The US department of health has rejected an international review of the drug in the Lancet in order to advance unproven claims

How did the seizure of a Russian oil tanker unfold? Is President Trump's crypto-profeteering a bigger scandal than Watergate? And with the United States turning 250, is this a time to reflect on the UK-US special relationship?    Giles Whittell is joined by The Observer's Vanessa Thorpe and James Tapper, plus special guest - the host of The Making of Musk: Understood, Jacob Silverman. Today they battle it out to see who can pitch the story that should lead the news. You can find Understood wherever you get your podcasts, and here: https://link.mgln.ai/NewsMeetingxMoM 

US action in Venezuela cannot disrupt supply, drugs experts say

Will the shooting of two National Guards in Washington DC change US politics forever? Should the UK roll out screening for prostate cancer? Did Chancellor Rachel Reeves miss an opportunity to gear up the economy for growth?   Rebecca Moore is joined by The Observer's Cat Neilan, Steve Bloomfield and James Tapper, as they battle it out to pitch the top stories of the day.    Find the teams Must Reads: Less WFH, more Lime, slower buses   **We want to hear what you think! Email us at: newsmeeting@observer.co.uk  Follow us on Social Media:  @ObserverUK on X  @theobserveruk on Instagram and TikTok @theobserveruk.bsky.social‬ on bluesky    Host: Rebecca Moore   Producer: Poppy Bullard   Executive Producer: Matt Russell   To find out more about The Observer:   Subscribe to TheObserver+ on Apple Podcasts for early access and ad-free content Head to our website observer.co.uk  Download the Tortoise app – for a listening experience curated by our journalists  

A ‘multi-hazard’ event, Storm Goretti is set to unleash more adverse conditions

What do we do with the knowledge that climate change made Hurricane Melissa worse? Why was there such a deadly police raid in Brazil? And why isn't hospice care treated as an essential part of healthcare?  Rebecca Moore is joined by The Observer's Data and Graphics editor, Katie Riley, and reporters James Tapper and Rachael Healy, as they pitch their top stories of the day. Must Reads: Some People Can't See Mental Images Political Beliefs Dating App Experiment Premiere League **We want to hear what you think! Email us at: newsmeeting@observer.co.uk  Follow us on Social Media:  @ObserverUK on X  @theobserveruk on Instagram and TikTok @theobserveruk.bsky.social‬ on bluesky  Host: Rebecca Moore Producer: Amalie Sortland Executive Producer: Matt Russel

The children’s commissioner for England is calling for radical investment to stop the profiteers who have turned the vital care of young people into a gold rush

New hope for sufferers of Huntington's disease after the discovery of a treatment which could radically slow the disease  

Doctors urge people to get jab as NHS faces rising admissions

This weekend marks the first-ever Riyadh Comedy Festival, with Jimmy Carr, Aziz Ansari, and Dave Chappelle on the bill. It's being reported they are each being paid upwards of $375,000 to perform in a country which severely restricts freedom of speech. What does Trump's cryptic “good luck to all” at the UN really mean for Ukraine - and should we be worried? Is the breakthrough on Huntington's disease The News Meeting's first genuinely good news story?  Giles Whittell is joined by The Observer's International Editor, Steve Bloomfield, and reporters Rachael Healy and James Tapper as they pitch the top story of the day ** Listen to The Observer's new culture podcast We Have Notes: https://shows.acast.com/we-have-notes-with-liv-little-and-miranda-sawyer **Join us at the next News Meeting Live: https://observer.co.uk/our-events Follow us on Social Media:  @ObserverUK on X  @theobserveruk on Instagram and TikTok @theobserveruk.bsky.social‬ on bluesky  Host: Giles Whittell, Deputy Editor-In-Chief Producer: Amalie Sortland Executive Producer: Rebecca Moore To find out more about The Observer: Subscribe to TheObserver+ on Apple Podcasts for early access and ad-free content Head to our website observer.co.uk  Download the Tortoise app – for a listening experience curated by our journalists

The US State Department will reject visa applicants if they work in a range of fields, including fact-checking, compliance and online safety

More than 1.5 million people in the UK now use weight-loss injections like Mounjaro. But as official prices rise by as much as 140%, illegal trade is growing too.

‘We are letting down too many men,’ said David Cameron, who was treated for the disease, but committee chair cites lack of evidence on benefits of testing for all

Will SpaceX's latest triumph mean Elon Musk will make it to Mars? Why will the price of Mounjaro weightless drugs go up? Benjamin Netanyahu called the IDF's airstrike on Gaza's Nasser Hospital a “tragic misstep" but so far 240 Palestinian journalists have died since the beginning of the conflict.   Giles Whittell is joined by the Observer's International Editor, Steve Bloomfield, our Acting National News Editor, Rebecca Myers and reporter, James Tapper, as each try to pitch the top story of the day.

Labour’s Trees Action Plan featuring resilient woodlands is a boon to timber industry and will ‘restore’ nature

Negotations on the world's first global plastics treaty are nearing their conclusion

Judiciary forced to flee their homes following Robert Jenrick’s threats to remove ‘activists’

According to the world's biggest bird survey, clearing rainforest to make way for cattle farms is even more harmful to biodiversity than we thought.  

A team of scientists is giving those with spinal injuries fresh hope of renewed movement

In 2022, a UK Special Forces official accidentally leaked the names of over 18,000 Afghan nationals, British special forces operatives and MI6 agents, putting thousands of lives at risk if the information fell into the wrong hands.

As nations convene in Belém, many have withdrawn from funds for climate mitigation and biodiversity protection, leaving species at risk of extinction

The UK eats hundreds of thousands of tonnes of tuna every year but not all of it is legally or sustainably caught.

A dark trade in exotic birds is flourishing, driven by avian social media stars

OpenAI’s Sam Altman self-publishes chat GPT’s water and energy consumption for the first time, but how can tech companies continue to expand in a more sustainable way? How will RFK Jr’s appointment of known anti-vaxers to the CDC panel shape vaccination policy in the US? And are generational labels a problematic myth? Following Israeli strikes on Iran, The Observer’s Chloe Hadjimatheou and Jess Winch discuss the latest developments in the Middle East. Then, Jess Winch is joined by award winning journalist and best selling author of Empire of AI Karen Hao; plus, The Observer’s Alexi Mostrous and James Tapper, as they battle to pitch the top story of the day.

Scientist who won the Nobel prize for his part in identifying structure of DNA, but was later shunned for controversial views

David Attenborough’s new documentary Ocean has put bottom trawling in the crosshairs of environmental activists.

The draft ‘deportation bill’ may alienate South Asian voters, who have shifted to the Conservatives in recent years

Musicians are worried about big tech companies using their work to train AI models. But a group of musicians has come out fighting with an attempt to defend their art. How does it work?

The melting ice sheet has opened up a north-east passage – bringing fresh political and environmental dangers

Why are there calls to return British art like the original Winnie-the-Pooh doll from America to the UK? Trump and Zelensky have finally signed the US-Ukraine mineral deal, but who is the real winner? With wedding season approaching, what lengths are people willing to take to look slimmer on the big day? Rebecca Moore is joined by Jeevan Vasagar, James Tapper and Vanessa Thorpe, as they battle to pitch the top story of the day.

Huda Ammori can now continue with her application for judicial review

Weight loss drugs can be transformative for people who have struggled with obesity. But with a spike in hospital admissions experiencing adverse reactions to the drugs, should we be doing more to regulate this growing market?

The UK lotto operator is in a court battle over its licence and beset by complaints about its gaming terminals

Decision to cancel surgery in England to correct breathing difficulties has been criticised by doctors

Department store is the latest in a string of high-profile hacks of British institutions

US drug agency will review the most widely used abortion medication, mifepristone