The Online Right's Weirdest Conspiracy Yet

Last week's midterm elections were an absolute disaster for the Republican Party. The Democrats managed to take control of both chambers of the US Congress: the House representatives and the Senate.Possibly more important though is that the Democrats now control enough state legislatures to possibly change how Americans vote forever.That's right! The Democrats now have the opportunity to effectively rid the United States of the Electoral College, without even needing a constitutional amendment. How? Find out on today's Slow News Day...The Slow NewsroomCreator and Host: Tom NicholasProducer: Jack CarterEditor and Thumbnail: Georgia BurrowsSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

This week, the global press has been somewhat obsessed with the midterm elections, which have been happening over in America, including us!But America isn't the only country going to the polls this week. Down in the South Pacific, Aotearoa, or New Zealand, is also turfing out all its politicians and electing new ones in a general election which is currently on a knife edge.In some ways, the issues dominating the race in New Zealand are very similar to those which are dominating politics elsewhere in the world: a cost of living crisis, youth unemployment, an ever more splintered electorate. But there are also plenty of things which also make both New Zealand’s politics generally, and this election specifically unique.The Slow NewsroomCreator and Host: Tom NicholasProducer: Jack CarterEditor and Thumbnail: Georgia BurrowsSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Tomorrow, the Americans go to the polls for the Midterms. And you’ve probably heard quite a bit about these elections already, either dripping through our media or via the internet in recent months. Such are the joys of living in the shadow of the global hegemon.We have all, regardless of where we are, spent 2026 watching fuel prices climb up and up because of Trump's war in Iran. We've all had to see Trump's Liberation Day tariffs be rolled out, which had as much of a knock-on impact around the rest of the world for both consumers and producers as they did in America itself.I wanted to take the opportunity of today's Slow News Day to try and do a bit of an explainer of what the American midterm elections actually are and what impact they might have on the US and the rest of the world.The Slow NewsroomCreator and Host: Tom NicholasProducer: Jack CarterEditor: Georgia BurrowsSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Yesterday, I went to 11 Downing Street (the office and home of the Chancellor of the Exchequer) to find out the details about John Healey and Andy Burnham's first Budget.Will they end the 40 years of neoliberalism like Burnham promised or do they fall short?Come along with me to find out on Slow News Day!(We also met Larry the Cat!)The Slow NewsroomCreator and Host: Tom NicholasProducer: Jack CarterEditor: Georgia BurrowsSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

A new conspiracy theory is haunting the online right. They have found, in the clutches of this insidious group, an explanation for everything wrong with the world. This group controls every Labour Prime Minister ever elected, including Andy Burnham, and who knows how many other politicians, thinkers, business leaders, etc.This conspiracy has had an airing on Joe Rogan, as well as basically every other weird right-wing podcast at this point. Also, I ran into a purveyor of this conspiracy theory whilst on the way to interview the Prime Minister at Labour Party conference recently.It all centres on a group known as... The Fabian Society. Dun Dun Duuuun!Is this group really where the true power lies, or is it an absolutely nuts conspiracy theory? Let’s find out.The Slow NewsroomCreator and Host: Tom NicholasProducer: Jack CarterEditor: Georgia BurrowsImages Courtesy of Getty Images and Unsplash.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

So it's (still) all kicking off in France. Youth protests hit boiling point this weekend, with over 2,000 people arrested across the country. And yet, it’s not just France. Back in Spring, we saw, in India, the emergence of the Cockroach Janta Party. Originally nothing more than an online meme, the Cockroach movement soon grew into a thriving youth movement, which caused the resignation of the education minister and has genuinely threatened Narendra Modi’s grip on power…The housing protests in Spain have also caused the government to call a snap election amidst a general strike. All of this not long after youth-led protests in Nepal and Madagascar both brought down governments. It really is kicking off everywhere. And, while young people aren’t the only people protesting, they do appear to very much be at the front of the pack. Today, I want to look at why the kids aren’t okay and where this could all be going next.The Slow NewsroomCreator and Host: Tom NicholasProducer: Jack CarterEditor and Thumbnail: Georgia BurrowsImages Courtesy of Getty Images and Unsplash.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

A right-wing vision of Jesus is coming to Britain, if a few well-heeled and well-funded activists here in the UK have their way.A battle for the heart and soul of the Church of England is taking place and is being heavily funded by Paul Marshall, the fund manager turned media empire owner. Since the Church of England is both a state religion, and heavily involved in British politics, I felt like it would be useful to take a look at what's going on.The Slow NewsroomCreator and Host: Tom NicholasProducer: Jack CarterEditor: Georgia Burrows and Jack CarterImage Courtesy of Getty Images.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Has Donald Trump just negotiated a Russia/Ukraine ceasefire? Maybe? Probably not, though.Trump declared that there was an "energy ceasefire" in the Russia Ukraine War last night, which came as a surprise to both Russia and Ukraine. A few days beforehand, Trump made a deal with Putin for more diesel. So what's going down here? Is there a ceasefire either in place or in progress? Is America starting to go somewhat easier on sanctions on Russia? How does all this fold into Trump's electoral chances at home?The Slow NewsroomCreator and Host: Tom NicholasProducer: Jack CarterEditor: Georgia BurrowsImage Courtesy of Getty.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

There's a big by-election in Britain today, and the outcome could decide the fate of Britain's duelling left-wing parties. So... can the Green Party keep its momentum, or will Labour strike back?The Slow NewsroomCreator and Host: Tom NicholasProducer: Jack CarterEdit & Thumbnail: Georgia BurrowsSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

I sat down with Prime Minister Andy Burnham to chat about his plans to change Britain, including the abolition of the pension triple lock, electoral reform and whether he can win young, progressive voters back to Labour.The Slow NewsroomCreator and Host: Tom NicholasProducers: Rosie Stevenson and Jack CarterEdit: Georgia BurrowsSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.