Global Roaming with Geraldine Doogue and Hamish Macdonald ABC listen

Not only has the war of words between Prime Minister Albanese and Elon Musk grabbed global headlines, its prompted debates about whether the unelected leaders of multinational tech companies have more power than democratically elected leaders. Tech governance expert Dr Alexis Wichowski says other world leaders will be watching how this plays out, closely.

Guest: Dr Alexis Wichowski – Professor at Columbia University and author of The Information Trade: How Tech Companies Act Like Countries

Recommendations:

Geraldine - reading/watching: Salman Rushdie’s memoir is horrific, upsetting – and a masterpiece by Erica Wagner / Salman Rushdie interview ABC 7:30

Hamish - reading/listening: What I Saw Working at The National Enquirer During Donald Trump’s Rise by Lachlan Cartwright in the New York Times and on 'The Daily' podcast. 

Get in touch:

We'd love to hear from you! Email us at global.roaming@abc.net.au

As the first ever criminal trial of a former US president gets underway in New York, we speak to ‘The Mooch’ - Anthony Scaramucci – who famously served as White House Communications Director in the Trump Administration for 11 days. He now warns that Donald Trump is a ‘lunatic’ and that a second Trump term would be disastrous for America, and the world.  

Guest: Anthony Scaramucci - American financier who served as the White House Director of Communications from July 21 to July 31, 2017. He has a new book coming out: “From Wall Street to the White House and Back: The Scaramucci Guide to Unbreakable Resilience”. 

Recommendations:

Geraldine - reading: Assistant Minister for Foreign Affairs Tim Watts' response to The Economist calling the flat white "Australia's greatest culinary export" 

Hamish - watching: The Rise and Fall of Boris Johnson on ABC iview

Get in touch:

We'd love to hear from you! Email us at global.roaming@abc.net.au

Foreign Minister Penny Wong has hinted that Australia might recognise Palestinian statehood. It's a significant move, politically, but will it have any impact on what's happening on the ground in Gaza?

Hamish and Geraldine sit down with Tirana Hassan, the Australian who has just become head of Human Rights Watch, to discuss this, and whether we'll ever see Nuremberg-style justice for the war crimes being perpetrated around the world today.

Guest: Tirana Hassan - Executive Director, Human Rights Watch

Note: The Israeli Embassy has been contacted for comment.

Recommendations:

Geraldine - watching: The Cold War of Spies, docuseries on SBS on Demand

Hamish - reading: Tonnes of food is stuck on Gaza’s border while the enclave nears famine FT Visual Story

Get in touch:

We'd love to hear from you! Email us at global.roaming@abc.net.au

It's worrying when one of Europe's most influential leaders says that the world is in a 'pre-war state', similar to 1939. But just how worried should we be, here in Australia? Ian Bremmer gives us his frank assessment of where things stand and reveals why Australia might just be a geopolitical haven. 

Guest: Ian Bremmer - president of political risk consultancy Eurasia Group and author of 11 books on global affairs. 

Recommendations:

Geraldine - watching: The American Führer documentary on SBS on Demand

Hamish - listening: Dark Shining Moment podcast by Ranieri & Co

Get in touch:

We'd love to hear from you! Email us at global.roaming@abc.net.au

In the absence of decisive US leadership, it could fall to Middle Eastern leaders to push for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza and create sustainable pathways to peace. A stable, post-American regional order is in the interests of most Middle Eastern powers, but does anyone have the political will to take the lead?

Guest: Dr Sanam Vakil - director of the Middle East and North Africa programme, Chatham House.

Recommendations:

Geraldine - Reading: 10 books to help you understand Israel and Palestine, recommended by experts (The Conversation)

Hamish - Reading: Royal Bodies, essay by Hilary Mantel (London Review of Books)




Get in touch:

We'd love to hear from you! Email us at global.roaming@abc.net.au

When it comes to Chinese politics, reading the tea leaves is never easy. In this episode Hamish and Geraldine are joined by Rana Mitter, the man dubbed the 'rockstar' of China studies by former PM Kevin Rudd, to break open the black box of the Politburo and reveal just how stable (or unstable) Xi Jinping's leadership is, given the economic and demographic headwinds that China is facing.

Guest: Rana Mitter - ST Lee Chair in US-Asia Relations at the Harvard Kennedy School.

Recommendations:

Rana - Listening: Face-Off: US vs China podcast, dropping on April 9.

Hamish - Reading: Restless Empire: China and the World Since 1750 by Odd Arne Westad

Geraldine - Watching: Turning Point: The Bomb and the Cold War docuseries on Netflix

Get in touch:

We'd love to hear from you! Email us at global.roaming@abc.net.au