{"podcast":{"title":"The Explanation","slug":"the-explanation-6376999","podcast_index_feed_id":6376999,"rss_url":"https://podcasts.files.bbci.co.uk/w13xtvml.rss","website_url":"http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/w13xtvml","image_url":"http://ichef.bbci.co.uk/images/ic/3000x3000/p0fkb4x0.jpg","author":"BBC","episode_count":343,"summary":"Where the world is explained. Making sense of the big stories - looking behind the spin. Exploring the important questions about long-running stories and the latest global news. An honest, unvarnished, explanation of the world. Featuring new episodes of The President's Path, Unspun World with John Simpson, and The Media Show.","last_synced_at":"2026-07-23T16:18:17.936811+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-explanation-6376999"},"episode":{"title":"The President's Path: Why is Trump hosting the UFC at the White House?","slug":"the-president-s-path-why-is-trump-hosting-the-ufc-at-the-white-house","published_at":"2026-06-12T12:00:00+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-explanation-6376999/the-president-s-path-why-is-trump-hosting-the-ufc-at-the-white-house","show_page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-explanation-6376999","url":"http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p0nrlz2k","audio_url":"http://open.live.bbc.co.uk/mediaselector/6/redir/version/2.0/mediaset/audio-nondrm-download-rss/proto/http/vpid/p0nrlw8g.mp3","summary":"Sumi, Caitríona and Bernd dig into a big week for President Trump, who is celebrating his 80th birthday - just weeks ahead of America's 250th - with UFC Freedom 250, an invite-only MMA fight on the South Lawn of the White House. Bernd reports back from the venue, where a 92-foot structure now towers over the executive mansion, while Caitríona runs through the practical headaches: searing heat, the threat of thunderstorms, swarming bugs and a fight card slimmed down from its original ambitions. The team also unpicks the controversy - a lawsuit from local residents calling it an \"aesthetic injury\", Trump's long relationship with UFC boss Dana White, and reports that UFC's parent company expects to make a hefty loss on the night. Why do it? The presenters explore the politics of Trump's sporting embrace - from NASCAR to the Knicks, where footage appeared to show him being booed (he says he received a great reception) - and whether the White House is using events like this to shore up support among young men. Then it's on to the World Cup: fans reporting visa delays and rejections, astronomical ticket prices, fears of immigration raids at watch parties, and Iran's team reportedly basing itself in Mexico. The White House insists America will be welcoming and secure - but can a global celebration of football rise above the politics, or will the controversies steal the show?","meta_description":"Sumi, Caitríona and Bernd dig into a big week for President Trump, who is celebrating his 80th birthday - just weeks ahead of America's 250th - with UFC F…","key_points":[],"chapters":[],"topics":[],"duration_seconds":1476,"processing_state":"not_requested","actions":[{"name":"request_transcript","method":"POST","url":"https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/the-explanation-6376999/episodes/the-president-s-path-why-is-trump-hosting-the-ufc-at-the-white-house/transcription-requests","description":"Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode."},{"name":"read_markdown","method":"GET","url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-explanation-6376999/the-president-s-path-why-is-trump-hosting-the-ufc-at-the-white-house.md","description":"Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource."}]}}