Resources

An annotated, non-exhaustive list of quality sources on current affairs. Explore the world, open your mind.

Newspapers of Record

That is, newspapers with a longstanding, widely-held reputation for authoritative, independent, accurate, and comprehensive news-reporting and editorial. Many have been operating for 100 years or more. They don’t always get everything right, but usually they’re the first to acknowledge when a mistake is made, and to issue a correction, in their own pages. To avoid this possibility, it’s best not to rely on just one newspaper of record, but to read across a selection. Full access usually requires a (modest) subscription, but there may be free registration with an email address, which allows a certain number of articles to be read for free per week/month. Check each website listed below for details.

Corriere della Sera (Italy) – www.corriere.it
Die Welt (Germany) – www.welt.de
Die Zeit (Germany) – www.zeit.de
El Mundo (Spain) – www.elmundo.es
El Pais (Spain) – elpais.com
La Stampa (Italy) – www.lastampa.it
Le Figaro (France) – www.lefigaro.fr
Le Monde (France) – www.lemonde.fr
Neue Zurcher Zeiting (Switzerland) – www.nzz.ch
The Financial Times (UK) – www.ft.com
The Globe and Mail (Canada) – www.theglobeandmail.com
The New York Times (US) – www.nytimes.com
The Times/Sunday Times (UK) – www.thetimes.co.uk
The Times of India (India) – timesofindia.indiatimes.com
The Wall Street Journal (US)– www.wsj.com
The Washington Post (US)– www.washingtonpost.com
The Guardian (UK, US, Australia, Europe, International editions) – theguardian.com

Unlike so many other traditional media outlets, the Guardian has never been bought or sold. It was established in 1821, and transferred to a Trust in 1936.¹ It therefore enjoys a high degree of financial and editorial independence when compared with other news outlets, which also allows it to engage in award-winning investigative journalism. It is widely regarded as a UK ‘newspaper of record’. It covers a very wide range of topics, has five regional editions, and its website include a digital news archive dating back to 1791. One needs to register with an email address, but otherwise can access a wide variety of quality full text articles for free. ‘The Long Read’ and ‘The Audio Long Read’ are particularly good. Guardian Media Group also includes the sister title The Observer.

Free Broadcast/Print/Radio/Podcast News and Current Affairs Websites

Many of these are state-owned, but their reporting remains at arm’s length from the government of the day. All free content, often available in multiple languages. Again, if you are concerned about the accuracy of reporting by a state-owned media outlet on an issue of particular sensitivity to that state, then it’s best to consult a selection of these websites.

Al Jazeera (Qatar-based) – www.aljazeera.com
Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) – abc.net.au
British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) – www.bbc.com
Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) – www.cbc.ca
Deutsche Welle (Germany-based) – www.dw.com
France 24 – www.france24.com/en/
National Public Radio (US-based) – www.npr.org
Public Broadcasting Service (US-based) – www.pbs.org
Reuters – www.reuters.com
Special Broadcasting Service (SBS)(Australia-based) – www.sbs.com.au
The Moscow Times – www.themoscowtimes.com

The Conversation – theconversation.com
The Conversation provides research-based news and analysis, across a broad range of topics: ‘academic rigour, journalist flair’ is its catch-cry. As such, the vast majority of authors are academics, who, with the help of the Conversation’s editorial team, turn their insights into accessible articles for the general interest reader. Each author lists their institutional affiliation in their byline, with a disclosure statement attached, plus any relevant funding information. There are various editions of the Conversation, covering different regions and languages. Everything is free to read, and free to republish under a Creative Commons licence. While generally the Conversation is very good, some articles are more about publicising the latest research findings and driving more traffic towards these, than they are about responding to a genuine need for expertise on an important current affairs issue.

Free Current Affairs Documentaries

Depending on where you are viewing from, some of these may require the use of a VPN.

Films for Action – www.filmsforaction.org
Free-to-view documentaries on everything from animal rights to war and peace. Paid subscriptions unlock exclusive content. As its website name suggests, this is a home for activist film-making so do ensure you research thoroughly the film-makers prior to viewing.

Foreign Correspondent- https://iview.abc.net.au/show/foreign-correspondent
An in-depth look at important international events and issues. Made in Australia.

Four Corners – https://iview.abc.net.au/show/four-corners
Long-running Australia-based documentary series program, covering domestic and international issues.

Frontline– www.pbs.org/wgbh/frontline
The US public broadcasting service’s (PBS’) foremost documentary series, covering a wide range of domestic and international topics. Podcasts also available.

Panorama – www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b006t14n
The BBC’s flagship investigative documentary series. UK-focussed, but with international stories as well.

Unreported World – channel4.com/programmes/unreported-world
Shining a light on important local or regional developments around the world, which may not make it to the global headlines. Often human interest-led. Made in the UK.

Podcasts (Academic)

In Depth, Out Loud – shows.acast.com/indepthoutloud/about
The podcast of The Conversation (see above). Academics read aloud long-form articles they’ve written, capturing their research. All topics and disciplines covered.

Political WorldView – soundcloud.com/political-worldview
Academics at the University of Birmingham (UK) discuss topical news and international politics.

The Skeptic’s Guide to the Universe- www.theskepticsguide.org/podcasts
Hosted by a neurologist at Yale University School of Medicine, this podcast started in 2005, and covers a wide array of science topics.

Podcasts (Non-Academic)

Your Undivided Attention – www.humanetech.com/podcast
The podcast of the Centre for Humane Technology, a non-profit established by former employees of Big Tech companies, fed up with the exploitive and extractive attention economy created by the latter. Dedicated to discussing all things tech, and advocating for technology that strengthens individual well-being and democracy. Don’t just listen to the podcast; check out their website full of resources for rethinking our present tech reality.