Andrey Kurkov is Ukraine’s most celebrated novelist. When Russia invaded Ukraine he turned his writing to journalism and memoir, but his latest book is a work of fiction set amid the chaos of the Russian Revolution. The Silver Bone (translated by Boris Dralyuk) is the first in a trilogy of historical mysteries in which the recently orphaned detective investigates his first case while Bolsheviks, Cossacks, and white Army Guards all vie to take control of Kyiv.
The journalist and writer Peter Pomerantsev retells the daring story of the WWII propogandist Sefton Delmer who managed to infiltrate German airwaves and skilfully question Nazi doctrine. How to Win an Information War reveals the extent of the complexity of spin and indoctrination used in the past, alongside the role of propaganda today in Putin’s Russia.
The information war is heading into a new era with the development of generative AI which makes it simple to produce fake text, audio and videos. The news editor at MIT Technology Review Charlotte Jee says the pace of change is extraordinary, and regulation is lagging behind, as deepfakes are becoming more difficult to distinguish from actual human content.
Producer: Katy Hickman
Living in the Matrix
Witches
Levelling up; halting decline
Christianity: Changing Fortunes
Ancient lives and legacies in Latin America
Internet influencers and generation gaps
Ai Weiwei on creative freedom
Working the land - Orwell and HG Wells
Rationality in an Irrational Age
Views from across the water
Images of power
Colm Tóibín on Thomas Mann
Climate activism: the next generation
Life in the first person
Ali Smith
Jackie Kay on Bessie Smith
London - villain and victim?
Lionel Shriver on life and death decisions
DH Lawrence: life and work
On Thin Ice: Glaciers, Geopolitics, and Nature's Goods
Create your
podcast in
minutes
It is Free
The Modern West
The New Statesman Podcast
Global News Podcast
Friday Night Comedy from BBC Radio 4
The Infinite Monkey Cage
You’re Dead to Me