Political Currency

Pronounce Carns and various other names? (It’s nothing to do with a speech impediment)

Always enlightening and addictive. Keep up the good work.

A loyal weekly listener until recently, but the last couple of episodes have been a turning point. There is a striking pattern emerging: there is no shortage of criticism for other world leaders and governments, yet Israeli government actions go entirely unchallenged and Palestinian voices and those protesting on their behalf are conspicuously absent from the conversation. The selectivity is hard to ignore. The conflation of criticism of Israel with antisemitism is a well-worn and widely discredited tactic, and it is disappointing to hear it deployed here without challenge. This week’s discussion leaned heavily into the narrative that antisemitism is rife in the UK, a claim that is vastly overstated and which critics argue functions primarily to shut down legitimate debate about the Israeli government’s killing of innocent civilians in Gaza, documented extensively by the UN and international press. Ed in particular appears to have made it something of a personal mission to discredit politicians like Zack Polanski, one of the few public figures willing to speak plainly about what is happening, rather than engage with the substance of what they are actually saying. There is also a growing sense that this podcast serves as a vehicle for both hosts to retrospectively polish their own records in government, conveniently shaping narratives around their own tenures. This is exactly the kind of establishment gatekeeping that people are switching off from. Unsubscribed.

I used to listen to this podcast for a mix of perspectives, but over time it’s started to feel increasingly one-sided, and a bit arrogant. The tone can come across as overly certain and, at times, dismissive of alternative views. In particular, Ed Balls’ style, which I’ve also noticed on TV, often feels more combative than constructive, and that detracts from the quality of discussion. It’s a shame, but for now I’ll be sticking with podcasts that feel more open and balanced, such as the Rest is Politics and the Trawl.