Newshour BBC Podcasts

US President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump prepare to go head to head in televised debates. We ask a former adviser to Biden and a Republican pollster about what’s to expect and what’s at stake.

Also on the programme: more protests in Kenya even after the President U-Turns on his controversial tax policy; a BBC investigation tracks down a prolific people smuggler involved in trafficking people across the English Channel; and new research warns that AI-generated essays score higher grades than student-written scripts and are virtually impossible for universities to detect.

(Picture: The press room in the McCamish Pavilion on the Georgia Institute of Technology campus ahead of the first 2024 presidential debate Credit: REUTERS/Marco Bello)

The former head of Bolivia's army is in custody after leading what the government described as an attempted coup. Seconds before his arrest on Wednesday, General Juan José Zúñiga told reporters he'd been ordered to stage the uprising by the president. He said Luis Acre wanted to boost his own popularity by putting armoured vehicles on the streets.

Also in the programme: The BBC tracks down a man thought to be behind deadly trips for migrants across the English Channel; and are British voters fed-up with politicians?

(Photo: Bolivian General Juan José Zúñiga is presented after his arrest by the authorities for an apparent coup attempt in La Paz, Bolivia June 26, 2024. Credit: Reuters/Claudia Morales)

President Ruto of Kenya has abandoned planned tax rises in response to deadly protests on Tuesday. Newshour gets reaction from a young protestor.
Also in the programme: the US Supreme Court's accidental abortion leak; and an astronaut on when things go wrong in space;
(Picture: Kenyan President Ruto withdraws controversial tax bill in the wake of violent protests, Nairobi, Kenya - 26 Jun 2024 leak. Credit: handout)

At least 13 protesters were killed during protests in Kenya, doctors say, and a section of the parliament buildings went up in flames as demonstrations against new tax proposals escalated on Tuesday.
We hear from Kenya's governing party about the situation.
Also in the programme: the UN warns about lethal new synthetic drugs; Julian Assange arrives back in Australia; and what to wear to sing along with Shania Twain at Glastonbury.
(Photo shows flames and smoke coming out of a building during a protest near the Kenyan parliament against tax hikes in Nairobi, Kenya on 25 June 2024. Credit: EPA)

People have been killed and injured in Kenya as demonstrators break into parliament in escalating protests over government tax hikes. President Ruto has promised a tough response.
Also in the programme: Wikileaks founder Julian Assange prepares for a court hearing on a remote US island that could lead to his freedom. But the debate continues - was he a hero or villain for leaking classified US documents? And as scientists make progress in attaching living human skin to humanoid robots, we hear about the potential advantages.
(IMAGE: People attend a demonstration against Kenya's proposed finance bill 2024/2025 in Nairobi, Kenya, June 25, 2024 / CREDIT: Reuters / Monicah Mwangi)

The wife of the Wikileaks founder, Julian Assange, says she's elated that he's left jail in Britain, but remains worried that his fourteen-year legal battle is not yet over. Mr Assange has left the UK as part of a plea deal with American prosecutors to avoid extradition to the United States. He's due to appear in court in a remote US Pacific territory, where he'll plead guilty to a single charge under the Espionage Act. We'll hear from his wife and ask whether Mr Assange's work was necessary or damaging?
Also in the programme: part of Kenya's parliament complex has been set on fire and several people have reportedly been shot dead during huge protests against planned tax rises; and Israel's top court has told the military to end an exemption for ultra-Orthodox religious students straining the coalition government led by Benjamin Netanyahu.
(Picture: WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange disembarks from a plane at Bangkok Don Mueang International Airport in Thailand. Credit: Wikileaks via Reuters)