The Media Show BBC Radio 4

Last week Dr Hilary Cass published her final report and recommendations to NHS England in her role as Chair of the Independent Review of gender identity services for children and young people.  The Cass report recommends a new approach for clinicians. But what might journalism do differently in the way it covers such a polarising subject?  We discuss with Hannah Barnes, the author of Time to Think: the Inside Story of the Collapse of the Tavistock’s Gender Service for Children ; and Rebecca Coombes, Head of Journalism at the British Medical Journal.
Hugh Grant has settled his privacy case against the publisher of the Sun newspaper. We get the latest from Jake Kanter, Investigations Editor from Deadline.
Taylor Swift is back in the headlines with the release of her 11th album, The Tortured Poets Department, on Friday. ITV's This Morning has also just appointed its first Taylor Swift correspondent. So what’s it like to report on the pop icon, and what’s her relationship with the media?  We're joined by Laura Snapes, who writes a weekly newsletter called Swift Notes for The Guardian, and Augusta Saraiva from Bloomberg.
 What is the role and impact of Channel 4 on our lives – and on the independent commercial sector? We speak to Alex Mahon, Chief Executive of Channel 4, Jake Kanter from Deadline and Joel Wilson, the co-founder of the production company Eleven, behind hits such as Sex Education and Ten Pound Poms.
Presenter: Katie Razzall
Producer: Simon Richardson
Guests: Jake Kanter, Investigations Editor, Deadline; Hannah Barnes, Associate Editor, New Statesman; Rebecca Coombes, Head of Journalism at the BMJ; Laura Snapes, Deputy Music Editor, The Guardian; Augusta Saraiva, Economics Reporter, Bloomberg; Alex Mahon, Chief Executive, Channel 4; Joel Wilson, Co-founder, Eleven.

The Executive Chairman of the Sky News Group, David Rhodes shares his plans for Sky News – and on his years as a senior TV news exec in New York.
Elon Musk has predicted that AI will surpass human intelligence within a year. OpenAI and Meta have also said that they're on the brink of releasing new AI models that will be capable of reason and planning. What will be the impact of these advanced AI models on the news media? We're joined by Madhumita Murgia, the AI Editor at the Financial Times, and author of a new book Code Dependent, to discuss.
Donald Trump's social media platform, Truth Social, continues to make headlines with its public listing. Billy Boozer, its former Chief Product Officer, reveals what it was like setting up the company with Trump. We're also joined by Prof Joshua Tucker and Prof Yini Zhang who has investigated how Trump has used Truth Social and X to drive news media attention.
Presenters: Ros Atkins and Katie Razzall
Producer: Simon Richardson
Guests: David Rhodes, Executive Chairman, Sky News group; Madhumita Murgia, Artificial Intelligence Editor, Financial Times; Joshua Tucker, Professor of Politics, New York University; Yini Zhang, Asst Professor of Communications, University at Buffalo; Billy Boozer, former Chief Product Officer, Truth Social.

British counter terrorism officers are investigating the stabbing last Friday of an Iranian TV host outside his home in London. Iran International presenter Pouria Zeraati was hospitalised, before being discharged and moving to a safe place under the supervision of the Metropolitan Police. We talk to British Iranian journalist Sima Sabet, who has also been targeted.
Have US diplomats been targeted by Russian sonic weaponry? A joint report between The Insider, Der Spiegel and CBS's 60 Minutes alleges it’s the result of their brains being targeted by "directed energy" weapons operated by a secretive Russian military unit. We meet one of the journalists involved in the story.
In Londonderry journalists covering a dissident republican parade on Easter Monday were attacked with petrol bombs thrown by masked youths. Politicians have condemned the violence. We hear the testimony of one of the reporters targeted.
We talk to the producers behind the successful BBC reboot of Gladiators.
And as Gmail celebrates its 20th anniversary, how useful is email today as a form of communication? Or has it been overtaken by messaging apps like WhatsApp?
Presenters: Ros Atkins and Katie Razzall
Producer: Simon Richardson
Guests: Sima Sabet, former presenter, Iran International; Dan Baldwin, Managing Director, Hungry Bear Media; Julia Hobsbawm, journalist and author; Niall Deeney, Derry Correspondent, Belfast Live; Mike Isaac, Tech Reporter, The New York Times; Shashank Joshi, Defence Editor, The Economist; Michael Weiss, Editor, The Insider

Last week, the Princess of Wales announced that she is undergoing treatment for cancer. It was preceded by weeks of speculation about her whereabouts that went well into conspiracy territory. How exactly did conspiracy theories move from the fringes to the mainstream? And what are the responsibilities of the "mainstream media" when covering them? Also on the programme, BBC Radio 5 Live celebrates its 30th anniversary and what Tim Davie's speech means for the future of the BBC.
Guests: Chris Curtis, editor in chief, Broadcast; Nicky Campbell, presenter, BBC Radio 5 Live; Rachel Cunliffe, associate political editor, New Statesman; Dr Annie Kelly, journalist and postdoctoral researcher specialising in conspiracy theories.
Presenter: Ros Atkins
Producer: Dan Hardoon

As the US Congress moves to ban TikTok on national security grounds, we ask could the UK follow? Elon Musk lured former CNN journalist Don Lemon to boost X's video credentials but the pair fell out after a recent interview. We find out why. Also on the programme, why the BBC has announced plans to move into UK podcast advertising and we explore what one journalist found when she downloaded all the data held on her after years of using Meta's services.
Guests: Ciaran Martin, Professor, Blavatnik School of Government, The University of Oxford; Max Tani, media journalist, Semafor; Matilda Davies, Data and Digital Journalist, The Times and The Sunday Times; Nick Hilton, Co-founder, Podot
Presenter: Katie Razzall
Producer: Simon Richardson

We discuss the controversial photo of the Princess of Wales and her children released by Kensington Palace on Sunday which was removed from circulation by photo agencies due to concerns it had been inappropriately edited. The story raises many questions about how images in the media are sourced, how they’re checked and how they’re distributed. We talk to press photographers, picture agencies and newspaper picture editors. Also in the programme, two developing stories concerning Tiktok and the Daily Telegraph. In the United States, the House of Representatives have passed a bill that could see Tiktok banned and the UK government looks set to introduce legislation stopping the purchase of The Daily Telegraph by an investment vehicle backed by the United Arab Emirates.
Guests: Phil Chetwynd, Global News Director, AFP; Jamie Lorriman, Chair, British Press Photographers’ Association; Fiona Shields, Head of Photography, The Guardian; Christianna Silva, Senior Culture Reporter, Mashable; Christopher Williams, Business Editor, The Daily Telegraph
Presenter: Ros Atkins
Producer: Simon Richardson