Head of Social Newsgathering at the European Broadcasting Union, and Andrew Smith, a producer and digital verification expert at the EBU. Together, we delve into the strategies and methodologies employed by the Eurovision Social Newswire to navigate this information landscape. We'll explore how they effectively discern fact from fiction and ensure responsible and ethical use of eyewitness media.

50 years ago ABBA won the contest for the song Waterloo.  Recently Brooke's old friend Charlie asked her to take part in a new podcast born of his love of and obsession with Eurovision, an international song contest organized annually by the European Broadcasting Union, or EBU, with reps from some 70 countries!  This week's midweek podcast is episode three of the new series "Mysteries of the Euroverse," hosted by Charlie Sohne and Magnus Riise.  On Instagram: @euroversepodcast On YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC6GlG8M6PKJOxfx5vk9jRiA www.euroversepodcast.com

50 years ago ABBA won the contest for the song Waterloo.  Recently Brooke's old friend Charlie asked her to take part in a new podcast born of his love of and obsession with Eurovision, an international song contest organized annually by the European Broadcasting Union, or EBU, with reps from some 70 countries!  This week's midweek podcast is episode three of the new series "Mysteries of the Euroverse," hosted by Charlie Sohne and Magnus Riise.  On Instagram: @euroversepodcast On YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC6GlG8M6PKJOxfx5vk9jRiA www.euroversepodcast.com

2020 was a dark time for live music. It also marked the first time in the Eurovision Song Contest's 65-year history where the competition was canceled. Rather than letting the lights go down in Rotterdam, Eurovision's fan community and the European Broadcasting Union found new ways to celebrate the contest's artists with at-home concerts, fan-driven countdowns, AI analysis of song content, and internet watchalongs of remastered editions of previous contests. When the contest returned in 2021, “Open Up”—the slogan carried over from the 2020 contest—took on new meaning. Participating nations took extra precautions to put on their selection processes safely while Eurovision made sure it could be “back for good.” Fans had more say in who would be representing their nation, the Rotterdam Ahoy crew tested the feasibility of large-scale music events, and improvements in streaming platforms over the last decade meant that even more eyes were on the contest. What wide-ranging effects could this have as Eurovision breaks out of its European bubble and starts bleeding into other areas of pop culture, including the Billboard Hot 100 and the 2023 Grammy Awards? PopCon 2023 Summary What is Eurovision? (8:43) A Big Tent (12:07) An Interlude About Digital Streaming Technology (13:10) It is a Normal Year at Eurovision and Everything is Fine and We're Definitely NOT About to be Rocked By a Global Pandemic That Will Shut Everything Down Nine Months from Now (16:44) #EurovisionAgain (28:57) Back for Good (35:02) Eurovision Song Contest: The Legend of Fire Saga (40:28) Televising Covid (42:08) New Engagement Opportunities (50:41) The Covid Bubble (53:30) The Grand Final (1:02:46) Eurovision Around the World (1:08:53) Thank you again to everyone listening, guests who have appeared on the show, guests who don't yet know they're going to be on the show (get hype!), and the Eurovision community at-large. This podcast is a labor of love and we're super proud to have made it to 200! Subscribe The EuroWhat? Podcast is available wherever you get your podcasts. Find your podcast app to subscribe here (https://www.eurowhat.com/subscribe). Comments, questions, and episode topic suggestions are always welcome. You can shoot us an email (mailto:eurowhatpodcast@gmail.com), reach out on Twitter @eurowhat (https://twitter.com/eurowhat), or give us a toot on Mastodon (https://douzepoints.social/invite/ZTd9ufAC). Over on Patreon, we have a slew of bonus episodes featuring the Eurowhat AV Club and deep dives on Eurovision-adjacent topics. Thank you for your support!

Polish state media still is treated as a legitimate public service by European authorities. Yet many Poles refer to it as a factory of hate. They say Polish state TV and radio first and foremost serve to advance the agenda of the ruling Law and Justice party in Warsaw. And while Silvio Berlusconi of Italy was a pioneer in bullying media, and Viktor Orbán of Hungary took state control to new extremes, the Polish hard right has been quick to catch up. Since Law and Justice came to power eight years ago, Polish state media has become an outlet for demonising judges, LGBT people, and opposition politicians — and the deleterious effects are even felt beyond Poland. In the case of Dorota Bawołek, a respected Polish TV correspondent in Brussels, the abuse appears to follow a pattern. First her words and actions are misrepresented; next those misrepresentations are turned into lurid stories broadcast by Polish state media; and finally Dorota is confronted by an avalanche of online trolling. The attacks on Dorota are part of wider concerns about press freedom that have prompted EU plans for a Media Freedom Act. Among the Act's priorities is stopping governments turning public service media into their mouthpieces — although few observers expect any immediate impact. For its part, the European Broadcasting Union has warned about the undue influence of "political masters" and it says it wants independent oversight of public media. Yet Polish state radio and television remain full EBU members. The latest attack on Dorota came in October after she interviewed Polish politician and former president of the European Council Donald Tusk. Tusk's centre-right Civic Platform is the only real viable challenger to Law and Justice in Poland's upcoming elections. But there are worries the elections will prove neither free nor fair, especially in a media environment largely controlled by Law and Justice. "The game is not fair, for sure," says Dorota. The "media are the fourth power" but "we are being killed and the EU is watching." Listen (in Polish) to Dorota's podcast Stacja Bruksela.Support the show

Last looked at over 2100 episodes ago and simply opened with "Eurovision", this is the official skill by the European Broadcasting Union. It'll tell you the winning song, artist and country and then ask you if you'd like to hear the track. Nice ⏺️ Feedback, comments, demos pleas to ✉️ thedottodotpodcast@gmail.com

So, this week we're going to do something a little different... It's our first ever episode celebrating the Eurovision Song Contest. And, before you say it - yes, technically Eurovision isn't a queer event. But, I mean... have you ever watched it? it's pretty bloody queer... And, to celebrate the 2023 competition I sat down to chat to Rob Holley, the Head of Content for the Eurovision Song Contest. Only we didn't talk about the contest itself - we chatted about #EurovisionAgain, an online watch-party of past competitions that Rob set up during those grim early days of the Covid-19 pandemic after discovering that 2020's competition was cancelled. I know that's a little bit different to our usual show, cause it's focussing on an online space rather than a physical space, but what struck me most during this conversation is how many similarities there are between #EurovisionAgain and queer bars - in particular this sense of community and belonging... which I think is pretty damn special, and certainly worth celebrating... We talk all about those early days of lockdown (which, honestly, I seem to have wilfully forgotten), what it was like for Rob to watch the meteoric success of his baby project, and, how #EurovisionAgain led him to snag his dream job with the EBU - the European Broadcasting Union. Do you have any memories of #EurovisionAgain, or any other online events that brought you joy during the pandemic? Well, if you have please get in touch - I want to create the biggest online record of people's memories and stories - go to www.lostspacespodcast.com and find the section 'Share a Lost Space' and tell me what you got up to! Bonus points for embarrassing photos! You can also find me on Facebook (www.facebook.com/lostspacespod), Instagram (www.instagram.com/lostspacespod) and Twitter (www.twitter.com/lostspacespod) Find out more about Rob by following him on Twitter (https://twitter.com/robholley). Or, if you want to know more about #EurovisionAgain go and look at that fancy wikipedia page - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/EurovisionAgain --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/k-anderson/message

Oh, you thought the Eurovision Song Contest was about songs? Or a fun international TV event that brings people together in lots of different countries? Or watching extremely vigorous dance numbers? OK, it is, but it's also about some pretty thorny language-related politics. Historian Dean Vuletic, author of Postwar Europe and the Eurovision Song Contest, discusses Eurovision's many linguistic controversies, and the ways the contest has been exploited politically - and caused political kick-offs too. This is the second instalment of a two-part Eurovisionallusionist. In the first part: a whole lot of tussling about which languages to compete in. Find out more about this episode at theallusionist.org/eurovision2, where there's also a transcript. The Allusionist's online home is theallusionist.org. Stay in touch at facebook.com/allusionistshow,instagram.com/allusionistshow, youtube.com/allusionistshow and twitter.com/allusionistshow. Support the show at theallusionist.org/donate and as well as keeping this independent podcast going, you also get glimpses into how the podsausage is made, regular livestreams, AND membership of the delightful Allusioverse Discord community with whom I will be watching the Eurovision final on 13 May - join us! The Allusionist is produced by me, Helen Zaltzman. Martin Austwick provides the original music. Hear Martin's own songs via PaleBirdMusic.com. Our ad partner is Multitude. If you want me to talk lovingly and winningly about your product or thing, sponsor an episode: contact Multitude at multitude.productions/ads. This episode is sponsored by: • Bombas, whose mission is to make the comfiest clothes ever, and match every item sold with an equal item donated. Go to bombas.com/allusionist to get 20% off your first purchase. • Kitsch, who make products to care for your hair and skin - shampoo and conditioner bars, soaps, sleep bonnets, heatless rollers, satin pillowcases and hoodies... Get a whopping 30% off your entire order at MyKitsch.com/allusionist.• Squarespace, your one-stop shop for building and running a beautifully designed website. Go to squarespace.com/allusionist for a free 2-week trial, and get 10 percent off your first purchase of a website or domain with the code allusionist.Support the show: http://patreon.com/allusionistSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

There aren't many multilingual, multinational television shows that have been running for nearly seven decades. But what makes the Eurovision Song Contest so special to me is not the music, or the dancing, or the costumes that range from spangletastic to tear-off: no, it's the people butting heads about language. Historian Dean Vuletic, author of Postwar Europe and the Eurovision Song Contest, recounts the many changes in Eurovision's language rules, and its language hopes and dreams. This is the first of a two-part Eurovisionallusionist. In the next instalment: dictators. Protests. Boom Bang-A-Bang Ding-a-Dong Diggi-Loo Diggi-Ley. Find out more about this episode at theallusionist.org/eurovision1, where there's also a transcript. The Allusionist's online home is theallusionist.org. Stay in touch at facebook.com/allusionistshow,instagram.com/allusionistshow, youtube.com/allusionistshow and twitter.com/allusionistshow. Support the show at theallusionist.org/donate and as well as keeping this independent podcast going, you also get glimpses into how the podsausage is made, regular livestreams, AND membership of the delightful Allusioverse Discord community with whom I will be watching the Eurovision final next month. The Allusionist is produced by me, Helen Zaltzman. Martin Austwick provides the original music. Hear Martin's own songs via PaleBirdMusic.com. Our ad partner is Multitude. If you want me to talk lovingly and winningly about your product or thing, sponsor an episode: contact Multitude at multitude.productions/ads. This episode is sponsored by: • Bombas, whose mission is to make the comfiest clothes ever, and match every item sold with an equal item donated. Go to bombas.com/allusionist to get 20% off your first purchase. • Squarespace, your one-stop shop for building and running a beautifully designed website. Go to squarespace.com/allusionist for a free 2-week trial, and get 10 percent off your first purchase of a website or domain with the code allusionist.Support the show: http://patreon.com/allusionistSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This week's episode looks at “All You Need is Love”, the Our World TV special, and the career of the Beatles from April 1966 through August 1967. Click the full post to read liner notes, links to more information, and a transcript of the episode. Patreon backers also have a thirteen-minute bonus episode available, on "Rain" by the Beatles. Tilt Araiza has assisted invaluably by doing a first-pass edit, and will hopefully be doing so from now on. Check out Tilt's irregular podcasts at http://www.podnose.com/jaffa-cakes-for-proust and http://sitcomclub.com/ NB for the first few hours this was up, there was a slight editing glitch. If you downloaded the old version and don't want to redownload the whole thing, just look in the transcript for "Other than fixing John's two flubbed" for the text of the two missing paragraphs. Errata I say "Come Together" was a B-side, but the single was actually a double A-side. Also, I say the Lennon interview by Maureen Cleave appeared in Detroit magazine. That's what my source (Steve Turner's book) says, but someone on Twitter says that rather than Detroit magazine it was the Detroit Free Press. Also at one point I say "the videos for 'Paperback Writer' and 'Penny Lane'". I meant to say "Rain" rather than "Penny Lane" there. Resources No Mixcloud this week due to the number of songs by the Beatles. I have read literally dozens of books on the Beatles, and used bits of information from many of them. All my Beatles episodes refer to: The Complete Beatles Chronicle by Mark Lewisohn, All The Songs: The Stories Behind Every Beatles Release by Jean-Michel Guesdon, And The Band Begins To Play: The Definitive Guide To The Songs of The Beatles by Steve Lambley, The Beatles By Ear by Kevin Moore, Revolution in the Head by Ian MacDonald, and The Beatles Anthology. For this episode, I also referred to Last Interview by David Sheff, a longform interview with John Lennon and Yoko Ono from shortly before Lennon's death; Many Years From Now by Barry Miles, an authorised biography of Paul McCartney; and Here, There, and Everywhere: My Life Recording the Music of the Beatles by Geoff Emerick and Howard Massey. Particularly useful this time was Steve Turner's book Beatles '66. I also used Turner's The Beatles: The Stories Behind the Songs 1967-1970. Johnny Rogan's Starmakers and Svengalis had some information on Epstein I hadn't seen anywhere else. Some information about the "Bigger than Jesus" scandal comes from Ward, B. (2012). “The ‘C' is for Christ”: Arthur Unger, Datebook Magazine and the Beatles. Popular Music and Society, 35(4), 541-560. https://doi.org/10.1080/03007766.2011.608978 Information on Robert Stigwood comes from Mr Showbiz by Stephen Dando-Collins. And the quote at the end from Simon Napier-Bell is from You Don't Have to Say You Love Me, which is more entertaining than it is accurate, but is very entertaining. Sadly the only way to get the single mix of "All You Need is Love" is on this ludicrously-expensive out-of-print box set, but the stereo mix is easily available on Magical Mystery Tour. Patreon This podcast is brought to you by the generosity of my backers on Patreon. Why not join them? Transcript A quick note before I start the episode -- this episode deals, in part, with the deaths of three gay men -- one by murder, one by suicide, and one by an accidental overdose, all linked at least in part to societal homophobia. I will try to deal with this as tactfully as I can, but anyone who's upset by those things might want to read the transcript instead of listening to the episode. This is also a very, very, *very* long episode -- this is likely to be the longest episode I *ever* do of this podcast, so settle in. We're going to be here a while. I obviously don't know how long it's going to be while I'm still recording, but based on the word count of my script, probably in the region of three hours. You have been warned. In 1967 the actor Patrick McGoohan was tired. He had been working on the hit series Danger Man for many years -- Danger Man had originally run from 1960 through 1962, then had taken a break, and had come back, retooled, with longer episodes in 1964. That longer series was a big hit, both in the UK and in the US, where it was retitled Secret Agent and had a new theme tune written by PF Sloan and Steve Barri and recorded by Johnny Rivers: [Excerpt: Johnny Rivers, "Secret Agent Man"] But McGoohan was tired of playing John Drake, the agent, and announced he was going to quit the series. Instead, with the help of George Markstein, Danger Man's script editor, he created a totally new series, in which McGoohan would star, and which McGoohan would also write and direct key episodes of. This new series, The Prisoner, featured a spy who is only ever given the name Number Six, and who many fans -- though not McGoohan himself -- took to be the same character as John Drake. Number Six resigns from his job as a secret agent, and is kidnapped and taken to a place known only as The Village -- the series was filmed in Portmeirion, an unusual-looking town in Gwynnedd, in North Wales -- which is full of other ex-agents. There he is interrogated to try to find out why he has quit his job. It's never made clear whether the interrogators are his old employers or their enemies, and there's a certain suggestion that maybe there is no real distinction between the two sides, that they're both running the Village together. He spends the entire series trying to escape, but refuses to explain himself -- and there's some debate among viewers as to whether it's implied or not that part of the reason he doesn't explain himself is that he knows his interrogators wouldn't understand why he quit: [Excerpt: The Prisoner intro, from episode Once Upon a Time, ] Certainly that explanation would fit in with McGoohan's own personality. According to McGoohan, the final episode of The Prisoner was, at the time, the most watched TV show ever broadcast in the UK, as people tuned in to find out the identity of Number One, the person behind the Village, and to see if Number Six would break free. I don't think that's actually the case, but it's what McGoohan always claimed, and it was certainly a very popular series. I won't spoil the ending for those of you who haven't watched it -- it's a remarkable series -- but ultimately the series seems to decide that such questions don't matter and that even asking them is missing the point. It's a work that's open to multiple interpretations, and is left deliberately ambiguous, but one of the messages many people have taken away from it is that not only are we trapped by a society that oppresses us, we're also trapped by our own identities. You can run from the trap that society has placed you in, from other people's interpretations of your life, your work, and your motives, but you ultimately can't run from yourself, and any time you try to break out of a prison, you'll find yourself trapped in another prison of your own making. The most horrifying implication of the episode is that possibly even death itself won't be a release, and you will spend all eternity trying to escape from an identity you're trapped in. Viewers became so outraged, according to McGoohan, that he had to go into hiding for an extended period, and while his later claims that he never worked in Britain again are an exaggeration, it is true that for the remainder of his life he concentrated on doing work in the US instead, where he hadn't created such anger. That final episode of The Prisoner was also the only one to use a piece of contemporary pop music, in two crucial scenes: [Excerpt: The Prisoner, "Fall Out", "All You Need is Love"] Back in October 2020, we started what I thought would be a year-long look at the period from late 1962 through early 1967, but which has turned out for reasons beyond my control to take more like twenty months, with a song which was one of the last of the big pre-Beatles pop hits, though we looked at it after their first single, "Telstar" by the Tornadoes: [Excerpt: The Tornadoes, "Telstar"] There were many reasons for choosing that as one of the bookends for this fifty-episode chunk of the podcast -- you'll see many connections between that episode and this one if you listen to them back-to-back -- but among them was that it's a song inspired by the launch of the first ever communications satellite, and a sign of how the world was going to become smaller as the sixties went on. Of course, to start with communications satellites didn't do much in that regard -- they were expensive to use, and had limited bandwidth, and were only available during limited time windows, but symbolically they meant that for the first time ever, people could see and hear events thousands of miles away as they were happening. It's not a coincidence that Britain and France signed the agreement to develop Concorde, the first supersonic airliner, a month after the first Beatles single and four months after the Telstar satellite was launched. The world was becoming ever more interconnected -- people were travelling faster and further, getting news from other countries quicker, and there was more cultural conversation – and misunderstanding – between countries thousands of miles apart. The Canadian media theorist Marshall McLuhan, the man who also coined the phrase “the medium is the message”, thought that this ever-faster connection would fundamentally change basic modes of thought in the Western world. McLuhan thought that technology made possible whole new modes of thought, and that just as the printing press had, in his view, caused Western liberalism and individualism, so these new electronic media would cause the rise of a new collective mode of thought. In 1962, the year of Concorde, Telstar, and “Love Me Do”, McLuhan wrote a book called The Gutenberg Galaxy, in which he said: “Instead of tending towards a vast Alexandrian library the world has become a computer, an electronic brain, exactly as an infantile piece of science fiction. And as our senses have gone outside us, Big Brother goes inside. So, unless aware of this dynamic, we shall at once move into a phase of panic terrors, exactly befitting a small world of tribal drums, total interdependence, and superimposed co-existence.… Terror is the normal state of any oral society, for in it everything affects everything all the time.…” He coined the term “the Global Village” to describe this new collectivism. The story we've seen over the last fifty episodes is one of a sort of cultural ping-pong between the USA and the UK, with innovations in American music inspiring British musicians, who in turn inspired American ones, whether that being the Beatles covering the Isley Brothers or the Rolling Stones doing a Bobby Womack song, or Paul Simon and Bob Dylan coming over to the UK and learning folk songs and guitar techniques from Martin Carthy. And increasingly we're going to see those influences spread to other countries, and influences coming *from* other countries. We've already seen one Jamaican artist, and the influence of Indian music has become very apparent. While the focus of this series is going to remain principally in the British Isles and North America, rock music was and is a worldwide phenomenon, and that's going to become increasingly a part of the story. And so in this episode we're going to look at a live performance -- well, mostly live -- that was seen by hundreds of millions of people all over the world as it happened, thanks to the magic of satellites: [Excerpt: The Beatles, "All You Need is Love"] When we left the Beatles, they had just finished recording "Tomorrow Never Knows", the most experimental track they had recorded up to that date, and if not the most experimental thing they *ever* recorded certainly in the top handful. But "Tomorrow Never Knows" was only the first track they recorded in the sessions for what would become arguably their greatest album, and certainly the one that currently has the most respect from critics. It's interesting to note that that album could have been very, very, different. When we think of Revolver now, we think of the innovative production of George Martin, and of Geoff Emerick and Ken Townshend's inventive ideas for pushing the sound of the equipment in Abbey Road studios, but until very late in the day the album was going to be recorded in the Stax studios in Memphis, with Steve Cropper producing -- whether George Martin would have been involved or not is something we don't even know. In 1965, the Rolling Stones had, as we've seen, started making records in the US, recording in LA and at the Chess studios in Chicago, and the Yardbirds had also been doing the same thing. Mick Jagger had become a convert to the idea of using American studios and working with American musicians, and he had constantly been telling Paul McCartney that the Beatles should do the same. Indeed, they'd put some feelers out in 1965 about the possibility of the group making an album with Holland, Dozier, and Holland in Detroit. Quite how this would have worked is hard to figure out -- Holland, Dozier, and Holland's skills were as songwriters, and in their work with a particular set of musicians -- so it's unsurprising that came to nothing. But recording at Stax was a different matter.  While Steve Cropper was a great songwriter in his own right, he was also adept at getting great sounds on covers of other people's material -- like on Otis Blue, the album he produced for Otis Redding in late 1965, which doesn't include a single Cropper original: [Excerpt: Otis Redding, "Satisfaction"] And the Beatles were very influenced by the records Stax were putting out, often namechecking Wilson Pickett in particular, and during the Rubber Soul sessions they had recorded a "Green Onions" soundalike track, imaginatively titled "12-Bar Original": [Excerpt: The Beatles, "12-Bar Original"] The idea of the group recording at Stax got far enough that they were actually booked in for two weeks starting the ninth of April, and there was even an offer from Elvis to let them stay at Graceland while they recorded, but then a couple of weeks earlier, the news leaked to the press, and Brian Epstein cancelled the booking. According to Cropper, Epstein talked about recording at the Atlantic studios in New York with him instead, but nothing went any further. It's hard to imagine what a Stax-based Beatles album would have been like, but even though it might have been a great album, it certainly wouldn't have been the Revolver we've come to know. Revolver is an unusual album in many ways, and one of the ways it's most distinct from the earlier Beatles albums is the dominance of keyboards. Both Lennon and McCartney had often written at the piano as well as the guitar -- McCartney more so than Lennon, but both had done so regularly -- but up to this point it had been normal for them to arrange the songs for guitars rather than keyboards, no matter how they'd started out. There had been the odd track where one of them, usually Lennon, would play a simple keyboard part, songs like "I'm Down" or "We Can Work it Out", but even those had been guitar records first and foremost. But on Revolver, that changed dramatically. There seems to have been a complex web of cause and effect here. Paul was becoming increasingly interested in moving his basslines away from simple walking basslines and root notes and the other staples of rock and roll basslines up to this point. As the sixties progressed, rock basslines were becoming ever more complex, and Tyler Mahan Coe has made a good case that this is largely down to innovations in production pioneered by Owen Bradley, and McCartney was certainly aware of Bradley's work -- he was a fan of Brenda Lee, who Bradley produced, for example. But the two influences that McCartney has mentioned most often in this regard are the busy, jazz-influenced, basslines that James Jamerson was playing at Motown: [Excerpt: The Four Tops, "It's the Same Old Song"] And the basslines that Brian Wilson was writing for various Wrecking Crew bassists to play for the Beach Boys: [Excerpt: The Beach Boys, "Don't Talk (Put Your Head on My Shoulder)"] Just to be clear, McCartney didn't hear that particular track until partway through the recording of Revolver, when Bruce Johnston visited the UK and brought with him an advance copy of Pet Sounds, but Pet Sounds influenced the later part of Revolver's recording, and Wilson had already started his experiments in that direction with the group's 1965 work. It's much easier to write a song with this kind of bassline, one that's integral to the composition, on the piano than it is to write it on a guitar, as you can work out the bassline with your left hand while working out the chords and melody with your right, so the habit that McCartney had already developed of writing on the piano made this easier. But also, starting with the recording of "Paperback Writer", McCartney switched his style of working in the studio. Where up to this point it had been normal for him to play bass as part of the recording of the basic track, playing with the other Beatles, he now started to take advantage of multitracking to overdub his bass later, so he could spend extra time getting the bassline exactly right. McCartney lived closer to Abbey Road than the other three Beatles, and so could more easily get there early or stay late and tweak his parts. But if McCartney wasn't playing bass while the guitars and drums were being recorded, that meant he could play something else, and so increasingly he would play piano during the recording of the basic track. And that in turn would mean that there wouldn't always *be* a need for guitars on the track, because the harmonic support they would provide would be provided by the piano instead. This, as much as anything else, is the reason that Revolver sounds so radically different to any other Beatles album. Up to this point, with *very* rare exceptions like "Yesterday", every Beatles record, more or less, featured all four of the Beatles playing instruments. Now John and George weren't playing on "Good Day Sunshine" or "For No One", John wasn't playing on "Here, There, and Everywhere", "Eleanor Rigby" features no guitars or drums at all, and George's "Love You To" only features himself, plus a little tambourine from Ringo (Paul recorded a part for that one, but it doesn't seem to appear on the finished track). Of the three songwriting Beatles, the only one who at this point was consistently requiring the instrumental contributions of all the other band members was John, and even he did without Paul on "She Said, She Said", which by all accounts features either John or George on bass, after Paul had a rare bout of unprofessionalism and left the studio. Revolver is still an album made by a group -- and most of those tracks that don't feature John or George instrumentally still feature them vocally -- it's still a collaborative work in all the best ways. But it's no longer an album made by four people playing together in the same room at the same time. After starting work on "Tomorrow Never Knows", the next track they started work on was Paul's "Got to Get You Into My Life", but as it would turn out they would work on that song throughout most of the sessions for the album -- in a sign of how the group would increasingly work from this point on, Paul's song was subject to multiple re-recordings and tweakings in the studio, as he tinkered to try to make it perfect. The first recording to be completed for the album, though, was almost as much of a departure in its own way as "Tomorrow Never Knows" had been. George's song "Love You To" shows just how inspired he was by the music of Ravi Shankar, and how devoted he was to Indian music. While a few months earlier he had just about managed to pick out a simple melody on the sitar for "Norwegian Wood", by this point he was comfortable enough with Indian classical music that I've seen many, many sources claim that an outside session player is playing sitar on the track, though Anil Bhagwat, the tabla player on the track, always insisted that it was entirely Harrison's playing: [Excerpt: The Beatles, "Love You To"] There is a *lot* of debate as to whether it's George playing on the track, and I feel a little uncomfortable making a definitive statement in either direction. On the one hand I find it hard to believe that Harrison got that good that quickly on an unfamiliar instrument, when we know he wasn't a naturally facile musician. All the stories we have about his work in the studio suggest that he had to work very hard on his guitar solos, and that he would frequently fluff them. As a technical guitarist, Harrison was only mediocre -- his value lay in his inventiveness, not in technical ability -- and he had been playing guitar for over a decade, but sitar only a few months. There's also some session documentation suggesting that an unknown sitar player was hired. On the other hand there's the testimony of Anil Bhagwat that Harrison played the part himself, and he has been very firm on the subject, saying "If you go on the Internet there are a lot of questions asked about "Love You To". They say 'It's not George playing the sitar'. I can tell you here and now -- 100 percent it was George on sitar throughout. There were no other musicians involved. It was just me and him." And several people who are more knowledgeable than myself about the instrument have suggested that the sitar part on the track is played the way that a rock guitarist would play rather than the way someone with more knowledge of Indian classical music would play -- there's a blues feeling to some of the bends that apparently no genuine Indian classical musician would naturally do. I would suggest that the best explanation is that there's a professional sitar player trying to replicate a part that Harrison had previously demonstrated, while Harrison was in turn trying his best to replicate the sound of Ravi Shankar's work. Certainly the instrumental section sounds far more fluent, and far more stylistically correct, than one would expect: [Excerpt: The Beatles, "Love You To"] Where previous attempts at what got called "raga-rock" had taken a couple of surface features of Indian music -- some form of a drone, perhaps a modal scale -- and had generally used a guitar made to sound a little bit like a sitar, or had a sitar playing normal rock riffs, Harrison's song seems to be a genuine attempt to hybridise Indian ragas and rock music, combining the instrumentation, modes, and rhythmic complexity of someone like Ravi Shankar with lyrics that are seemingly inspired by Bob Dylan and a fairly conventional pop song structure (and a tiny bit of fuzz guitar). It's a record that could only be made by someone who properly understood both the Indian music he's emulating and the conventions of the Western pop song, and understood how those conventions could work together. Indeed, one thing I've rarely seen pointed out is how cleverly the album is sequenced, so that "Love You To" is followed by possibly the most conventional song on Revolver, "Here, There, and Everywhere", which was recorded towards the end of the sessions. Both songs share a distinctive feature not shared by the rest of the album, so the two songs can sound more of a pair than they otherwise would, retrospectively making "Love You To" seem more conventional than it is and "Here, There, and Everywhere" more unconventional -- both have as an introduction a separate piece of music that states some of the melodic themes of the rest of the song but isn't repeated later. In the case of "Love You To" it's the free-tempo bit at the beginning, characteristic of a lot of Indian music: [Excerpt: The Beatles, "Love You To"] While in the case of "Here, There, and Everywhere" it's the part that mimics an older style of songwriting, a separate intro of the type that would have been called a verse when written by the Gershwins or Cole Porter, but of course in the intervening decades "verse" had come to mean something else, so we now no longer have a specific term for this kind of intro -- but as you can hear, it's doing very much the same thing as that "Love You To" intro: [Excerpt: The Beatles, "Here, There, and Everywhere"] In the same day as the group completed "Love You To", overdubbing George's vocal and Ringo's tambourine, they also started work on a song that would show off a lot of the new techniques they had been working on in very different ways. Paul's "Paperback Writer" could indeed be seen as part of a loose trilogy with "Love You To" and "Tomorrow Never Knows", one song by each of the group's three songwriters exploring the idea of a song that's almost all on one chord. Both "Tomorrow Never Knows" and "Love You To" are based on a drone with occasional hints towards moving to one other chord. In the case of "Paperback Writer", the entire song stays on a single chord until the title -- it's on a G7 throughout until the first use of the word "writer", when it quickly goes to a C for two bars. I'm afraid I'm going to have to sing to show you how little the chords actually change, because the riff disguises this lack of movement somewhat, but the melody is also far more horizontal than most of McCartney's, so this shouldn't sound too painful, I hope: [demonstrates] This is essentially the exact same thing that both "Love You To" and "Tomorrow Never Knows" do, and all three have very similarly structured rising and falling modal melodies. There's also a bit of "Paperback Writer" that seems to tie directly into "Love You To", but also points to a possible very non-Indian inspiration for part of "Love You To". The Beach Boys' single "Sloop John B" was released in the UK a couple of days after the sessions for "Paperback Writer" and "Love You To", but it had been released in the US a month before, and the Beatles all got copies of every record in the American top thirty shipped to them. McCartney and Harrison have specifically pointed to it as an influence on "Paperback Writer". "Sloop John B" has a section where all the instruments drop out and we're left with just the group's vocal harmonies: [Excerpt: The Beach Boys, "Sloop John B"] And that seems to have been the inspiration behind the similar moment at a similar point in "Paperback Writer", which is used in place of a middle eight and also used for the song's intro: [Excerpt: The Beatles, "Paperback Writer"] Which is very close to what Harrison does at the end of each verse of "Love You To", where the instruments drop out for him to sing a long melismatic syllable before coming back in: [Excerpt: The Beatles, "Love You To"] Essentially, other than "Got to Get You Into My Life", which is an outlier and should not be counted, the first three songs attempted during the Revolver sessions are variations on a common theme, and it's a sign that no matter how different the results might  sound, the Beatles really were very much a group at this point, and were sharing ideas among themselves and developing those ideas in similar ways. "Paperback Writer" disguises what it's doing somewhat by having such a strong riff. Lennon referred to "Paperback Writer" as "son of 'Day Tripper'", and in terms of the Beatles' singles it's actually their third iteration of this riff idea, which they originally got from Bobby Parker's "Watch Your Step": [Excerpt: Bobby Parker, "Watch Your Step"] Which became the inspiration for "I Feel Fine": [Excerpt: The Beatles, "I Feel Fine"] Which they varied for "Day Tripper": [Excerpt: The Beatles, "Day Tripper"] And which then in turn got varied for "Paperback Writer": [Excerpt: The Beatles, "Paperback Writer"] As well as compositional ideas, there are sonic ideas shared between "Paperback Writer", "Tomorrow Never Knows", and "Love You To", and which would be shared by the rest of the tracks the Beatles recorded in the first half of 1966. Since Geoff Emerick had become the group's principal engineer, they'd started paying more attention to how to get a fuller sound, and so Emerick had miced the tabla on "Love You To" much more closely than anyone would normally mic an instrument from classical music, creating a deep, thudding sound, and similarly he had changed the way they recorded the drums on "Tomorrow Never Knows", again giving a much fuller sound. But the group also wanted the kind of big bass sounds they'd loved on records coming out of America -- sounds that no British studio was getting, largely because it was believed that if you cut too loud a bass sound into a record it would make the needle jump out of the groove. The new engineering team of Geoff Emerick and Ken Scott, though, thought that it was likely you could keep the needle in the groove if you had a smoother frequency response. You could do that if you used a microphone with a larger diaphragm to record the bass, but how could you do that? Inspiration finally struck -- loudspeakers are actually the same thing as microphones wired the other way round, so if you wired up a loudspeaker as if it were a microphone you could get a *really big* speaker, place it in front of the bass amp, and get a much stronger bass sound. The experiment wasn't a total success -- the sound they got had to be processed quite extensively to get rid of room noise, and then compressed in order to further prevent the needle-jumping issue, and so it's a muddier, less defined, tone than they would have liked, but one thing that can't be denied is that "Paperback Writer"'s bass sound is much, much, louder than on any previous Beatles record: [Excerpt: The Beatles, "Paperback Writer"] Almost every track the group recorded during the Revolver sessions involved all sorts of studio innovations, though rarely anything as truly revolutionary as the artificial double-tracking they'd used on "Tomorrow Never Knows", and which also appeared on "Paperback Writer" -- indeed, as "Paperback Writer" was released several months before Revolver, it became the first record released to use the technique. I could easily devote a good ten minutes to every track on Revolver, and to "Paperback Writer"s B-side, "Rain", but this is already shaping up to be an extraordinarily long episode and there's a lot of material to get through, so I'll break my usual pattern of devoting a Patreon bonus episode to something relatively obscure, and this week's bonus will be on "Rain" itself. "Paperback Writer", though, deserved the attention here even though it was not one of the group's more successful singles -- it did go to number one, but it didn't hit number one in the UK charts straight away, being kept off the top by "Strangers in the Night" by Frank Sinatra for the first week: [Excerpt: Frank Sinatra, "Strangers in the Night"] Coincidentally, "Strangers in the Night" was co-written by Bert Kaempfert, the German musician who had produced the group's very first recording sessions with Tony Sheridan back in 1961. On the group's German tour in 1966 they met up with Kaempfert again, and John greeted him by singing the first couple of lines of the Sinatra record. The single was the lowest-selling Beatles single in the UK since "Love Me Do". In the US it only made number one for two non-consecutive weeks, with "Strangers in the Night" knocking it off for a week in between. Now, by literally any other band's standards, that's still a massive hit, and it was the Beatles' tenth UK number one in a row (or ninth, depending on which chart you use for "Please Please Me"), but it's a sign that the group were moving out of the first phase of total unequivocal dominance of the charts. It was a turning point in a lot of other ways as well. Up to this point, while the group had been experimenting with different lyrical subjects on album tracks, every single had lyrics about romantic relationships -- with the possible exception of "Help!", which was about Lennon's emotional state but written in such a way that it could be heard as a plea to a lover. But in the case of "Paperback Writer", McCartney was inspired by his Aunt Mill asking him "Why do you write songs about love all the time? Can you ever write about a horse or the summit conference or something interesting?" His response was to think "All right, Aunt Mill, I'll show you", and to come up with a lyric that was very much in the style of the social satires that bands like the Kinks were releasing at the time. People often miss the humour in the lyric for "Paperback Writer", but there's a huge amount of comedy in lyrics about someone writing to a publisher saying they'd written a book based on someone else's book, and one can only imagine the feeling of weary recognition in slush-pile readers throughout the world as they heard the enthusiastic "It's a thousand pages, give or take a few, I'll be writing more in a week or two. I can make it longer..." From this point on, the group wouldn't release a single that was unambiguously about a romantic relationship until "The Ballad of John and Yoko",  the last single released while the band were still together. "Paperback Writer" also saw the Beatles for the first time making a promotional film -- what we would now call a rock video -- rather than make personal appearances on TV shows. The film was directed by Michael Lindsay-Hogg, who the group would work with again in 1969, and shows Paul with a chipped front tooth -- he'd been in an accident while riding mopeds with his friend Tara Browne a few months earlier, and hadn't yet got round to having the tooth capped. When he did, the change in his teeth was one of the many bits of evidence used by conspiracy theorists to prove that the real Paul McCartney was dead and replaced by a lookalike. It also marks a change in who the most prominent Beatle on the group's A-sides was. Up to this point, Paul had had one solo lead on an A-side -- "Can't Buy Me Love" -- and everything else had been either a song with multiple vocalists like "Day Tripper" or "Love Me Do", or a song with a clear John lead like "Ticket to Ride" or "I Feel Fine". In the rest of their career, counting "Paperback Writer", the group would release nine new singles that hadn't already been included on an album. Of those nine singles, one was a double A-side with one John song and one Paul song, two had John songs on the A-side, and the other six were Paul. Where up to this point John had been "lead Beatle", for the rest of the sixties, Paul would be the group's driving force. Oddly, Paul got rather defensive about the record when asked about it in interviews after it failed to go straight to the top, saying "It's not our best single by any means, but we're very satisfied with it". But especially in its original mono mix it actually packs a powerful punch: [Excerpt: The Beatles, "Paperback Writer"] When the "Paperback Writer" single was released, an unusual image was used in the advertising -- a photo of the Beatles dressed in butchers' smocks, covered in blood, with chunks of meat and the dismembered body parts of baby dolls lying around on them. The image was meant as part of a triptych parodying religious art -- the photo on the left was to be an image showing the four Beatles connected to a woman by an umbilical cord made of sausages, the middle panel was meant to be this image, but with halos added over the Beatles' heads, and the panel on the right was George hammering a nail into John's head, symbolising both crucifixion and that the group were real, physical, people, not just images to be worshipped -- these weren't imaginary nails, and they weren't imaginary people. The photographer Robert Whittaker later said: “I did a photograph of the Beatles covered in raw meat, dolls and false teeth. Putting meat, dolls and false teeth with The Beatles is essentially part of the same thing, the breakdown of what is regarded as normal. The actual conception for what I still call “Somnambulant Adventure” was Moses coming down from Mount Sinai with the Ten Commandments. He comes across people worshipping a golden calf. All over the world I'd watched people worshiping like idols, like gods, four Beatles. To me they were just stock standard normal people. But this emotion that fans poured on them made me wonder where Christianity was heading.” The image wasn't that controversial in the UK, when it was used to advertise "Paperback Writer", but in the US it was initially used for the cover of an album, Yesterday... And Today, which was made up of a few tracks that had been left off the US versions of the Rubber Soul and Help! albums, plus both sides of the "We Can Work It Out"/"Day Tripper" single, and three rough mixes of songs that had been recorded for Revolver -- "Doctor Robert", "And Your Bird Can Sing", and "I'm Only Sleeping", which was the song that sounded most different from the mixes that were finally released: [Excerpt: The Beatles, "I'm Only Sleeping (Yesterday... and Today mix)"] Those three songs were all Lennon songs, which had the unfortunate effect that when the US version of Revolver was brought out later in the year, only two of the songs on the album were by Lennon, with six by McCartney and three by Harrison. Some have suggested that this was the motivation for the use of the butcher image on the cover of Yesterday... And Today -- saying it was the Beatles' protest against Capitol "butchering" their albums -- but in truth it was just that Capitol's art director chose the cover because he liked the image. Alan Livingston, the president of Capitol was not so sure, and called Brian Epstein to ask if the group would be OK with them using a different image. Epstein checked with John Lennon, but Lennon liked the image and so Epstein told Livingston the group insisted on them using that cover. Even though for the album cover the bloodstains on the butchers' smocks were airbrushed out, after Capitol had pressed up a million copies of the mono version of the album and two hundred thousand copies of the stereo version, and they'd sent out sixty thousand promo copies, they discovered that no record shops would stock the album with that cover. It cost Capitol more than two hundred thousand dollars to recall the album and replace the cover with a new one -- though while many of the covers were destroyed, others had the new cover, with a more acceptable photo of the group, pasted over them, and people have later carefully steamed off the sticker to reveal the original. This would not be the last time in 1966 that something that was intended as a statement on religion and the way people viewed the Beatles would cause the group trouble in America. In the middle of the recording sessions for Revolver, the group also made what turned out to be their last ever UK live performance in front of a paying audience. The group had played the NME Poll-Winners' Party every year since 1963, and they were always shows that featured all the biggest acts in the country at the time -- the 1966 show featured, as well as the Beatles and a bunch of smaller acts, the Rolling Stones, the Who, the Yardbirds, Roy Orbison, Cliff Richard and the Shadows, the Seekers, the Small Faces, the Walker Brothers, and Dusty Springfield. Unfortunately, while these events were always filmed for TV broadcast, the Beatles' performance on the first of May wasn't filmed. There are various stories about what happened, but the crux appears to be a disagreement between Andrew Oldham and Brian Epstein, sparked by John Lennon. When the Beatles got to the show, they were upset to discover that they had to wait around before going on stage -- normally, the awards would all be presented at the end, after all the performances, but the Rolling Stones had asked that the Beatles not follow them directly, so after the Stones finished their set, there would be a break for the awards to be given out, and then the Beatles would play their set, in front of an audience that had been bored by twenty-five minutes of awards ceremony, rather than one that had been excited by all the bands that came before them. John Lennon was annoyed, and insisted that the Beatles were going to go on straight after the Rolling Stones -- he seems to have taken this as some sort of power play by the Stones and to have got his hackles up about it. He told Epstein to deal with the people from the NME. But the NME people said that they had a contract with Andrew Oldham, and they weren't going to break it. Oldham refused to change the terms of the contract. Lennon said that he wasn't going to go on stage if they didn't directly follow the Stones. Maurice Kinn, the publisher of the NME, told Epstein that he wasn't going to break the contract with Oldham, and that if the Beatles didn't appear on stage, he would get Jimmy Savile, who was compering the show, to go out on stage and tell the ten thousand fans in the audience that the Beatles were backstage refusing to appear. He would then sue NEMS for breach of contract *and* NEMS would be liable for any damage caused by the rioting that was sure to happen. Lennon screamed a lot of abuse at Kinn, and told him the group would never play one of their events again, but the group did go on stage -- but because they hadn't yet signed the agreement to allow their performance to be filmed, they refused to allow it to be recorded. Apparently Andrew Oldham took all this as a sign that Epstein was starting to lose control of the group. Also during May 1966 there were visits from musicians from other countries, continuing the cultural exchange that was increasingly influencing the Beatles' art. Bruce Johnston of the Beach Boys came over to promote the group's new LP, Pet Sounds, which had been largely the work of Brian Wilson, who had retired from touring to concentrate on working in the studio. Johnston played the record for John and Paul, who listened to it twice, all the way through, in silence, in Johnston's hotel room: [Excerpt: The Beach Boys, "God Only Knows"] According to Johnston, after they'd listened through the album twice, they went over to a piano and started whispering to each other, picking out chords. Certainly the influence of Pet Sounds is very noticeable on songs like "Here, There, and Everywhere", written and recorded a few weeks after this meeting: [Excerpt: The Beatles, "Here, There, and Everywhere"] That track, and the last track recorded for the album, "She Said She Said" were unusual in one very important respect -- they were recorded while the Beatles were no longer under contract to EMI Records. Their contract expired on the fifth of June, 1966, and they finished Revolver without it having been renewed -- it would be several months before their new contract was signed, and it's rather lucky for music lovers that Brian Epstein was the kind of manager who considered personal relationships and basic honour and decency more important than the legal niceties, unlike any other managers of the era, otherwise we would not have Revolver in the form we know it today. After the meeting with Johnston, but before the recording of those last couple of Revolver tracks, the Beatles also met up again with Bob Dylan, who was on a UK tour with a new, loud, band he was working with called The Hawks. While the Beatles and Dylan all admired each other, there was by this point a lot of wariness on both sides, especially between Lennon and Dylan, both of them very similar personality types and neither wanting to let their guard down around the other or appear unhip. There's a famous half-hour-long film sequence of Lennon and Dylan sharing a taxi, which is a fascinating, excruciating, example of two insecure but arrogant men both trying desperately to impress the other but also equally desperate not to let the other know that they want to impress them: [Excerpt: Dylan and Lennon taxi ride] The day that was filmed, Lennon and Harrison also went to see Dylan play at the Royal Albert Hall. This tour had been controversial, because Dylan's band were loud and raucous, and Dylan's fans in the UK still thought of him as a folk musician. At one gig, earlier on the tour, an audience member had famously yelled out "Judas!" -- (just on the tiny chance that any of my listeners don't know that, Judas was the disciple who betrayed Jesus to the authorities, leading to his crucifixion) -- and that show was for many years bootlegged as the "Royal Albert Hall" show, though in fact it was recorded at the Free Trade Hall in Manchester. One of the *actual* Royal Albert Hall shows was released a few years ago -- the one the night before Lennon and Harrison saw Dylan: [Excerpt: Bob Dylan, "Like a Rolling Stone", Royal Albert Hall 1966] The show Lennon and Harrison saw would be Dylan's last for many years. Shortly after returning to the US, Dylan was in a motorbike accident, the details of which are still mysterious, and which some fans claim was faked altogether. The accident caused him to cancel all the concert dates he had booked, and devote himself to working in the studio for several years just like Brian Wilson. And from even further afield than America, Ravi Shankar came over to Britain, to work with his friend the violinist Yehudi Menuhin, on a duet album, West Meets East, that was an example in the classical world of the same kind of international cross-fertilisation that was happening in the pop world: [Excerpt: Yehudi Menuhin and Ravi Shankar, "Prabhati (based on Raga Gunkali)"] While he was in the UK, Shankar also performed at the Royal Festival Hall, and George Harrison went to the show. He'd seen Shankar live the year before, but this time he met up with him afterwards, and later said "He was the first person that impressed me in a way that was beyond just being a famous celebrity. Ravi was my link to the Vedic world. Ravi plugged me into the whole of reality. Elvis impressed me when I was a kid, and impressed me when I met him, but you couldn't later on go round to him and say 'Elvis, what's happening with the universe?'" After completing recording and mixing the as-yet-unnamed album, which had been by far the longest recording process of their career, and which still nearly sixty years later regularly tops polls of the best album of all time, the Beatles took a well-earned break. For a whole two days, at which point they flew off to Germany to do a three-day tour, on their way to Japan, where they were booked to play five shows at the Budokan. Unfortunately for the group, while they had no idea of this when they were booked to do the shows, many in Japan saw the Budokan as sacred ground, and they were the first ever Western group to play there. This led to numerous death threats and loud protests from far-right activists offended at the Beatles defiling their religious and nationalistic sensibilities. As a result, the police were on high alert -- so high that there were three thousand police in the audience for the shows, in a venue which only held ten thousand audience members. That's according to Mark Lewisohn's Complete Beatles Chronicle, though I have to say that the rather blurry footage of the audience in the video of those shows doesn't seem to show anything like those numbers. But frankly I'll take Lewisohn's word over that footage, as he's not someone to put out incorrect information. The threats to the group also meant that they had to be kept in their hotel rooms at all times except when actually performing, though they did make attempts to get out. At the press conference for the Tokyo shows, the group were also asked publicly for the first time their views on the war in Vietnam, and John replied "Well, we think about it every day, and we don't agree with it and we think that it's wrong. That's how much interest we take. That's all we can do about it... and say that we don't like it". I say they were asked publicly for the first time, because George had been asked about it for a series of interviews Maureen Cleave had done with the group a couple of months earlier, as we'll see in a bit, but nobody was paying attention to those interviews. Brian Epstein was upset that the question had gone to John. He had hoped that the inevitable Vietnam question would go to Paul, who he thought might be a bit more tactful. The last thing he needed was John Lennon saying something that would upset the Americans before their tour there a few weeks later. Luckily, people in America seemed to have better things to do than pay attention to John Lennon's opinions. The support acts for the Japanese shows included  several of the biggest names in Japanese rock music -- or "group sounds" as the genre was called there, Japanese people having realised that trying to say the phrase "rock and roll" would open them up to ridicule given that it had both "r" and "l" sounds in the phrase. The man who had coined the term "group sounds", Jackey Yoshikawa, was there with his group the Blue Comets, as was Isao Bito, who did a rather good cover version of Cliff Richard's "Dynamite": [Excerpt: Isao Bito, "Dynamite"] Bito, the Blue Comets, and the other two support acts, Yuya Uchida and the Blue Jeans, all got together to perform a specially written song, "Welcome Beatles": [Excerpt: "Welcome Beatles" ] But while the Japanese audience were enthusiastic, they were much less vocal about their enthusiasm than the audiences the Beatles were used to playing for. The group were used, of course, to playing in front of hordes of screaming teenagers who could not hear a single note, but because of the fear that a far-right terrorist would assassinate one of the group members, the police had imposed very, very, strict rules on the audience. Nobody in the audience was allowed to get out of their seat for any reason, and the police would clamp down very firmly on anyone who was too demonstrative. Because of that, the group could actually hear themselves, and they sounded sloppy as hell, especially on the newer material. Not that there was much of that. The only song they did from the Revolver sessions was "Paperback Writer", the new single, and while they did do a couple of tracks from Rubber Soul, those were under-rehearsed. As John said at the start of this tour, "I can't play any of Rubber Soul, it's so unrehearsed. The only time I played any of the numbers on it was when I recorded it. I forget about songs. They're only valid for a certain time." That's certainly borne out by the sound of their performances of Rubber Soul material at the Budokan: [Excerpt: The Beatles, "If I Needed Someone (live at the Budokan)"] It was while they were in Japan as well that they finally came up with the title for their new album. They'd been thinking of all sorts of ideas, like Abracadabra and Magic Circle, and tossing names around with increasing desperation for several days -- at one point they seem to have just started riffing on other groups' albums, and seem to have apparently seriously thought about naming the record in parodic tribute to their favourite artists -- suggestions included The Beatles On Safari, after the Beach Boys' Surfin' Safari (and possibly with a nod to their recent Pet Sounds album cover with animals, too), The Freewheelin' Beatles, after Dylan's second album, and my favourite, Ringo's suggestion After Geography, for the Rolling Stones' Aftermath. But eventually Paul came up with Revolver -- like Rubber Soul, a pun, in this case because the record itself revolves when on a turntable. Then it was off to the Philippines, and if the group thought Japan had been stressful, they had no idea what was coming. The trouble started in the Philippines from the moment they stepped off the plane, when they were bundled into a car without Neil Aspinall or Brian Epstein, and without their luggage, which was sent to customs. This was a problem in itself -- the group had got used to essentially being treated like diplomats, and to having their baggage let through customs without being searched, and so they'd started freely carrying various illicit substances with them. This would obviously be a problem -- but as it turned out, this was just to get a "customs charge" paid by Brian Epstein. But during their initial press conference the group were worried, given the hostility they'd faced from officialdom, that they were going to be arrested during the conference itself. They were asked what they would tell the Rolling Stones, who were going to be visiting the Philippines shortly after, and Lennon just said "We'll warn them". They also asked "is there a war on in the Philippines? Why is everybody armed?" At this time, the Philippines had a new leader, Ferdinand Marcos -- who is not to be confused with his son, Ferdinand Marcos Jr, also known as Bongbong Marcos, who just became President-Elect there last month. Marcos Sr was a dictatorial kleptocrat, one of the worst leaders of the latter half of the twentieth century, but that wasn't evident yet. He'd been elected only a few months earlier, and had presented himself as a Kennedy-like figure -- a young man who was also a war hero. He'd recently switched parties from the Liberal party to the right-wing Nacionalista Party, but wasn't yet being thought of as the monstrous dictator he later became. The person organising the Philippines shows had been ordered to get the Beatles to visit Ferdinand and Imelda Marcos at 11AM on the day of the show, but for some reason had instead put on their itinerary just the *suggestion* that the group should meet the Marcoses, and had put the time down as 3PM, and the Beatles chose to ignore that suggestion -- they'd refused to do that kind of government-official meet-and-greet ever since an incident in 1964 at the British Embassy in Washington where someone had cut off a bit of Ringo's hair. A military escort turned up at the group's hotel in the morning, to take them for their meeting. The group were all still in their rooms, and Brian Epstein was still eating breakfast and refused to disturb them, saying "Go back and tell the generals we're not coming." The group gave their performances as scheduled, but meanwhile there was outrage at the way the Beatles had refused to meet the Marcos family, who had brought hundreds of children -- friends of their own children, and relatives of top officials -- to a party to meet the group. Brian Epstein went on TV and tried to smooth things over, but the broadcast was interrupted by static and his message didn't get through to anyone. The next day, the group's security was taken away, as were the cars to take them to the airport. When they got to the airport, the escalators were turned off and the group were beaten up at the arrangement of the airport manager, who said in 1984 "I beat up the Beatles. I really thumped them. First I socked Epstein and he went down... then I socked Lennon and Ringo in the face. I was kicking them. They were pleading like frightened chickens. That's what happens when you insult the First Lady." Even on the plane there were further problems -- Brian Epstein and the group's road manager Mal Evans were both made to get off the plane to sort out supposed financial discrepancies, which led to them worrying that they were going to be arrested or worse -- Evans told the group to tell his wife he loved her as he left the plane. But eventually, they were able to leave, and after a brief layover in India -- which Ringo later said was the first time he felt he'd been somewhere truly foreign, as opposed to places like Germany or the USA which felt basically like home -- they got back to England: [Excerpt: "Ordinary passenger!"] When asked what they were going to do next, George replied “We're going to have a couple of weeks to recuperate before we go and get beaten up by the Americans,” The story of the "we're bigger than Jesus" controversy is one of the most widely misreported events in the lives of the Beatles, which is saying a great deal. One book that I've encountered, and one book only, Steve Turner's Beatles '66, tells the story of what actually happened, and even that book seems to miss some emphases. I've pieced what follows together from Turner's book and from an academic journal article I found which has some more detail. As far as I can tell, every single other book on the Beatles released up to this point bases their account of the story on an inaccurate press statement put out by Brian Epstein, not on the truth. Here's the story as it's generally told. John Lennon gave an interview to his friend, Maureen Cleave of the Evening Standard, during which he made some comments about how it was depressing that Christianity was losing relevance in the eyes of the public, and that the Beatles are more popular than Jesus, speaking casually because he was talking to a friend. That story was run in the Evening Standard more-or-less unnoticed, but then an American teen magazine picked up on the line about the Beatles being bigger than Jesus, reprinted chunks of the interview out of context and without the Beatles' knowledge or permission, as a way to stir up controversy, and there was an outcry, with people burning Beatles records and death threats from the Ku Klux Klan. That's... not exactly what happened. The first thing that you need to understand to know what happened is that Datebook wasn't a typical teen magazine. It *looked* just like a typical teen magazine, certainly, and much of its content was the kind of thing that you would get in Tiger Beat or any of the other magazines aimed at teenage girls -- the September 1966 issue was full of articles like "Life with the Walker Brothers... by their Road Manager", and interviews with the Dave Clark Five -- but it also had a long history of publishing material that was intended to make its readers think about social issues of the time, particularly Civil Rights. Arthur Unger, the magazine's editor and publisher, was a gay man in an interracial relationship, and while the subject of homosexuality was too taboo in the late fifties and sixties for him to have his magazine cover that, he did regularly include articles decrying segregation and calling for the girls reading the magazine to do their part on a personal level to stamp out racism. Datebook had regularly contained articles like one from 1963 talking about how segregation wasn't just a problem in the South, saying "If we are so ‘integrated' why must men in my own city of Philadelphia, the city of Brotherly Love, picket city hall because they are discriminated against when it comes to getting a job? And how come I am still unable to take my dark- complexioned friends to the same roller skating rink or swimming pool that I attend?” One of the writers for the magazine later said “We were much more than an entertainment magazine . . . . We tried to get kids involved in social issues . . . . It was a well-received magazine, recommended by libraries and schools, but during the Civil Rights period we did get pulled off a lot of stands in the South because of our views on integration” Art Unger, the editor and publisher, wasn't the only one pushing this liberal, integrationist, agenda. The managing editor at the time, Danny Fields, was another gay man who wanted to push the magazine even further than Unger, and who would later go on to manage the Stooges and the Ramones, being credited by some as being the single most important figure in punk rock's development, and being immortalised by the Ramones in their song "Danny Says": [Excerpt: The Ramones, "Danny Says"] So this was not a normal teen magazine, and that's certainly shown by the cover of the September 1966 issue, which as well as talking about the interviews with John Lennon and Paul McCartney inside, also advertised articles on Timothy Leary advising people to turn on, tune in, and drop out; an editorial about how interracial dating must be the next step after desegregation of schools, and a piece on "the ten adults you dig/hate the most" -- apparently the adult most teens dug in 1966 was Jackie Kennedy, the most hated was Barry Goldwater, and President Johnson, Billy Graham, and Martin Luther King appeared in the top ten on both lists. Now, in the early part of the year Maureen Cleave had done a whole series of articles on the Beatles -- double-page spreads on each band member, plus Brian Epstein, visiting them in their own homes (apart from Paul, who she met at a restaurant) and discussing their daily lives, their thoughts, and portraying them as rounded individuals. These articles are actually fascinating, because of something that everyone who met the Beatles in this period pointed out. When interviewed separately, all of them came across as thoughtful individuals, with their own opinions about all sorts of subjects, and their own tastes and senses of humour. But when two or more of them were together -- especially when John and Paul were interviewed together, but even in social situations, they would immediately revert to flip in-jokes and riffing on each other's statements, never revealing anything about themselves as individuals, but just going into Beatle mode -- simultaneously preserving the band's image, closing off outsiders, *and* making sure they didn't do or say anything that would get them mocked by the others. Cleave, as someone who actually took them all seriously, managed to get some very revealing information about all of them. In the article on Ringo, which is the most superficial -- one gets the impression that Cleave found him rather difficult to talk to when compared to the other, more verbally facile, band members -- she talked about how he had a lot of Wild West and military memorabilia, how he was a devoted family man and also devoted to his friends -- he had moved to the suburbs to be close to John and George, who already lived there. The most revealing quote about Ringo's personality was him saying "Of course that's the great thing about being married -- you have a house to sit in and company all the time. And you can still go to clubs, a bonus for being married. I love being a family man." While she looked at the other Beatles' tastes in literature in detail, she'd noted that the only books Ringo owned that weren't just for show were a few science fiction paperbacks, but that as he said "I'm not thick, it's just that I'm not educated. People can use words and I won't know what they mean. I say 'me' instead of 'my'." Ringo also didn't have a drum kit at home, saying he only played when he was on stage or in the studio, and that you couldn't practice on your own, you needed to play with other people. In the article on George, she talked about how he was learning the sitar,  and how he was thinking that it might be a good idea to go to India to study the sitar with Ravi Shankar for six months. She also talks about how during the interview, he played the guitar pretty much constantly, playing everything from songs from "Hello Dolly" to pieces by Bach to "the Trumpet Voluntary", by which she presumably means Clarke's "Prince of Denmark's March": [Excerpt: Jeremiah Clarke, "Prince of Denmark's March"] George was also the most outspoken on the subjects of politics, religion, and society, linking the ongoing war in Vietnam with the UK's reverence for the Second World War, saying "I think about it every day and it's wrong. Anything to do with war is wrong. They're all wrapped up in their Nelsons and their Churchills and their Montys -- always talking about war heroes. Look at All Our Yesterdays [a show on ITV that showed twenty-five-year-old newsreels] -- how we killed a few more Huns here and there. Makes me sick. They're the sort who are leaning on their walking sticks and telling us a few years in the army would do us good." He also had very strong words to say about religion, saying "I think religion falls flat on its face. All this 'love thy neighbour' but none of them are doing it. How can anybody get into the position of being Pope and accept all the glory and the money and the Mercedes-Benz and that? I could never be Pope until I'd sold my rich gates and my posh hat. I couldn't sit there with all that money on me and believe I was religious. Why can't we bring all this out in the open? Why is there all this stuff about blasphemy? If Christianity's as good as they say it is, it should stand up to a bit of discussion." Harrison also comes across as a very private person, saying "People keep saying, ‘We made you what you are,' well, I made Mr. Hovis what he is and I don't go round crawling over his gates and smashing up the wall round his house." (Hovis is a British company that makes bread and wholegrain flour). But more than anything else he comes across as an instinctive anti-authoritarian, being angry at bullying teachers, Popes, and Prime Ministers. McCartney's profile has him as the most self-consciously arty -- he talks about the plays of Alfred Jarry and the music of Karlheinz Stockhausen and Luciano Berio: [Excerpt: Luciano Berio, "Momenti (for magnetic tape)"] Though he was very worried that he might be sounding a little too pretentious, saying “I don't want to sound like Jonathan Miller going on" --