What in the World

• The drama at this year’s Miss Universe

  The 74th Miss Universe pageant is happening in Bangkok, Thailand this week, and there’s been a lot of drama before a single contestant has taken to the stage.Walkouts, resignations and Instagram-post apologies. Miss Jamaica falling off the stage. Some judges resigning, one over claims the competition is rigged - which is of course denied by the Miss Universe Organisation.Social media has shown some of the drama behind the scenes… and at the centre of it is two of the men running the pageant. Nawat Itsaragrisil and Raúl Rocha Cantú have very different visions for the future of the pageant, which has been dealing with declining ratings and financial issues.William Lee Adams, host of Marketplace Morning Report, takes us through what’s been going on behind the scenes, everything from finances to clashes over how it should be run.Instagram: @bbcwhatintheworld Email: [email protected] WhatsApp: +44 330 12 33 22 6 Presenter: Hannah Gelbart Producers: Benita Barden, Chelsea Coates and Emily Horler Video producer: Baldeep Chahal Editor: Verity Wilde

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• Epstein files: What are they and when will they be released?

  After months of mounting pressure, US lawmakers have just voted to release all of the so-called Epstein files. So documents from criminal investigations into the sex offender Jeffrey Epstein before his death could soon be made public. The vote was passed in the House of Representatives 427-1 and the Senate unanimously fast-tracked it without a formal vote. Now it’s down to US President Donald Trump, who’s already said he’ll release them.This story has been around for a while, and it’s become a bit of a thorny issue for the US president. Trump used to socialise with Epstein, although there are no allegations of wrongdoing against him. During his re-election campaign, Trump called for the Epstein files to be released. Then, once in power, he changed his mind. But, after a rebellion from some in his own party, he switched sides again, calling for their release.Following this vote, lots of people have questions: When will the Epstein files be released? What are the Epstein files? And who’s in them? In this episode we explain everything we know so far. Instagram: @bbcwhatintheworld Email: [email protected] WhatsApp: +44 330 12 33 22 6 Presenter: Hannah Gelbart Producers: Mora Morrison and Imogen James Editor: Verity Wilde

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• Sudan: Studying in a war zone

  In Sudan, where a civil war has been raging for over two years, millions of students have had their education disrupted. Over half of all schools are in conflict zones. Many schools are being used as shelters and many students have missed their exams. In some parts of the country there is no education at all.Sudan is one of the biggest countries in Africa. It’s mostly Muslim and is also one of the poorest countries in the world. More than 150,000 people have been killed in the conflict, and around 12 million have had to flee their homes. The UN has called it the world’s biggest humanitarian crisis.In this episode school and university students in Sudan tells us how their education has been affected by the war. And BBC journalist Maha El Gaml explains how some schools are now re-opening. Instagram: @bbcwhatintheworld Email: [email protected] WhatsApp: +44 330 12 33 22 6 Presenter: Hannah Gelbart Video producer: Baldeep Chahal Producers: Julia Ross-Roy and Chelsea Coates Editor: Verity Wilde

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• How can islands protect against typhoons and hurricanes?

  Both Jamaica and the Philippines have been battered by tropical storms in the past month. Hurricane Melissa, a category five storm, was the worst storm to ever hit Jamaica and one of the strongest so far to affect the Caribbean, leaving at least 30 people dead. And super-typhoon Fungwong displaced more than a million people in the Philippines, only days after an earlier storm claimed hundreds of lives. Neither region is a stranger to storms - the Philippines is hit with an average of 20 typhoons each year - but scientists say that climate change is making these storms more severe. So, how can island nations better protect themselves in the face of natural disasters?Environment and climate journalist Jhesset Enano, who’s from the Philippines, tells us what it’s like to live in a region where tropical storms are common - and what’s being done to protect people. And Rosanne Martyr, a senior scientist from Climate Analytics, tells us about the natural defences small islands around the world are using to minimise the damage caused by storms.Instagram: @bbcwhatintheworld Email: [email protected] WhatsApp: +44 330 12 33 22 6 Presenter: Iqra Farooq Producers: Chelsea Coates and Mora Morrison Editor: Verity Wilde

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• Would price caps on reselling tickets stop touts?

  These days, buying concert tickets is a huge expense. If fans miss out, they can often find tickets on resale sites at hugely inflated prices. Sometimes people resell their tickets because they can’t go but there are also lots of “professional resellers” or ticket touts playing the system and making loads of profit. They buy tickets in bulk from the original seller platform, then mark them up to fans. We hear from a Taylor Swift super fan, who has spent hundreds on resale tickets.Now, a group of musicians including Dua Lipa, Coldplay, Sam Fender and Radiohead have sent a letter to the UK government, asking politicians to introduce a price cap on resale tickets to "stop touts from fleecing fans”. Ireland has already introduced a law to stop people selling tickets for more than their original price. Gary Devitt, who co-founded a platform in Ireland for fan-to-fan ticket resales called Toutless, gives us his view on what effect the law has had. In this episode we hear some stories about buying resale tickets, and ask whether price caps can actually stop the touts. The BBC’s music correspondent Mark Savage also explains how ticket touts operate, and what artists could do themselves to reduce dodgy reselling. Instagram: @bbcwhatintheworld Email: [email protected] WhatsApp: +44 330 12 33 22 6 Presenter: Hannah Gelbart Producers: Julia Ross-Roy, Imogen James and Maria Clara Montoya Editor: Verity Wilde

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