The people's podcast returns with a bold and incisive 3rd episode … a richly allegorical, analytically sharp, and urgently timely instalment that continues the season's mission of delivering critical media literacy to listeners who refuse to look away. Drawing on one of pop culture's most enduring metaphors for megalomania and miscalculation, this episode is called Pinky and The Brain (U.S. AND ISRAEL)). We examine the destructive behaviours of the governments of the U.S. and Israel, and their role in bringing the curtain down on an imperial era while an unsettled new world order emerges. As the extraordinary becomes routine, the global community is left grappling with the haunting echoes of a world it hopes to leave behind. The Stars with Ledstar delivers razor-sharp commentary on the silence, and the noise, coming from social media influencers, celebrities, and the entertainment industry in the face of the Venezuelan people's suffering and the bombing of a school in Iran. Who speaks? Who stays quiet? And what does that tell us? In What’s the Word, journalist and producer, Thabo Makwakwa, offers a stark and unflinching assessment of where South Africa and the broader Global South stand as the U.S. and Israel's aggressive postures reshape the international landscape. Through the lens of news media and social narratives, Makwakwa talks about what this moment demands of us. JB is In the Archives dusting up on her knowledge as she tries to understand what international law means and where the concept originates. For Beneath the Headlines, host Melusi Ncala is joined by author and political commentator Kim Heller, and podcast producer and political commentator Lucy Antonatos, for a deep-dive deconstruction of Nicholas Mulder's landmark Financial Times op-ed titled: The Era of U.S. Dominance in Economic Warfare is Over. Correspondent Mathibedi Mosiroe hits the streets of Johannesburg with a familiar voice, Isaac Ncala, to hear directly from the people, on law, on the U.S., on Israel, and on what it all means at ground level. It's a jam-packed episode overflowing with insight, entertainment, and the provocative commentary that listeners have come to expect from Melusi Ncala and the team. Audio sources: ABC, Al Jazeera, BBC News, Bloomberg, CBS, CNN, NBC, Newzroom Africa, SABC, Sky News, Reuters, TCN, Wall Street Journal Additional reference sources: Britannica, Business Day, Daily Maverick, Financial Times, International Law Milestones Throughout History, Mail & Guardian, News24, Reuters, the Bible (NIV) Ecclesiastes, The Guardian, The Star, United Nations, University College London (Bentham Project), Wikipedia, World History Encyclopedia
