The Global Story

“This is the biggest entertainment release ever”, says the BBC’s technology reporter, Laura Cress. Like the 10 million people who have pre-ordered Grand Theft Auto 6 ahead of its launch on 19 November, Laura is excited to experience the ground-breaking graphics and new features - including the first female protagonist - of gaming’s biggest franchise.

Laura tells The Global Story’s Tristan Redman about GTA’s surprising roots - in a small studio in Dundee, Scotland - and explains how its nihilistic eye on the US cities the game is modelled on has courted controversy and raised political debate.
Producer: Mhairi MacKenzie
Executive producers: Hannah Moore and Martine Powers
Mix: Travis Evans
Senior news editor: China Collins
Photo: A large banner promoting Grand Theft Auto 6 in Hong Kong. Credit: Vernon Yuen/Nexpher Images via Getty Images.

This episode was updated on 12th November following Jensen Huang’s resignation as CEO of Nvidia.
China appears determined to acquire America’s most advanced computing technology – but how far might it go to get it?
Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang has resigned after publicly acknowledging having an affair, amid reports raising questions about whether the woman involved had links to Chinese intelligence. Nvidia’s board said it has no reason to believe company secrets or national security have been compromised, though it’s launched an independent investigation into the matter. The revelations have also raised broader questions about China’s longstanding efforts to acquire American technology, including through espionage.
On The Global Story, host Asma Khalid speaks to Randy Schriver and Mike Kuiken of the US-China Economic and Security Review Commission about the national security implications – and what the Nvidia scandal could mean for America’s approach to selling advanced chips to China. Plus, BBC economics editor Faisal Islam offers a behind-the-scenes look at Jensen Huang, the man at the centre of it all, and his extraordinary influence over the global AI race.
Producers: Cat Farnsworth and Xandra Ellin
Executive producer: Martine Powers
Mix: Travis Evans
Studio manager: Philip Bull
Digital producer: Charlie Firth
Senior news editor: China Collins
Photo: Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang at the "Winning the AI Race" Summit in Washington, D.C, July 23, 2025. Credit: Reuters.

Every day, tens of thousands of hours of pornographic content are uploaded to the internet. At peak times, 10% of internet traffic is people watching porn. But who is making money from it, and how?
Journalist Patricia Nilsson of the Financial Times has spent the past six years absorbed in this industry - chasing down its money men. She speaks with The Global Story’s Tristan Redman about how they’ve changed not just the porn we watch online, but the entire internet.
Producer: Hannah Moore
Executive producer: Martine Powers
Mix: Travis Evans
Technical producers: Stephen Bailey and Ben Andrews
Senior news editor: China Collins
Photo: Neon signs for adult video in Soho, London, United Kingdom. Credit: Mike Kemp/In Pictures via Getty Images

A week on from the Democrats’ victory in the US midterm elections, what might these results mean for the rest of the world? What will Trump’s foreign policy look like now he has lost control of congress?
We take a whistle stop tour of Iran, Israel, Russia and China to look at the reactions to the results and the possible consequences. Will this prompt a shift in relations between the US and its allies?
Producers: Aron Keller and Josephine Casserly
Executive producer: Bridget Harney
Digital producer: Charlie Firth
Mix: Travis Evans
Senior news editor: China Collins

Photo: President Trump and Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth at a roundtable in Washington DC, 21 Oct 2026. Credit: Shawn Thew/EPA/Shuttershock

Last week saw what could be the biggest heist in history: $6.3bn was stolen from the cryptocurrency exchange Binance. North Korean hackers are suspected of being behind the attack, which saw billions of dollars disappear in just 20 minutes.
It’s far from the first time North Korea has been accused of a major cyber-attack. Over the past decade, hackers linked to the country have targeted banks, public institutions and even Sony Pictures.
On The Global Story, Asma Khalid speaks with journalist Geoff White, host of the BBC investigative podcast The Lazarus Heist. He explains how this isolated country become a major player in the world of cyber-crime – and where all that money goes.
(Photo: Lots of metal coins with symbols of cryptocurrencies are seen in this illustration taken 10 September, 2025. Credit: Dado Ruvic/Reuters)
Producer: Mhairi MacKenzie and Josephine Casserly
Executive producer: Martine Powers
Digital producer: Charlie Firth
Sound engineer: Travis Evans
Senior news editor: China Collins