In the technology great game there are plenty of battlefields but Tiktok has been the most public, and the most revealing. This addictive, Chinese-owned video-sharing app has exposed a paranoia from governments in both the east and west over who controls access to information and the power of social media. What does this mean for the future of the internet? See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

You will never again see a Tweet from Donald Trump. He's been banned from Twitter for life without the right to appeal. The world feels quieter, but is it better? The power to hand out megaphones in our democracies, and the power to take them away, now rests in a tiny number of hands. With Anthony Scaramucci, former White House director of communications; Kai Diekmann, former editor of Bild; Gilad Edelman - Political writer at Wired magazine; Jameel Jaffer, director of the Knight First...

Public inquiries have been an important clearing house in the battle for truth. They’ve settled arguments about who was responsible for national scandals and tragedies and, crucially, taken the pen away from people in power and given it to victims and campaigners. In this episode, James Harding and guests ask: in the age of social media, when anyone can hold the pen, can the idea of the public inquiry survive?   See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Is cancel culture a way to wrest the mic from the powerful? A means of stifling debate? Or both? With guests Suzanne Moore, journalist; Ash Sarkar, Novara Media; Amber Rudd, former Home Secretary; Matt D'Ancona, Tortoise editor and partner.   See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

In theory, the press conference is the crucible where politicians encounter journalists and a truth is revealed. Is it anything like that in practice? James Harding's guests include Beth Rigby, political editor of Sky News; Alastair Campbell, formerly Tony Blair's director of communications; Ari Fleischer, former White House press secretary to George Bush; Daniel Maki, who works on intelligence and investigations for the Institute for Strategic Dialogue.   See acast.com/privacy for privacy...

Our history is up for grabs. Who do we honour with statues and what do we celebrate in our museums? Join James Harding and guests to debate how we deal with empire, slavery, and all the rights and wrongs of our past Guests: Bonnie Greer, author and critic; Sizwe Mpofu-Walsh, author and Rhodes Must Fall activist; Max Hastings, journalist and author; Zareer Masani, historian.   See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

In the fight over facts and fake news, accuracy and accountability - the battle for truth - the battleground which counts more than any other is Facebook. Join James Harding and guests for a ThinkIn to try to answer one of the biggest questions of our time: who regulates the internet? With Noah Feldman, professor of Law at Harvard University; Poppy Wood, senior advisor at RESET; Stephen Levy, editor at large at Wired and author of 'Facebook: the inside story'; and Alexi Mostrous, editor at...

Join James Harding, Editor and Co-Founder of Tortoise Media, and guests as they focus their combined intellectual curiosity and firepower on the biggest challenges of the 21st century – starting in Season 1, The Battle for Truth.   See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.