At 3pm BST / 4pm CEST Friday 23 Oct, Guardian Europe columnists Rokhaya Diallo and Alexander Hurst will be live taking questions from our readers about the riots and protests in France. Send your questions by email now to conversations@theguardian.com, or join the discussion on Friday

After weeks of protests and a weekend of riots in which a town hall was set ablaze, 2,000-plus shops were looted, 2,300 people were arrested and 1,000 police injured, the repercussions for France – for its society and its economy – continue. Allegations of police brutality surfaced, and the violent protests unnerved investors, resulting in a debt sell-off, with borrowing costs rising higher than for Greece. All of this ahead of a hotly contested presidential election that’s now just six months away.

The French government’s escalating financial problems were covered by the Guardian’s Europe correspondent Jon Henley who wrote: “France’s national debt, at 119% of GDP, is at its highest level since 1946. Its budget deficit, at 5.1%, is also among the highest in the EU. There is just no money in the bank to ease the cost of living squeeze that brought 550,000 people on to the streets on Saturday.”

At 3pm BST / 4pm CEST Friday 23 Oct, Guardian Europe columnists Rokhaya Diallo and Alexander Hurst will be live taking questions from our readers about the riots and protests in France. Send your questions by email now to conversations@theguardian.com, or join the discussion on Friday

After weeks of protests and a weekend of riots in which a town hall was set ablaze, 2,000-plus shops were looted, 2,300 people were arrested and 1,000 police injured, the repercussions for France – for its society and its economy – continue. Allegations of police brutality surfaced, and the violent protests unnerved investors, resulting in a debt sell-off, with borrowing costs rising higher than for Greece. All of this ahead of a hotly contested presidential election that’s now just six months away.

The French government’s escalating financial problems were covered by the Guardian’s Europe correspondent Jon Henley who wrote: “France’s national debt, at 119% of GDP, is at its highest level since 1946. Its budget deficit, at 5.1%, is also among the highest in the EU. There is just no money in the bank to ease the cost of living squeeze that brought 550,000 people on to the streets on Saturday.”

“Il video è il presente e il futuro dei podcast”. A spiegarlo è Spotify, che ha presentato a Milano i nuovi dati del 2026 sul consumo di questi prodotti in Italia. “Nel 2019 il formato era una scommessa, non sapevamo se sarebbe potuto diventare un fenomeno di massa. Adesso, sta segnando la nostra epoca. La gente ascolta le storie e i suoi argomenti preferiti – ha spiegato Francesco Buccino, del team podcast di Spotify –. Anche l’impatto del video è inimmaginabile, oltre 500 milioni di persone hanno guardato un video podcast sulla piattaforma”.

Secondo l’analisi condotta dal colosso dello streaming svedese, l’Italia è il sesto Paese al mondo per l’adozione di video podcast. In un solo anno gli utenti mensili sono aumentati del 40%, il numero dei prodotti è salito del 67% e il consumo è quasi raddoppiato, con un incremento del 97%. Tra le novità che Spotify sta implementando, ma non ancora disponibile nel nostro Paese, c’è la “prompted playlist”, una lista di podcast realizzata dalla stessa applicazione in base alle richieste dell’utente attraverso strumenti di intelligenza artificiale.

Dal 20 ottobre, invece, lo Spotify Partner Program permette agli abbonati premium di guardare senza interruzioni pubblicitarie i podcast video. Un formato sempre più accattivante per creator e utenti. “Per me se oggi non c’è il video, eccetto idee incredibili, parti zoppo – ha sottolineato Gianluca Gazzoli, conduttore di “Passa dal BSMT”, tra i podcast di interviste più apprezzati in Italia –. La telecamera crea il contatto con l’host o con l’ospite, puoi vedere le loro espressioni e questo fa la differenza. Vent’anni fa c’erano più soldi, ma oggi abbiamo l’opportunità di arrivare dappertutto ed è pazzesco”.

A fargli eco anche Elisa De Marco, volto di “Elisa True Crime”, podcast che tratta cold case e storie di cronaca nera: “Anche da utente, ho sempre avuto bisogno della componente visiva. Ho ascoltato anche molti prodotti audio, per esempio sono fan di Nazzi. Ma se dovessi scegliere, preferirei il video. Sapendo di poter essere espressiva, io in primis credo di poter raccontare meglio la storia e rendere l’esperienza più immersiva”.

L'articolo “Nel 2019 erano una scommessa, ora stanno segnando la nostra epoca”: Spotify punta sui video podcast. Gianluca Gazzoli: “Senza immagini parti zoppo” proviene da Il Fatto Quotidiano.

Editor’s Note: Washington Week With The Atlantic is a partnership between NewsHour Productions, WETA, and The Atlantic airing every Friday on PBS stations nationwide. Check your local listings, watch full episodes here, or listen to the weekly podcast here.

Early voting begins in Texas on Monday, and the outcome of the Senate race could determine which party controls the chamber. In a special edition of Washington Week With The Atlantic in Austin, Texas, panelists discuss the midterms, the future of the GOP, and more.

Joining Jeffrey Goldberg, the editor in chief of The Atlantic, in Austin: the Atlantic staff writers Mark Leibovich, Ashley Parker, and Vivian Salama; and The Atlantic’s managing director for events, Evan Smith.

Watch the full episode here.

Consumer prices in September jumped 3.7% from a year ago. The Social Security Administration said benefits will increase next year to help keep pace with the rising cost of living.

(Image credit: Isabelle Souriment/Hans Lucas)