Tesla, Turkey, and unnecessary trash

Tesla, Turkey, and unnecessary trash

Author: Katy Lee and Dominic Kraemer April 10, 2025 Duration: 56:46
We're taking the Schadenfreude approach to the chaos that Trump's tariffs have unleashed upon Europe (and the rest of the world). This week, our favourite Luxembourger Nina Lamparski joins Dominic to explain why sales of Elon Musk's Tesla cars have already plunged in Europe and could now fare even worse thanks to his best bud's trade policies. We're also joined by Turkish political scientist Ezgi Başaran to discuss why President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan is feeling liberated in a time that's been dubbed 'springtime for autocrats' — and whether the huge protests against him could change that. Plus, is Spain's clever new food waste law as good as it sounds?    This episode was recorded on Tuesday night, before the EU's announcement of retaliatory tariffs... and before the White House's announcement of a 90-day pause on higher tariffs for dozens of countries. At any rate, at the time of publication the world economy is still looking decidedly chaotic, so we hope you still find this an enjoyable and useful listen. 

Thanks for listening. After some rather troubling financial news, this independent podcast needs your support more than ever. If you enjoy our work, we'd love it if you'd consider supporting us. You can chip in to help us cover the weekly research and production of The Europeans at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠patreon.com/europeanspodcast⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ (many currencies are available), or gift a donation to a super fan here. We'd also love it if you could tell two friends about this podcast!   
This podcast was brought to you in cooperation with Euranet Plus, the leading radio network for EU news.   This week's Inspiration Station recommendations: 'Criminal Record' and 'Rural Fictions', an essay in The Dial by Bartolomeo Sala. Nina's bonus recommendations: 'Inspector Ellis' and 'The Bay'.

00:33  Moien, a wëllkomm bei den Europäer
05:09  Bad Week: Tesla in Europe
19:28  Good Week: Spain's new food waste law
33:03  Interview: Ezgi Başaran on Turkey's protests
49:25  The Inspiration Station: Criminal record and Bartolemo Sala's essay on farming in European fiction
54:33  Happy Ending: Hooray for shingles vaccines

Producers: Katy Lee and Wojciech Oleksiak  Mixing and mastering: Wojciech Oleksiak Music: Jim Barne and Mariska Martina   YouTube | Bluesky | Instagram⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ | Mastodon⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ | hello@europeanspodcast.com    

Every week, Katy Lee and Dominic Kraemer sit down to untangle the stories shaping the continent, moving beyond the headlines to find the human threads within European news, politics, and culture. Their conversations feel like joining two well-informed friends who are genuinely curious, offering clarity on complex political shifts in Brussels one moment and diving into a compelling film from Berlin or a novel from Lisbon the next. This isn't about dry analysis; it's about understanding the forces that define daily life from Dublin to Sofia. In this The Europeans podcast, you'll hear interviews with policymakers, artists, and everyday people, all contributing to a richer, more nuanced picture of a region in constant motion. The tone is engaging and accessible, designed for anyone who feels that Europe's narrative is too often reduced to stereotypes or institutional jargon. By weaving together current affairs with deeper cultural trends, each episode builds a more complete and surprisingly relatable portrait. If you've ever wanted to feel more connected to the ideas and debates circulating across the Channel and beyond, this is a consistent and thoughtful guide.
Author: Language: English Episodes: 100

The Europeans | European news, politics and culture
Podcast Episodes
Cold water, warm hearts [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 59:00
As the winter chill sets in, throngs of Europeans are heading each week to the nearest pond, lake or coastline to dunk themselves voluntarily in freezing cold water. Cold swimming has centuries of history on this contine…
The manosphere, the 'TikTok messiah', and 132 hamsters [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 54:29
We've got a heady mix of Romanian politics, online misogyny and animal-based chaos for you this week. Friend of the show Andrei Popoviciu joins us to explain why his dad and many other voters backed the TikTok-fuelled ca…
Has Donald Tusk fixed Poland? [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 57:23
It's been a year since Donald Tusk took power, filling liberals and progressives in Poland with hope as eight years of rightwing populist rule came to an end. But how much has Tusk's coalition really improved things? Thi…
The perils of standing up to Iran from Europe [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 48:30
From Turkey to France and the UK, Iranians who've challenged the regime at home have often sought safety in Europe. But how safe are these dissidents, really? This week we speak to Fariba Nawa, host of 'Lethal Dissent',…
A special announcement from The Europeans [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 15:55
Producers Katz and Wojciech join Katy and Dominic for a very special announcement from The Europeans. We’re incredibly excited to make this series for you. Please help us turn it into a reality! Sign up to support this p…
Is this the end of Georgia's European dream? [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 50:03
Georgia's pro-Russian ruling party claims to have won last weekend's election — a fraudulent election, according to a mounting pile of evidence. A country that was once on the path to EU membership is now veering much cl…
Naughty, naughty Switzerland [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 53:53
Wine fraud, migration policy and climate litigation: there's something for everyone this week. Back in April, Switzerland's government lost a groundbreaking European court case and was ordered to rewrite its climate poli…
Russia's mysterious sabotage campaign [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 45:56
Arson, vandalism, attacks on NATO vehicles: around Europe, mysterious acts of sabotage have been multiplying. And there's a pattern: the perpetrators were recruited on Telegram via accounts linked to Russian agencies. Th…
Using grandma to make people cry about climate change [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 51:27
Why is it so hard to talk about climate change in a way that actually makes us... feel something? This week, our producer Katz Laszlo talks to an Icelandic writer who manages against the odds to do just that: Andri Snær…