
The Media Show: Investigating Sam Altman
From The Explanation by BBC World Service
April 9, 2026 · 23 min
About this episode
Ronan Farrow investigates Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI, discussing power and influence in AI with insights from Madhumita Murgia and Misha Glenny.
Ronan Farrow, perhaps the world’s most prominent investigative journalist, has turned his attention to Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI. The investigation, published by The New Yorker, draws on more than a year of reporting. Farrow outlines how it was conducted and the questions it raises about power and influence in AI. Madhumita Murgia, AI Editor at the Financial Times, gives her analysis of the issues at the heart of the report, including how the media covers leading figures in Silicon Valley. Also on the show, Misha Glenny discusses his podcast The Race to Control the World, as well as his role as the new presenter of In Our Time. Presenter: Katie Razzall Producer: Lisa Jenkinson Content producer: Lucy Wai Sound engineer: Pat Sissons
People in this episode
Host: Katie Razzall
Guests: Ronan Farrow, Madhumita Murgia, Misha Glenny
Topics covered
- investigative journalism
- AI power dynamics
- media analysis
- Silicon Valley
- podcast discussion
Keywords
- Sam Altman
- Ronan Farrow
- OpenAI
- investigative journalism
- AI
- Silicon Valley
- media coverage
Mentioned in this episode
Organizations: OpenAI, Financial Times, The New Yorker
Books & works: The Race to Control the World
More episodes of The Explanation
- The President's Path: Why is Trump hosting the UFC at the White House? · June 12, 2026 · 25 min
- Unspun World: Fighting resumes between Israel and Hezbollah · June 12, 2026 · 26 min
- The Media Show: Reporting the World Cup · June 11, 2026 · 23 min
- The President's Path: Why did Trump and Netanyahu clash over the Iran war? · June 8, 2026 · 25 min
- Unspun World: What's it like to live in Iran now? · June 5, 2026 · 26 min
- The Media Show: Inside Rafa Nadal's Netflix show · June 4, 2026 · 23 min
Explore listener stats, chart rankings, contacts and more on the The Explanation podcast page.