The Story

Polymarket and Kalshi have become two of the fastest-growing online platforms in the prediction market, hosting bets where people can wager on the outcome of events, including on the conflict in Iran. But some observers have raised concerns that unusually precise, well-timed bets could point to insider dealings. So what exactly are prediction markets? And what does it mean for society when you can bet on almost anything?

This podcast was brought to you thanks to the support of readers of The Times and The Sunday Times. Subscribe today: http://thetimes.com/thestory

Guest: Chris Stokel-Walker, technology journalist and author.
Host: Manveen Rana.
Producer: Sophie McNulty & Julia Webster.
We want to hear from you - email: [email protected]

Read more: Dollars and death threats: the dark side of prediction markets
Further listening: How AI helped Trump attack Iran
Clips: FRENCH 24 English, CNN, 60 Minutes, CBS News, Fox 10 Phoenix, iSpot, The Times, Coinbase.
Photo: Getty Images.

This podcast was brought to you thanks to subscribers of The Times and The Sunday Times. To enjoy unlimited digital access to all our journalism subscribe here.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

As the war with Iran rumbles on, are ceasefire talks back on or is that ‘fake news’? What’s in America’s 15 point peace plan? Could an Iranian missile reach the UK? And how long can Iran keep fighting? Hosts Manveen Rana and Luke Jones are here to answer your questions, in our monthly Q&A.

This podcast was brought to you thanks to the support of readers of The Times and The Sunday Times. Subscribe today: http://thetimes.com/thestory

Hosts: Manveen Rana and Luke Jones.
Producer: Olivia Case.

We want to hear from you - email: [email protected]
Read more: Iran war latest: US ‘negotiating with itself’, Tehran claims
Further listening: Inside Lebanon as Israel and Hezbollah wage war
Photo: Getty Images and The Times' designer Dana Chan.
This podcast was brought to you thanks to subscribers of The Times and The Sunday Times. To enjoy unlimited digital access to all our journalism subscribe here.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In the final episode of our county lines series, we hear how county lines drug gangs are continuing to shift their business model to avoid detection. Policing minister, Sarah Jones, explains how the government is planning to fight back. Plus, The Times’ crime editor David Woode sits down with The Sunday Times’ northern editor David Collins to discuss what they've learnt about the inner workings of county lines gangs.

This is episode five of a five-part special investigation into county lines drug dealing, running in audio, video, print and digital from The Times and The Sunday Times.

This podcast was brought to you thanks to the support of readers of The Times and The Sunday Times. Subscribe today: http://thetimes.com/thestory

Host: David Woode
Producers: Kate Lamble, Edward Drummond, and Taryn Siegel
We want to hear from you - email: [email protected]

Read more: I joined the police on a county lines crackdown
Photo: Getty Images.
This podcast was brought to you thanks to subscribers of The Times and The Sunday Times. To enjoy unlimited digital access to all our journalism subscribe here.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Mike started selling drugs for a county lines gang when he was just a teenager. After being arrested and getting stabbed, he left that life behind. But he's been willing to share his experiences with The Times’ crime editor David Woode for the first time, explaining how he got caught 'under a spell'.

This is episode four of a five-part special investigation into county lines drug dealing, running in audio, video, print and digital from The Times and The Sunday Times.

This podcast was brought to you thanks to the support of readers of The Times and The Sunday Times. Subscribe today: http://thetimes.com/thestory

Host: David Woode
Producers: Kate Lamble and Taryn Siegel.
With thanks to the St Giles Trust
We want to hear from you - email: [email protected]

Read more: Inside the case of a 15-year-old caught with a machete and pistol
Further listening: Why I carried a knife
Photo: Getty Images.
This podcast was brought to you thanks to subscribers of The Times and The Sunday Times. To enjoy unlimited digital access to all our journalism subscribe here.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Children aren't just running drugs for county lines gangs - sometimes they're running the lines themselves.

Today The Sunday Times's northern editor David Collins talks to the police officers who worry laws designed to protect victims of exploitation might actually encourage gang leaders to promote teenagers into higher positions in their criminal organisation.

This is episode three of a five-part special investigation into county lines drug dealing, running in audio, video, print and digital from The Times and The Sunday Times.

This podcast was brought to you thanks to the support of readers of The Times and The Sunday Times. Subscribe today: http://thetimes.com/thestory

Read more: Drug gangs swamped York. This is how police stopped them | I was a county lines drug runner. I tried to quit, then I was stabbed
Watch: School-age kingpins: why children now hold the key to county lines

Host: David Collins
Producers: Kate Lamble and Taryn Siegel
Executive producers: Tim Walklate and Dan Box
We want to hear from you - email: [email protected]

Photo: Getty Images.
This podcast was brought to you thanks to subscribers of The Times and The Sunday Times. To enjoy unlimited digital access to all our journalism subscribe here.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.