Breaking News, Business, Financial and Economic News, World News from EconoTimes

Become a contributor

Bookmark Econotimes

Sun, Dec 14, 2025 01:34 AM All times are UTC

Follow Series

©Econometrics LLC . All Rights Reserved.

Simon Potter

Professor of Modern History, University of Bristol
My research focuses on British imperial history and on media history, including the history of newspapers and the periodical press, radio broadcasting, and television. I seek to bring research in these different fields together, to reveal the connections between empire and the mass media during the nineteenth and twentieth centuries.

I am currently leading a Leverhulme Trust International Research Network 'Connecting the Wireless World: Writing Global Radio History' (running 2016-2019) bringing together a group of scholars from around the world to think about global perspectives on the history of international broadcasting. In parallel with this, I am working on early British initiatives in global radio broadcasting in the 1920s and 1930s. I'm interested in exploring transnational perspectives on British broadcasting, the impact of radio on global news flows, the history of listening and audience responses, and in piecing together the incomplete record of past programmes broadcast for international listeners.

I am also currently developing a project on the history of press freedom and regulation in Britain and the British empire.

My earlier research examined the role played by newspapers and news agencies in linking up the component parts of the ‘British world’ (Britain, Canada, Australia, New Zealand and South Africa) in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. More recently, I have written on the role of the BBC in building and strengthening imperial connections since 1922, and the BBC's response to the decline of the British world after the Second World War.

I have also published on the wider historiography of the British empire and the British world.

Why the BBC has a licence fee and what might happen if it were scrapped

Apr 08, 2024 06:13 am UTC| Insights & Views Business

The TV licence is as much part of British life as the BBC, which it helps to fund. But in an era of increased media choice much of it available online, through voluntary subscriptions or even for free BBC director...

Rupert Murdoch and the rise and fall of the press barons: how much power do newspapers still have?

Sep 23, 2023 00:49 am UTC| Insights & Views

Global media tycoon Rupert Murdoch has announced his retirement as chairman of Fox and News Corp, making way for his son Lachlan. He has been demonised as a puppet master who would pull the strings of politicians behind...

The BBC has a long history of failed attempts to rid it of political influence

Feb 06, 2023 09:08 am UTC| Politics

Most people probably dont know who the BBCs chairman is, or even that the BBC has a chairman. Yet this normally obscure figure has recently hit the headlines. Richard Sharp, BBC chairman since February 2021, is a former...

Economy

Russia Stocks End Flat as Energy and Retail Shares Show Mixed Performance

Russian stocks closed mixed after Saturdays trading session on the Moscow Exchange, with the benchmark MOEX Russia Index finishing unchanged at 0.00%. Despite the flat headline performance, individual stocks showed varied...

Global Markets Slide as Tech Stocks Sink, Yields Rise, and AI Concerns Deepen

Global financial markets ended Friday on a weaker note as major stock indexes declined, led by a sharp selloff in technology shares amid renewed skepticism over artificial intelligence investments. Rising U.S. Treasury...

Fed Near Neutral Signals Caution Ahead, Shifting Focus to Fixed Income in 2026

The Federal Reserves latest policy signals suggest that interest rates are now close to neutral, raising the bar for additional rate cuts in 2025 and beyond. This shift implies restraint rather than rescue from the central...

S&P 500 Slides as AI Chip Stocks Tumble, Cooling Tech Rally

U.S. stocks closed sharply lower on Friday as a selloff in technology shares, led by semiconductor companies, weighed heavily on broader markets and dampened enthusiasm around the artificial intelligence trade. The...

Fed Rate Cut Signals Balance Between Inflation and Jobs, Says Mary Daly

Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco President Mary Daly said she supported cutting interest rates at this weeks Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting, highlighting the central banks effort to carefully balance...

Politics

Judge Orders Return of Seized Evidence in Comey-Related Case, DOJ May Seek New Warrant

A federal judge has ruled that prosecutors must return evidence seized from a key figure connected to the now-dismissed criminal case against former FBI Director James Comey, while allowing the U.S. Department of Justice...

Russian Drone Attack Hits Turkish Cargo Ship Carrying Sunflower Oil to Egypt, Ukraine Says

Ukraines navy has accused Russia of deliberately targeting a civilian Turkish cargo vessel with a drone attack in the Black Sea, escalating concerns over maritime security and the safety of international shipping routes....

U.S. Soldiers Killed in ISIS Attack in Palmyra, Syria During Counterterrorism Mission

Two U.S. Army soldiers and a civilian interpreter were killed on Saturday during an Islamic State (ISIS) attack in Palmyra, Syria, according to an official statement from the Pentagon. The attack occurred while U.S. forces...

International Outcry Grows Over Re-Arrest of Nobel Laureate Narges Mohammadi in Iran

International human rights organizations have strongly condemned the re-arrest of Iranian Nobel Peace Prize laureate Narges Mohammadi, sparking renewed global concern over freedom of expression and human rights in Iran....

Belarus Pledges to Halt Smuggling Balloons Into Lithuania

Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko has pledged to take action to stop weather balloons used by cigarette smugglers from crossing into Lithuania, according to comments made by U.S. President Donald Trumps envoy, John...

Science

Senate Sets December 8 Vote on Trump’s NASA Nominee Jared Isaacman

The U.S. Senate Commerce Committee announced it will vote on December 8 on President Donald Trumps renewed nomination of private astronaut and tech entrepreneur Jared Isaacman to lead NASA. Isaacman, known for his...

NASA Cuts Boeing Starliner Missions as SpaceX Pulls Ahead

NASA has significantly scaled back Boeings Starliner program after years of technical issues and delays, announcing that the next Starliner mission to the International Space Station (ISS) will fly without astronauts. The...

Blue Origin’s New Glenn Achieves Breakthrough Success With First NASA Mission

Blue Origins massive New Glenn rocket marked a major milestone as it completed its first mission for paying customers, sending two NASA satellites toward Mars and successfully landing its reusable booster at sea. The...

Cogent Biosciences Soars 120% on Breakthrough Phase 3 Results for Bezuclastinib in GIST Treatment

Cogent Biosciences (NASDAQ: COGT) shares skyrocketed over 120% after the biotech company announced groundbreaking results from its Phase 3 PEAK trial evaluating bezuclastinib in combination with sunitinib for patients with...

Trump and Merck KGaA Partner to Slash IVF Drug Costs and Expand Fertility Coverage

U.S. President Donald Trump and German pharmaceutical company Merck KGaA have announced a groundbreaking deal aimed at lowering the cost of in-vitro fertilization (IVF) treatments while boosting access to fertility care in...

Technology

SpaceX Insider Share Sale Values Company Near $800 Billion Amid IPO Speculation

SpaceX, the aerospace company founded by Elon Musk, has reportedly authorized an insider share sale that places its valuation at approximately $800 billion, according to a Bloomberg News report published Friday. The move...

Mizuho Raises Broadcom Price Target to $450 on Surging AI Chip Demand

Mizuho Securities has raised its price target on Broadcom Inc. (NASDAQ: AVGO), highlighting accelerating momentum in the companys artificial intelligence business and a rapidly expanding long-term backlog. The brokerage...

Trello Outage Disrupts Users as Access Issues Hit Atlassian’s Work Management Platform

Atlassian Corps popular work management software Trello experienced a service disruption on Friday, leaving a number of users unable to access the platform. The outage was flagged by internet monitoring service...

Intel’s Testing of China-Linked Chipmaking Tools Raises U.S. National Security Concerns

Intel has tested advanced chipmaking equipment this year from ACM Research, a semiconductor toolmaker with deep operational ties to China, according to sources familiar with the matter. The move has drawn scrutiny because...

Moore Threads Stock Slides After Risk Warning Despite 600% Surge Since IPO

Moore Threads Technology Co Ltd (SS:688795), a Chinese graphics chipmaker often described as Chinas potential rival to NVIDIA Corporation (NASDAQ:NVDA), saw its share price fall sharply on Friday after the company issued a...