# “Which is worse…Piers Morgan or the BBC?” Julia Hartley-Brewer on the media collapse Page: https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-brink-7481910/which-is-worse-piers-morgan-or-the-bbc-julia-hartley-brewer-on-the-media-collapse Text version: https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-brink-7481910/which-is-worse-piers-morgan-or-the-bbc-julia-hartley-brewer-on-the-media-collapse.md Podcast: [The Brink](https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-brink-7481910) Published: 2026-05-13T19:25:03+00:00 Episode link: https://shows.acast.com/the-brink/episodes/6a04d00f9ea03fc75f0a1ee1 Audio file: https://sphinx.acast.com/p/open/s/68bb49871af371182ae70db4/e/6a04d00f9ea03fc75f0a1ee1/media.mp3 Processing state: not_requested JSON: https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/the-brink-7481910/episodes/which-is-worse-piers-morgan-or-the-bbc-julia-hartley-brewer-on-the-media-collapse Duration seconds: 2942 ## Resource Watch the full uncut interview HERE: https://open.substack.com/pub/thebrinkpodcast/p/the-real-reason-british-politics?r=63dafp&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=true In this episode of The Brink, Andrew and Jake are joined by broadcaster and journalist Julia Hartley-Brewer. The discussion begins with the mounting pressure on Keir Starmer, with Julia arguing that his leadership has exposed deeper systemic failures across British politics. From Brexit and the civil service to taxation, public services, and political leadership, we explore why trust in both Labour and the Conservatives has collapsed so dramatically. The conversation then turns to the media and the cultural establishment. Julia reflects on her career in British journalism and explains why she increasingly found herself at odds with elite opinion on issues like Brexit, lockdowns, net zero, and gender ideology. We examine whether legacy media has lost public trust and what has filled the vacuum online. A major focus of the episode is anti-Semitism and the war in Israel. Julia shares her experience visiting Israel after October 7th, including visits to the Nova festival site and communities attacked by Hamas. She explains why the trip profoundly affected her understanding of the conflict and why she believes much of the Western public has been misled about Israel by media narratives and political activism. Finally, we discuss the future of British politics, the rise of Reform, and whether the country is entering a period of deeper instability and fragmentation. Don't forget to check out our merch store: https://www.thebrinkmerch.com/ Chapters 00:00 Intro 03:35 Keir Starmer and Labour 07:18 What’s wrong with UK politics 17:44 What a “truth-telling” PM would say 23:20 Julia’s media… ## Actions - request_transcript: `POST https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/the-brink-7481910/episodes/which-is-worse-piers-morgan-or-the-bbc-julia-hartley-brewer-on-the-media-collapse/transcription-requests` — Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode. - read_markdown: `GET https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-brink-7481910/which-is-worse-piers-morgan-or-the-bbc-julia-hartley-brewer-on-the-media-collapse.md` — Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource. A page view does not enqueue transcription. Agents should invoke `request_transcript` explicitly when they need this episode processed. ## Transcript Full transcripts are not published on public pages unless there is a clear rights basis.