Episode 1 is like it really happened , I really appreciate. I am from Ukraine and I was at that time there, really scary. At that time the world was devided into those who support killing innocent people and to those who doesn’t care.
I really appreciate for your podcast 💕💕❤️❤️❤️
Next Year In Moscow, as the title implies, draws on Russian history to make sense of Russia’s present and consider its future. The Economist team’s presentation is very sophisticated and Arkady is a journalist with the soul of a poet. Each episode is a gem and the most recent one, which follows the death of Alexander Navalny, is powerful, poetic, and provides some hope that the current evil in Russia will not prevail — or at least will not be forgotten.
Wonderful journalism. The production of this is top notch - the original music and Arkady’s mesmerizing narration produce a compelling and emotional experience. More than once I was left listening in tears.
The nuance I didn’t know I so deeply wanted and needed in coverage of Russia! Everyone interviewed - and the host himself - speaks so movingly about the complicated country they come from, whether they live there now or not. Thank you for making this, Economist!
This is unforgettable journalism, the kind of work one could follow for months, perhaps years. I would follow Arkady to wherever he goes with future material.
This podcast is important as well as very engaging. If you want to understand the pulse of Russia currently and how it got to where it is today, this is a must listen. Please continue to publish more episodes.
I started this series because of Russian violence and war against Ukraine. It is so well done and helpful in understanding of the varied views, and concerns of some Russian people. I highly recommend this series, and hope even more people hear it. Bravo to the people involved in it, the courageous people that were interviewed and the way it was done. I genuinely hope that perhaps some next year in Moscow, can be something better.
Deeply researched, filled with insightful audio quotes collected from key figures and eyewitnesses in diaspora and inside Russia, describing a well-crafted narrative arc while letting each episode tell its separate truths, suffused with haunting music, and carried throughout by Arcady’s lyrical reporting in his gentle and authoritative voice—this is some of the finest journalism I have ever come across. Bravo. большое спасибо!
This is an unparalleled podcast and journalistic tour-de-force. Such insight to the terrible things happening in Russia and the brave people who are fighting against these crimes against humanity. This is the kind of journalism that brought me on as a paid subscriber to the Economist. Will there be more episodes?
Amazing collection of interviews and first hand accounts about the lives affected by the Russian war against Ukraine focused on the repressed voices of Russians. A truly unique perspective.
Phenomenal podcast the host is a great storyteller who gives insight Russia. Additionally, the sound score was really good it highlighted key moments. I am a big serial & American life listener. I love great stories I will have to follow host to see if he puts out any other projects. Overall amazing podcast!!
I enjoyed this podcast. My favorite episode was number 7 with the interview of Maria Eismont. This lady is amazing. Ms. Eismont is a lawyer but her role as a compassionate and humanitarian advocate is what put her apart of other characters I heard in this series. Great job!
I listened to the whole thing. The interviews provide eye-opening perspective on Russia’s slide back to dictatorship just as things were looking up for the post-USSR country. A chilling reminder of how easily corruption can slide democracy into dictatorship, the power of controlling the narrative (a stark reminder of the grave importance of media independence from the government), and most importantly, a beacon of hope for the Russian people. There are people, Russians, working hard to bring truth to the Russian people, and end the dark night that has fallen - once again - on Moscow. They are heroes.
This podcast is SO good that I’m suffering withdrawal now that I’ve listened to all 8 episodes. Arkady Ostrovsky’s narratives are profoundly nuanced - so much so that I’m caught by surprise when I realize he has narrated not just the headline story but a second one that lurks beneath the surface.
From The Economist, I expected a news-oriented podcast but Arkadiy and his colleagues have created something that is both informative and beautifully poetic. Really amazing.
2x2=4
I love the long form content. Wish I could get it without ads a subscriber. I also like hearing from the journalists themselves. I wonder if one of the special editions like Christmas has by-lines or biographies of the journalists.
This podcast series, along with The Prince, is amazingly insightful and thought provoking work. Hats off to Arcady. This has helped me so much in my understanding and his telling of it all is so powerful in its resolute determination to to show it all to us with feeling and compassion. I wish it did not have to come to an end. I loved this series.
Absolutely outstanding window into the backstory of how Russians are absorbing the war in Ukraine. Stories are told from historical, urgency and loving perspectives. I am deeply appreciative of the risks involved for all those interviewing and interviewed.
THIS IS WHY I SUBSCRIBE TO THE ECONOMIST.
The host of this podcast is far from impartial and his goal is clearly to solicit pity for the Russians. Sure, there are some dissidents in Russia but just like in the Soviet times there are few and far between. He says Russia is a country that moved from communism to democracy to imperialism. No, it’s not. It’s a county that always had imperialism, that’s the one thing that’s been consistent over centuries. For anyone who wants insight into Russia and its people, they should read the Dragon by Evgeny Schwartz, it would be far more informative than this podcast.
As a few comments mentioned, this new series has a very similar tone as Prince, Drum Tower the two series that focused on China. I really appreciate the perspectives which are largely missed in most of the news coverage in English news especially here in the US.
The greatest value of these Economist’s podcasts is to bring perspective and the great care and delicate balance into telling stories with contexts and nuances. Meanwhile the narrate and storytelling are genuine, honest and with souls.
I have read The Economist for many years and have been a subscriber of their podcasts, as well as many others. Next Year in Moscow is in a league of its own. This is art. It’s beautiful. While the content is superb, the podcast is poignant; it doesn’t just inform, or tell a story—it speaks with verisimilitude…and it resonates deeply.
I am a frequent listener of the economist podcast. This one is absolutely riveting. I can’t wait for the next episode. Of course, the narrator/writer talks about what we already know about Russia and the former Soviet union. However, he puts it into a very succinct and credible, historical context that helps us understand why this is happening again. I have to say it is sad times for the people in all of those former Soviet colonies. Who is next Kazakhstan Belarus, Georgia Czechoslovakia Bosnia Albania?
As a longtime subscriber, this thoughtful, thorough and compelling podcast series — just as with the Drum Tower (China focused) podcast series — showcases the best of The Economist. The Babbage (science/tech podcast) is also quite good, like the other two mentioned, in both content and tone. Excruciating to to read the US coverage in print and listen to the Checks & Balances (US focus) and Money Talks (finance) pods, however as these are jejune in tone and, in the case of C&B, just full of millennial-ish ivy leaguer perspectives — all give a very one sided & shallow look at the US scene. Regularly consider unsubscribing & moving to the FT bc of print US & C&B pod coverage, esp the terrible right wing framed & shallow reporting by the Suich-Bass and new C&B co-presenter Kahloon. Howard, Prideaux & Fasman were a good team, not perfect, but good and solid.
It’s really hard now to speak about Russians, since their problems seem negligible. Thank you, mr. Ostrovsky, for that job. The podcast provides great view on what happened in Russia in recent, and how people felt about it—all the way from hopes to fear and destroyed society.
I worked in media in Moscow for nine years in the 2000s (and have been invested in Russia much longer than that) and this podcast tells an important story that most media have avoided. I enjoyed episode 1, but I have yet to read or hear anything that encapsulates my time in Moscow more accurately than episode 2. It was almost too painful to listen to because it forced me to revisit what was (or what I thought was) and mourn what I thought might have been.
Journalism takes many forms, but The Economist has always been among my favorite.
After 15 years of subscribing this level of emotion in a story feels like new ground. Made me think and cry, can’t wait to listen to the series as a whole.
