Follow the Money: The Podcast

Jaksot

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  Summer series | Hungary’s hotline to the Kremlin 03.09.2026 22min

  Viktor Orbán has drawn Hungary increasingly close to Russia. But what has been happening behind closed doors between the Hungarian government and Moscow? Investigative network VSquare obtained recordings and transcripts of calls between Hungary’s foreign minister and senior Russian officials, offering a rare glimpse into Hungary-Russia relations and the conversations taking place away from public view. In the final episode of Follow the Money’s summer podcast series, Emma du Chatinier and Lise Witteman speak with VSquare co-founder and investigative journalist Anna Gielewska. She explains how journalists across Central Europe began investigating the spread of Orbán’s political model and why Russian influence kept appearing in their reporting. It’s a story that sounds like a “spy thriller”, but actually played out across Central Europe.
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  Summer series | Exposing a pro-Russian disinformation network 27.08.2026 25min

  Disinformation campaigns are no longer built around a single false claim or suspicious account. Hundreds of profiles can push the same message simultaneously, creating the illusion of widespread public support. But how can journalists tell the difference between a genuine political movement and a coordinated influence operation? Romanian investigative newsroom Context.ro has built its own software to uncover such networks. During Moldova’s 2025 elections – a crucial vote that pitted closer ties with Europe against Russian influence – its journalists identified a massive pro-Moscow propaganda drive. Emma and Lise speak to investigative journalist Attila Biro, co-founder of Context.ro. He explains how the outlet looked beyond individual posts to map the wider infrastructure – from TikTok and Telegram to an anonymously distributed newspaper and crypto payments. Biro also discusses how journalists distinguish content that performs well organically from popularity that has been artificially manufactured – and why that matters more than ever: “We need to stop seeing this simply as disinformation and start treating it as a matter of defence. Our digital space is under attack, and we need to defend it.”
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  Summer series | Investigating the killing of journalists in Gaza 20.08.2026 25min

  Hundreds of Palestinian journalists have been killed in Gaza – making it the deadliest conflict for reporters in decades. Were their deaths an inevitable consequence of Israel’s war, or has the media been deliberately targeted? As part of the Gaza Project, dozens of journalists from around the world joined forces to investigate the killings. Emma and Lise speak to Frederik Obermaier, co-founder of the Munich-based German investigative newsroom Paper Trail Media, who was involved in the reporting. He also led a follow-up investigation into allegations that an Israeli soldier of German origin shot unarmed civilians in Gaza. Obermaier discusses the resistance he faced reporting on these issues in Germany, where coverage of Israel and Palestine is particularly sensitive. “The Holocaust puts a certain obligation on Germany and also on the German population. Whenever we see allegations of war crimes, I think it's our duty as journalists to investigate.”
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  Summer series | From a fish to the fall of Lithuania’s PM 13.08.2026 27min

  Last year, Lithuanian journalist Šarūnas Černiauskas began investigating his prime minister’s finances. What started as a seemingly small story soon grew into a series of scandals. The government turned against Černiauskas and his colleagues – but they persevered: their reporting ultimately helped force the prime minister to step down. And yet, that wasn’t the end of the story. Emma and Lise speak to Černiauskas about the corruption uncovered around EU funds, and how frighteningly quickly a democracy can begin to backslide: “Assaults on democracy, they're going to happen. They are happening now. And solidarity is the only antidote."
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  Summer series | Profits, not politics, behind AI hate boom 06.08.2026 26min

  Persecution, corruption, and even murder. In this summer series, Emma du Chatinier and Lise Witteman unpack recent groundbreaking stories by fellow journalists from across Europe. How did their investigations impact society? And what does their journalism reveal about the state of European democracy? In this episode: Journalist Niamh McIntyre went deep into the world of hateful content on social media, investigating the people posting so-called AI slop. She was shocked: many of the creators were not at all what you might expect. And some weren’t even aware that the videos they were profiting from were racist or Islamophobic. Emma and Lise speak to Niamh about the rise of AI-generated misinformation, the financial incentives driving its creation, and how Meta is to blame. “These content creators aren’t an anomaly. They’re producing the internet that Big Tech companies and AI companies want.”
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  Summer series | They killed the journalist, but not the story 30.07.2026 23min

  Persecution, corruption, and even murder. In this summer series, Emma du Chatinier and Lise Witteman unpack recent groundbreaking stories by fellow journalists from across Europe. How did their investigations impact society? And what does their journalism reveal about the state of European democracy? In this episode: Slovak investigative journalist Ján Kuciak and his fiancée – archeologist Martina Kušnírová – were murdered in their home in 2018. Kuciak was investigating high-level corruption, including alleged connections to people around Prime Minister Robert Fico. After his death, journalists across Slovakia picked up the work Kuciak had been unable to finish. Their revelations, together with mass protests, even brought down the government. Emma and Lise speak with Lukáš Diko, editor-in-chief of the Investigative Center of Ján Kuciak, about what the murder meant for Slovakia, and for the journalists who continued to follow Kuciak’s trail. “We never could have imagined that one of us could have been killed because of journalistic work.”
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  The man who sold Brussels the hydrogen dream 22.07.2026 23min

  Europe set sky-high targets for green hydrogen. Today, it’s nowhere near meeting them. Journalist Jesse Pinster traced Brussels’ big hydrogen bet back to one professor: Ad van Wijk. How did his vision become that of Europe?
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  Special: Is Spain really Europe’s progressive poster child? 15.07.2026 29min

  For many observers across Europe, Spain has become a rare success story – offering hope that progressive politics can still succeed, govern, and project confidence on the world stage. But the reality behind the country’s image as the continent’s left-wing darling is more complicated, Spanish political scientist and activist Elsa Arnaiz says in a special episode.
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  PayPal and the business of hate 08.07.2026 25min

  Far-right groups in Europe are using PayPal to sell merchandise and raise money, despite the payment giant’s own rules prohibiting transactions that promote hate or discrimination. This highlights a broader failure by Big Tech, which is not just turning a blind eye but allowing extremist content to remain on its platforms. Reporting by: Polina Bachlakova.
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  Investors flock to Palantir as governments flee 01.07.2026 24min

  The controversial US company Palantir supplies crucial software to intelligence services, armies and police forces in Europe. European governments are growing nervous about the US firm. Meanwhile, European investors have scaled up their investment in the company.
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  Europe’s €2.9 billion tax fraud, explained 24.06.2026 18min

  When Portuguese investigators looked into a suspicious smartphone trader, they thought they were dealing with an €80 million VAT fraud case. But that small-town raid soon grew into one of Europe’s biggest VAT fraud investigations, involving thousands of companies, hundreds of suspects, and an estimated €2.9 billion in lost tax revenue. Journalist Salsabil Fayed retraced the steps of the alleged fraudsters .
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  How US lobbying helped derail Europe’s supply chain rules 10.06.2026 23min

  When the EU passed its corporate sustainability legislation in 2023, it was hailed as a game-changer for holding companies accountable for abuses in their supply chains. But the law was quickly diluted after industry lobbying. Journalist Hans Wetzels obtained leaked documents suggesting that the U-turn was largely driven by pressure from Washington.
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  Betting billions on rising food prices in wartime 03.06.2026 21min

  The Iran war has upended oil and gas markets and disrupted global supply chains. But the fallout may affect something more fundamental: the price of food. Journalists Ties Gijzel, Remy Koens, and Jan Daalder found that investors have bet billions on agricultural commodities. What could this mean for global food security?
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  The cost of influencing EU politics 27.05.2026 24min

  Manfred Weber is one of the most powerful lawmakers in Brussels. Under his leadership, Europe’s top political family hired two consultants with close ties to Greece’s ruling party. Journalist Simon Van Dorpe found that more than €500,000 was spent in six months, yet results were limited. The affair has raised questions about political spending in the EU and oversight by the European Parliament.
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  The billion-euro battle over workers’ wages 20.05.2026 25min

  The Dutch economy runs on low-paid temporary workers, including large numbers of migrants from countries such as Bulgaria, Poland, and Ukraine. But journalist Lise Witteman found that employment agencies may have underpaid them, in breach of EU law. The sector could now face a bill worth billions of euros as a mass lawsuit looms.
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  From community leaders to suspected smugglers 13.05.2026 23min

  For years, Senegalese community leaders Cheikh Sy and Njouda Ndiaye warned people about the deadly risks of migration to Europe. Then they themselves were arrested for migrant smuggling. Reporter Andrei Popoviciu uncovered that their case is part of a wider EU-funded crackdown on migration.
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  Unmasking the car industry's dirty deals 06.05.2026 25min

  A decade ago, Volkswagen was caught cheating emissions tests, putting far more toxic cars on the road than anyone knew. Journalist Peter Teffer got a rare glimpse into corporate emails and uncovered how Dieselgate wasn't the only time that carmakers tried to outsmart regulators.
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  The colonial roots of Europe’s flower market 29.04.2026 26min

  Europe’s lucrative flower market is rooted in a colonial past, built on genetic material taken from the Global South and commercialised by Western companies. While the multi-billion-euro industry continues to flourish, virtually nothing flows back to the developing nations where the plants originated. Journalist Dylan Carter investigates the imbalance behind the blooms in our homes. Related stories ➪ https://www.ftm.eu/articles/europe-flower-industry-keeps-colonial-system-blooming Follow the podcast https://www.ftm.eu/podcast/follow-the-money-the-podcast Download the FTM app: App Store ➪ https://apps.apple.com/nl/app/follow-the-money/id1232284535 Google Play ➪ https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=nl.ftm.ftmpulse&hl=en Follow FTM on social media: Instagram ➪ https://www.instagram.com/followthemoney_eu/ BlueSky ➪ https://bsky.app/profile/ftm.eu LinkedIn ➪ https://www.linkedin.com/company/follow-the-money-eu/ TikTok ➪ https://www.tiktok.com/@ftm_eu Become a member and support independent investigative journalism! https://www.ftm.eu/become-member
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  How Russian oligarchs are suing Ukraine in wartime 01.04.2026 30min

  In the midst of war, Russian oligarchs are suing Ukraine – not in Moscow, not in Kyiv, but through European trade treaties and arbitration courts in Washington. What might sound like a legal technicality is actually part of a powerful global mechanism known as ISDS, which allows corporations to sue governments for billions over lost profits. Journalists Alistair Keepe and Hans Wetzels take us inside this opaque system, revealing how it quietly shapes public policy on a global scale.
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  Big Tobacco shows Big Alcohol how to lobby 25.03.2026 22min

  Alcohol and tobacco are both linked to serious disease, yet the industries have spent decades casting doubt on the risks. Journalist Irene van den Berg revealed how cigarette giants invested heavily in treatment for smoking-related conditions and funded scientific research to widen their influence. Just months later, she uncovered how Big Booze has used the same playbook as Big Tobacco to downplay growing public health concerns.