Radical with Amol Rajan

From social media to artificial intelligence, one of themes of the first six months of Radical has been whether modern technology augments and improves what it is to be human or, on the contrary, degrades and damages our species.In this final episode of 2025 Amol reflects on what he’s learned from the people he's spoken to on the podcast about how technology is changing our lives and brings you some of his personal highlights.GET IN TOUCH * WhatsApp: 0330 123 9480 * Email: [email protected] Episodes of Radical with Amol Rajan are released every Thursday and you can also watch them on BBC iPlayer: https://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episodes/m002f1d0/radical-with-amol-rajan Amol Rajan is a presenter of the Today programme on BBC Radio 4. He is also the host of University Challenge on BBC One. Before that, Amol was media editor at the BBC and editor at The Independent. Radical with Amol Rajan is a Today Podcast. It was made by Lewis Vickers with Anna Budd. Technical production was by Mike Regaard. The editor is Sam Bonham. The executive producer is Owenna Griffiths.

Best-selling author Naomi Alderman answers your questions about the her first non-fiction book, how she feels about her writing being used to train AI models and whether there will a new series of ‘The Power’ on Amazon Prime.And Naomi also reveals exciting new details about her latest novel, called ‘The Strangers’, which is set to be released in September 2026. GET IN TOUCH: * WhatsApp: 0330 123 9480 * Email: [email protected] Amol Rajan is a presenter of the Today programme on BBC Radio 4. He is also the host of University Challenge on BBC One. Before that, Amol was media editor at the BBC and editor at The Independent.Radical with Amol Rajan is a Today Podcast. It was made by Lewis Vickers with Anna Budd. Digital production was by Gabriel Purcell-Davis. Technical production was by James Piper. The editor is Sam Bonham. The executive producer is Owenna Griffiths.

What happens when a new technology transforms how we communicate ideas and information? Best-selling science fiction writer Naomi Alderman joins Amol to explain why she thinks the digital age has pushed us into a “third information crisis”, which is as profound as the invention of writing or the printing press. Drawing on those past revolutions, Naomi offers some solutions to help us navigate the era we're living through. She suggests new laws to regulate the online world and potentially even a “checked internet” like Wikipedia, which is home to verified facts rather than misinformation. But at the heart of her argument is the need to prioritise real world, human connection and resist the urge to move everything online. Naomi also tells Amol how therapy has helped her and why she’s written her first non-fiction book after a series of successful novels. (00:03:23) What is the third information crisis? (00:08:01) Why the invention of the printing press caused the Reformation (00:10:40) Challenges of an information crisis (00:12:40) The transition to literature (00:16:30) The pros and cons of smartphones (00:20:30) The origins of writing and how that changed human connection (00:24:10) Collective thinking and decision making (00:26:30) What is social media doing to our minds? (00:29:06) Naomi’s radical ideas (00:39:28) Hope for the future (00:42:30) Scepticism about AI (00:49:40) Digital ID (00:51:29) Is this making it better or worse to be human? (00:55:10) The importance of therapy and becoming reconciled with the events of her life (01:00:00) What’s next for Naomi Alderman? (01:02:09) Amol’s reflections GET IN TOUCH * WhatsApp: 0330 123 9480 * Email: [email protected] Episodes of Radical with Amol Rajan are released every Thursday and you can also watch them on BBC iPlayer: https://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episodes/m002f1d0/radical-with-amol-rajan Amol Rajan is a presenter of the Today programme on BBC Radio 4. He is also the host of University Challenge on BBC One. Before that, Amol was media editor at the BBC and editor at The Independent. Radical with Amol Rajan is a Today Podcast. It was made by Lewis Vickers with Anna Budd. Digital production was by Gabriel Purcell-Davis. Technical production was by James Piper. The editor is Sam Bonham. The executive producer is Owenna Griffiths.

Chef, author and campaigner Jamie Oliver answers your questions about obesity and how he'd create a more inclusive education system. Also, is food in French supermarkets better than in British ones? And should there be a move towards predominantly plant-based meals in schools? GET IN TOUCH: * WhatsApp: 0330 123 9480 * Email: [email protected] Amol Rajan is a presenter of the Today programme on BBC Radio 4. He is also the host of University Challenge on BBC One. Before that, Amol was media editor at the BBC and editor at The Independent. Radical with Amol Rajan is a Today Podcast. It was made by Lewis Vickers with Anna Budd. Digital production was by Gabriel Purcell-Davis. Technical production was by Mike Regaard. The editor is Sam Bonham. The executive producer is Owenna Griffiths.

Jamie Oliver thinks diet-related illness and growing levels of debt are killing the country he loves. In this frank and open conversation, he tells Amol why we need to go further to help people understand the nutritional value of the food they eat. And although his campaign for the sugar tax brought significant change, Jamie says there is still more to do on school meals, breakfast clubs and food packaging. But Jamie’s mission doesn’t stop at food. He wants children to be taught how to manage their money and he also sets out a case for reforming education so it better serves children with diverse ways of learning. Reflecting on his own dyslexia, he emphasises the importance of giving every child the support they need to thrive. And following the announcement that Jamie’s Italian will return to the UK, Jamie reflects on what went wrong the first time and how he hopes to make the relaunch a success. (00:01:42) Reflecting on the cultural shifts throughout his career (00:06:12) What he thinks of the current state of Britain (00:08:25) Sugar tax (00:11:13) Junk food advertising(00:13:50) What are we getting wrong with obesity? (00:16:58) Decline in cooking (00:19:39) School meals and breakfast club standards (00:23:17) Neurodiversity (00:28:30) How did dyslexia affect him as a child? (00:31:00) Why we need to teach financial literacy to kids (00:35:14) Jamie’s radical ideas (00:39:15) The decline of British pubs (00:43:10) Jamie’s Italian – why it failed and why he is bringing it back (00:46:55) The ups and downs of fame (00:52:37) Reflecting on his childhood (00:55:52) Amol’s reflections GET IN TOUCH * WhatsApp: 0330 123 9480 * Email: [email protected] Episodes of Radical with Amol Rajan are released every Thursday and Your Radical Questions, where you get to put questions to our guests, is released every Monday.Watch on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@r4today Watch on BBC iPlayer: https://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episodes/m002f1d0/radical-with-amol-rajan Amol Rajan is a presenter of the Today programme on BBC Radio 4. He is also the host of University Challenge on BBC One. Before that, Amol was media editor at the BBC and editor at The Independent. Radical with Amol Rajan is a Today Podcast. It was made by Lewis Vickers with Anna Budd. Digital production was by Gabriel Purcell-Davis. Technical production was by Mike Regaard. The editor is Sam Bonham. The executive producer is Owenna Griffiths.