{"podcast":{"title":"Americast","slug":"americast-89638","podcast_index_feed_id":89638,"rss_url":"https://podcasts.files.bbci.co.uk/p07h19zz.rss","website_url":"http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p07h19zz","image_url":"http://ichef.bbci.co.uk/images/ic/3000x3000/p0k99j29.jpg","author":"BBC","episode_count":592,"summary":"Americast is the authoritative US news and politics podcast from the BBC. Each week we provide audiences with the best analysis from across the BBC, with on-the-ground observations and big picture insights about the stories which are defining America right now. The podcast is hosted by trusted BBC journalists including the BBC’s North America editor, Sarah Smith, BBC Radio 4 presenter, Justin Webb, the BBC’s disinformation and social media correspondent, Marianna Spring, and BBC North America correspondent, Anthony Zurcher. As well as political analysis, we also specialise in social media. Each week Marianna Spring brings listeners the latest updates from the BBC’s Undercover Voters, our award-winning investigation into the content that is recommended to US voters on social media. The team is also joined by special guests each week, like CNN anchor, Christiane Amanpour, Emmy Award-winning TV host, Rachel Maddow, and Succession actress, J Smith-Cameron. Podcasts are published every Monday, Wednesday and Friday. As well as being a podcast, we are also available every Friday on the World Service. Oh, and by the way, you can now listen to Americast on a smart speaker. If you want to l…","last_synced_at":null,"page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/americast-89638"},"episode":{"title":"Americanswers... on 5 Live! Donald Trump vs Pope Leo on Iran","slug":"americanswers-on-5-live-donald-trump-vs-pope-leo-on-iran","published_at":"2026-04-13T19:10:00+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/americast-89638/americanswers-on-5-live-donald-trump-vs-pope-leo-on-iran","show_page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/americast-89638","url":"http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p0nd6swy","audio_url":"http://open.live.bbc.co.uk/mediaselector/6/redir/version/2.0/mediaset/audio-nondrm-download-rss/proto/http/vpid/p0nd6sf1.mp3","summary":"President Trump has become entangled in a very public row with Pope Leo XIV, who has been critical of the US war with Iran. The US president has slammed the pope for being “weak” on crime and “terrible” at foreign policy, whilst also posting a picture of himself as Jesus (this post has been taken down from social media since we recorded the episode). Sarah, Anthony and Marianna join Matt Chorley to discuss the Pope’s response, and where this leaves the US president and those who voted for him. Also, how will Trump’s criticism of the pontiff affect his standing with the wider American public? We also answer your questions on Melania Trip’s surprise statement about the disgraced sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, why the Trump administration will be disappointed by the ousting of Viktor Orban in Hungary’s elections, the legality of a US blockade in the Strait of Hormuz, and Trump’s huge rant against some of America’s biggest MAGA influencers. HOSTS: • Sarah Smith, North America Editor • Anthony Zurcher, North America Correspondent • Marianna Spring, Social Media Investigations Senior Correspondent • Matt Chorley, 5 Live Presenter GET IN TOUCH: • Join our online community: https://discord.gg/qSrxqNcmRB • Send us a message or voice note via WhatsApp to +44 330 123 9480 • Email Americast@bbc.co.uk • Or use #Americast This episode was made by Alix Pickles and Purvee Pattni. The technical producer was Gareth Jones. The series producer is Purvee Pattni. The senior news editor is Sam Bonham. If you want to be notified every time we publish a new episode, please subscribe to us on BBC Sounds by hitting the subscribe button on the app. You can now listen to Americast on a smart speaker. If you want to listen, just say \"Ask BBC Sounds to play Americast”. It works on most smart speakers…","meta_description":"President Trump has become entangled in a very public row with Pope Leo XIV, who has been critical of the US war with Iran. The US president has slammed t…","key_points":[],"chapters":[],"topics":[],"duration_seconds":1708,"processing_state":"not_requested","actions":[{"name":"request_transcript","method":"POST","url":"https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/americast-89638/episodes/americanswers-on-5-live-donald-trump-vs-pope-leo-on-iran/transcription-requests","description":"Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode."},{"name":"read_markdown","method":"GET","url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/americast-89638/americanswers-on-5-live-donald-trump-vs-pope-leo-on-iran.md","description":"Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource."}]}}