Emily Maitlis and Jon Sopel, who had both previously worked for BBC News, announced in February 2022 that they would be leaving to join Global Media & Entertainment. Prior to her departure, Maitlis was the main presenter for the BBC current affairs programme Newsnight, while Sopel had been BBC North American Editor. They had previously worked together on the BBC podcast Americast. On 22 August 2022, Global announced that The News Agents would launch the following week. Hosted by Emily Maitlis, Jon Sopel, and Lewis Goodall, The News Agents presented itself as an alternative to mainstream media outlets, such as the BBC. The initial schedule was for Maitlis and Sopel to present daily shows on Mondays to Thursdays, with Goodall presenting on Fridays. [2][3]
The podcast received extensive pre-launch publicity, which James Marriott, writing in The Times, described as a "weeks-long publicity blitz". It promised a "suave up-to-date show" that would stand out from the "staid, fuddy-duddy stuff on Olde-Worlde radio".[4][5] In her 2022 MacTaggart Lecture at the Edinburgh Television Festival, Maitlis spoke of what she believed to be a threat posed to journalism by populist politicians, and suggested that The News Agents might counter this.[6]
Sponsorship
On 27 June 2023, Global announced that HSBC would become lead sponsor of The News Agents.[7] On 11 January 2024, HSBC and Global announced an extension of the sponsorship deal for a further 12 months.[8]
On 17 September 2024, it was announced that the podcast's presenters would host a live event at the Royal Albert Hall titled The News Agents Live On Stage on 1 December.[13]
Spin-off podcasts
On 26 May 2023, it was announced that a weekly US version of the podcast would launch on 20th June. The News Agents USA is hosted by Maitlis and Sopel.[14] On 29 September 2023, Global announced that a further spin-off podcast, The News Agents Investigates, would launch on 1 October with Goodall as the presenter.[15] On 7 February 2024, Global announced plans to launch The Sports Agents, presented by Gabby Logan and Mark Chapman, which would be available on Tuesdays and Thursdays from the spring.[16]The Sports Agents launched on 5 March 2024.[17] On 26 April 2024, it was announced that Tesco had signed a deal to become headline sponsor of The Sports Agents.[18]
Audience
On 4 September 2022, The News Agents topped the Apple UK Podcast Chart.[6] On 8 December, the Press Gazette reported that The News Agents had reached 10 million downloads.[19] On 31 July 2024, the podcast reached 100 million downloads.[20]
Reception
The first edition received a mixed reception, with reviewers praising the quality of its content but expressing concern about the informal approach of its presenters. James Marriott of The Times described it as "slick but a little baffling" with "tantalising glimpses of the much better show" that would emerge from the "beautiful, uber-professional moving parts that are welded together so oddly in this first episode".[5] Sean O'Grady of The Independent felt it was "balanced, informative and analytical" but was less impressed with the presenting style: "The thing I actively disliked about the podcast was the very thing that is supposed to make these exercises so refreshing and fun – that terrible forced chumminess and informality, supposed to be like three old friends gossiping in a bar".[21]
Mark Lawson of The Guardian suggested the edition "most resembled the post-show Newsnight green room cool-down, with presenters and contributors speaking slightly more loosely", and that it was "bold of Global" to launch the podcast, but concluded "It remains to be seen, though, if the best use is being made of these latest big-money signings".[9] Judith Woods of The Telegraph was critical of the episode for choosing to focus on an international story rather than focusing on UK news topics "on a day when the [British Medical Association] warned of a doctors' strike, a police investigation was reopened on an alleged child grooming gang in Hull and Goldman Sachs suggested inflation could top 22 per cent next year".[22] The topic choice was also highlighted by Fiona Sturges of The Financial Times, particularly as the Mar-a-Lago raid was by then an old news story. She highlighted other problems as well: "a surfeit of interviews with commentators you've never heard of; phoney-sounding listener questions; and, Lord help us, the small talk" which "comes over as forced and unfunny".[23]
