Strong Message Here

Ready Player One?
Natalie Haynes joins Armando once again to talk about the rise of prediction markets, and how they might affect political language. We also look at the respective war memes from the US and Iran, and how they are taking their cues from video games.
Elsewhere, we discuss the Arc de Trump, Armando's bag of filth, and whether a Sphinx might look good on the White House lawn.
Got a strong message for Armando? Email us at [email protected]
Sound editing: Chris Maclean
Production Coordinator: Giulia Mazzu
Executive Producer: James Robinson
Recorded at the Sound Company
Produced by Gwyn Rhys Davies. A BBC Studios production for Radio 4.

Tim Shipman steps out of a busy week in Westminster to talk Armando through the language of political crises.
Whether "time will tell", or "the matter has been dealt with", we decode what these phrases you will hear from politicians this week really mean. Looking at recent examples, from Brexit to Partygate and beyond, what causes these crises, and how does the communication - and indeed the messenger - make it better or worse?
Armando imagines an inquiry into the sinking of the Titanic, Tim clears things up by making things more complicated, and we also hear his sweary sliding scale of scandal, which will make you yearn for a good old-fashioned omnishambles.
We also look at the local elections, and why every party turns these multi-faceted choices into a 'referendum' on a particular subject.
Got a strong message for Armando? Email us at [email protected]
Sound editing: Chris Maclean
Production Coordinator: Asha Osborne-Grinter
Executive Producer: Pete Strauss
Recorded at the Sound Company
Produced by Gwyn Rhys Davies. A BBC Studios production for Radio 4.

Politicians have their own podcasts, the Government has launched a YouTube channel. It seems our political class want to bypass traditional media to get their message out. Why is that? How does it affect political language?
As he prepares to take his own steps into a new media landscape, Amol Rajan joins Armando to discuss this and more. We also hear about misleading news headlines, Trump's 'doctored' image, and find out if elves are really poisoning our water?
Got a strong message for Armando? Email us at [email protected]
Sound editing: Chris Maclean
Production Coordinator: Caroline Barlow
Executive Producer: Richard Morris
Recorded at the Sound Company
Produced by Gwyn Rhys Davies. A BBC Studios production for Radio 4.

Hugo Rifkind joins Armando for a chat about the religious language in politics.
After a quick detour round the far side of the moon, we find out Trump's favourite bible passage (sort of), why the Pope has rebuked Pete Hegseth, and if invoking a higher power can be used to dodge accountability.
In the extended version, we also look at how parties in the UK trade in religious language, why how AI is getting hiring humans, and answer the age-old question - which Easter has been best, militarily?
Got a strong message for Armando? Email us at [email protected]
Sound editing: Chris Maclean
Production Coordinator: Asha Osborne-Grinter & Caroline Barlow
Executive Producer: Pete Strauss
Recorded at The Sound Company
Produced by Gwyn Rhys Davies. A BBC Studios production for Radio 4.

This week, Armando is joined again by Stewart Lee to look at how political actors use language.
Wes Streeting says there is a 'deep disillusionment in this country', and says there is a “growing sense of despair about whether anyone is capable of turning this country round". Why is that? And does politicians speaking in that way confound our misery? We look at Sarah Pochin's comments about black and asian people in adverts, and the responses across parliament to that. We also look at how much news is just speculation, and how politicians use speculation to further their arguments.
We also look at how we get our news - is it exhausting to have to keep fact checking things ourselves? Is it preferable to the alternative?
Armando shares his confusion at Immersive experiences, and Stewart invents a new word, and we hear about Starmer's charm offensive.
Got a strong message for Armando? Email us on [email protected]
Listen to Strong Message Here at 0945 on Radio 4, and an extended version is available on BBC Sounds.
This programme has been edited since first publication, following an adjudication by the BBC Executive Complaints Unit.
Sound editing: Chris Maclean
Production Coodinator: Jodie Charman
Executive Producer: Pete Strauss
Recorded at The Sound Company
Produced by Gwyn Rhys Davies. A BBC Studios production for Radio 4.