Eurovision News Podcast

Investigating Russian casualties in Ukraine

Russia has a history of extraordinary secrecy over its wartime losses. When it invaded Ukraine, senior correspondent Olga Ivshina of the BBC, with the help of partners and volunteers, began meticulously verifying and counting Russian losses. Olga and her team's work has so far identified more than 25,000 named individuals – setting a bare minimum of Russian casualties. Their work provides hard evidence of the war’s impact on Russian forces and has brought answers to many grieving families. Olga’s reporting sheds light on the changing face of the Russian army and the human cost of this conflict.  
In this episode, Head of EBU Moscow Kate de Pury speaks with BBC Senior Correspondent Olga Ivshina about her remarkable investigation.

Mental Health and Journalism with Bruce Shapiro

In this episode, we discuss mental health and journalism with Bruce Shapiro, the executive director of the Dart Center for Journalism and Trauma at Columbia University in New York. Shapiro is an expert on how journalists can deal with the emotional and psychological effects of covering violence, conflict, and tragedy. He also offers guidance to newsrooms on how to cover mental health issues in a respectful and ethical manner. Shapiro shares his perspectives on the difficulties and opportunities that journalists encounter in times of crisis. We hope this conversation will inspire and empower journalists, editors and news leaders who want to enhance their mental health and develop strategies for reporting on violence and tragedy.

Inside Putin’s ”Shadow War:” How Nordic Journalists Exposed Russia’s Covert Operations

Eurovision News Editor Belen Lopez Garrido speaks with Frederick Hugo Ledegaard, one of the journalists behind the investigation into Russia’s hybrid war in Europe. He tells us how he and his colleagues from public broadcasters in Norway, Finland, Sweden and Denmark worked together for over a year to uncover the ways in which Russia is using espionage, disinformation, cyberattacks and seabed warfare to undermine its neighbours and rivals. He also shares some of the thrilling moments while chasing spies, fake cell phone towers and armed Russian ships. This is a story of collaboration, innovation and courage in investigative journalism.

Martin Österdahl, Eurovision Song Contest Executive Supervisor

With the Eurovision Song Contest right around the corner, who better to hear from this week than its Executive Supervisor, Martin Osterdahl. In this episode, we discuss everything from Martin's personal background, the message behind the contest, the unique planning that has occurred, as the BBC has stepped in to host in Ukraine’s place, and of course what kind of festive ambiance we can expect from the venue in Liverpool.

ABC Innovation Lab’s Angela Stengel on algorithms, AI and attracting young audiences

In this episode, Emilio sits down with Angela Stengel of ABC Australia.

 

Angela is head of ABC's Innovation Lab which is part of the company's strategy division. They are a team of journalists, producers, engineers, designers, and strategists who are looking one to two years into the future at what opportunities or challenges lie ahead and how they can optimize their business planning and strategy.

 

Their current focus is attracting younger audiences as well as the role that algorithms and AI are going to play in our future.

Reporting on Iran’s deadly protests through social media

Iran has made global headlines over the widespread protests that were sparked by the death of Mahsa Amini in September of last year.  It has been the biggest show of opposition to Iran's clerical establishment since the 1979 revolution.

Following her death, protests erupted in more than 80 cities across Iran, leading to a deadly crackdown on protesters and to the arrest of thousands of activists journalists, and citizens.

The Islamic regime's brutal treatment of protesters and the lack of a free press have made social networks an indispensable source for accessing information from inside the country. 

To better understand the situation in Iran and the efforts behind accessing verified content we speak with Mahsa Aminolahi of the Eurovision Social Newswire.
Mahsa Aminolahi Zahedi's links:
Twitter: https://twitter.com/mahsita?lang=en
Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mahsa-aminolahi-180b0538

EBU News Report 2023: Climate Journalism That Works – Between Knowledge and Impact

Public service media has a duty to provide their communities with the tools to make informed decisions about the impact of human activity on our environment. Communicating this information in a compelling and digestible way has proven to be extremely challenging, especially in an era of shrinking financial resources. 

In this episode, we are joined by Alexandra Borchardt, lead author of the 2023 EBU News Report, titled ‘Climate Journalism That Works – Between Knowledge and Impact.  The report focuses on solutions, limiting negativity, and training our journalists to understand the broader picture are pressing challenges facing our newsrooms.
Download the report here: https://www.ebu.ch/news/2023/03/ebu-news-report-shows-how-to-deliver-climate-journalism-that-works

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https://alexandraborchardt.com/

The Missing Children of Ukraine

Hundreds, if not thousands of Ukrainian children have been transferred from occupied territories in East Ukraine to Russia. While the Kremlin says that the children are being saved from the war, Kyiv claims there are elements of the crime of genocide. An extensive investigation by the EBU's Investigative Journalism Network has uncovered evidence of how these children are placed under Russian state guardianship, given to foster families or even adopted, after a fast-tracked Russian citizenship procedure. According to experts in international law and human rights, all these actions could constitute war crimes or even crimes against humanity, since they appear to be carried out at a systematic level. The network, which brought together journalists from various EBU members, spent over three months analyzing official documents, videos, and conducting exclusive interviews. The report's findings will be discussed by Belén López Garrido, project manager of the Investigative Journalism Network, and Derek Bowler, editor of the Eurovision Social Newswire.

Read article here

Guests:

EBU's Investigative Journalism Network Project Manager, Belen Lopez Garrido: Linkedin
Eurovision Social Newswire Editor, Derek Bowler: Linkedin

 

EBU Moscow Bureau Chief, Kate de Pury on navigating the current challenges of reporting from Russia

In this episode, we speak with Kate de Pury, EBU Moscow’s Bureau chief to get a sense of how she and her team have had to navigate the current challenges of reporting from Russia.  Kate joined the EBU as its Moscow Bureau chief in 2021.

 

Kate de Pury, is a journalist and news editor with decades of international experience.  De Pury’s broadcast news career has been dominated by roles at Associated Press (AP) and Reuters in Russia. She has also worked as a journalist in Chechnya, Ukraine, Georgia and the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) since the end of the Soviet Union. As Moscow bureau chief for AP from 2015-19 she oversaw a multimedia team and liaised regularly with local and foreign news organizations in Russia and the wider region.

De Pury is a member of the Rory Peck Trust advisory committee which supports freelance journalists worldwide and has designed and launched a new online MA in Digital Journalism at Falmouth University in the UK.

A dedicated ‘Russianist’, she speaks fluent Russian, as well as English and French, and has thorough knowledge of the region and its history. 

https://www.linkedin.com/in/katedepury

Journalism in wartime - Angelina Kariakina, Head of News of the Ukrainian public broadcaster UA:PBC

The Ukrainian public broadcaster UA:PBC has been on the front line and a vital partner in reporting on the war for the EBU and its members. To better understand how the organization has adapted to living and working in a war zone we speak with Angelina Kariakina, Head of News at PBC. Senior Editor of the New Exchange, Emilio San Pedro discusses with Angelina how the situation has impacted her work as a journalist and how the war has affected her on a personal level.