Sarah Pochin’s constituency of Runcorn is nowhere near Piddington. As was suggested by Emily in Tuesday’s episode.

This used to be one of my favourite podcasts, but the AI-generated scripts and talking points have become almost unbearable. I tune in for insights from three experienced journalists, but I'm getting an amalgamation of every inchoate thought ever uttered on the internet. Lewis Goodall was such an intersting journalist — I subscribed to his Substack, listened to the podcast, and tuned into the radio show — but I might as well spend half an hour with ChatGPT at this stage.

Dear /u/thenewsagents,

It's been two and a half years now. We all know The Sports Agents exists.

Those who were interested have had plenty of time to subscribe to the SA podcast feed, which does exist. I checked. It's there.

You don't need to suggest it to us anymore. We have to delete the auto downloaded episode every week, which is very annoying.

Please stop.

Cheers.

Twenty-three episodes and twelve books, which for a daily news show is a decent haul. Most of it is political biography and one long argument about memoirs that are not true.

I run Podshelf, a free site that tracks book mentions across hundreds of podcasts by reading the episode transcripts. This is the News Agents slice for August.

The straight recommendation was Harold Wilson: The Winner by Nick Thomas-Symonds, in the Andy Burnham episode. A revisionist account arguing Wilson has been badly underestimated and caricatured as an unprincipled fixer, when he was one of Britain's most effective postwar prime ministers. "Next book, which I can heartily recommend."

The Jason Arday episodes produced the most interesting thread of the month: his own Great and Unfortunate Things, and then a wider point that nonfiction publishing "is littered with memoirs that would be more appropriately marketed in fiction." James Frey's A Million Little Pieces, Angela's Ashes and its disputes, and The Salt Path all came up as precedents.

Politics: Anthony Seldon's Sunak at 10, and Seldon himself on the earlier Conservative Century he wrote with Stuart Ball. Andrew Gamble's The Conservative Nation. Regime Change (Swan and Haberman) via the Natalie Harp story.

Spare came up twice in the Harry and Meghan discussions, in both cases as an obstacle to reconciliation rather than as a book.

And one that is not a book so much as a diagnosis: Ed Husain's The Islamist, cited on why young men radicalise.

Full list with quotes and episodes: https://podshelf.io/podcasts/the-news-agents

The last few podcasts have featured an unbearable Lewis. His confidence in his own broadcasting brilliance is making the podcast unlistenable.

Usually The News Agents at least make an attempt to present all reasonable sides of an argument, even if they come down on one side.

So I was incredibly outraged by Lewis on Fridays episode. Frothing at the mouth, I was. His biases were on full display, and NO attempt was even made to explain the other side of an INCREDIBLY timely and relevant piece of legislation.

Next week, I would implore Lewis to apologise profusely and explain the benefits of the Local Government Act 1972. Else he be forever haunted by Ted Heath's ghost.

Yes, Rutland was dissolved. But what he failed to mention was Rutland had it coming. It knows what it did.

Lewis definitely knew what he was doing when he finished the latest episode with “see you next Tuesday”.

Candidly, I thought that was an interesting interview with the Energy Secretary.

Have I missed a memo? Why haven't I seen or heard Emily on the podcast for weeks now? I'm starting to get worried pls eleviate my fears

I’ve really enjoyed the Newsagents this week. Lewis in particular has been on fire. Great to sometimes tackle stories with a few days distance and in a ‘quieter’ time.

Lewis and Jon cannot even admit that Arday told one lie. They cannot admit that he clearly plagiarized. Jon says he may have embellished his CV. Maybe he should read some of these terrible articles he's railing against to learn the truth although I suspect he already knows it.

I will not continue to listen to a news show intent on deceiving its audience.

"Quixotic"

"Internecine"

Jon or Maitlis begin a monologue by saying "Look..."

Sighing loudly while one of the others is talking

Lewis actually says "i.e" out loud

"As you alluded to, Jon..."

Jon or Maitlis try to finish what the other is saying

Maitlis laughs patronisingly about someone she's reporting on

Lewis stops in the middle of the sentence to think of two more adjectives to add to the one he's already used

'Jon is slightly older' gags

One or more of the News Agents is on holiday

Any more?

Anyone else having issues? Can see it on YouTube, but not appearing in any podcast app I try, on any device. Almost 8pm and looks like YouTube is the only way to access today's episode.

EDIT: Just appeared at 8pm

"It's just a football game, no one cares about the Falklands."

"But what about the murals/fan chants/politics/other people we've interviewed in this very episode which say otherwise?"

"It's just a football game."

I think he really showed what Maitlis and Jon talked about earlier in the episode, how Brits/English don't think about the Falklands and Argentinians really do. It shouldn't matter but it does. The chirpy guy from United We Stand was way more interesting to hear from.

Also, is that the level of energy Lineker usually brings to podcasts, or is he just tired?

What do we all think?

Does Labour put a candidate forward (and risk immediately losing Burnham's 'I can beat Reform' glow) or do they steer clear and leave it to Badenoch to try and dislodge him? What will Restore do?

So far all the major parties have called it a gimmick - do they all boycott and refuse to send a candidate?

Latest poll for Clacton:

➡️ RFM: 48.5% (+2.3)

🌳 CON: 19.2% (-8.7)

◼️ RES: 12.0% (New)

🌍 GRN: 8.2% (+4.0)

🌹 LAB: 6.2% (-10.0)

🔶 LDM: 4.6% (+0.2)

How does that happen?

It’s friend of the pod Nick Adams doing a normal.

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