The Intelligence (Economist)
A center-leaning business show with a critical eye on global leaders and a focus on economic and geopolitical issues.
What This Tone Is Based On
The tone scores on this page come from analyzing how this show covers each political figure it mentions. Below is the breakdown of how many of those reads were positive, neutral, or negative.
Net media tone Neutral across 329 figure-in-episode tone reads (not audience/impressions).
That average is a partisan split, not genuine neutrality — 29% of reads are positive and 33% negative, and they cancel to the middle.
How The Intelligence (Economist) Differs from Other Shows
Compared to 227 outlets · Sep 2025–Aug 2026This show's average tone sits near the field, but its coverage is far more split by figure. It rates Elon Musk +0.17 above the media average on the figures it favors and Nigel Farage -0.29 below it on the ones it criticizes — a 0.46-point gap between its most favorable and most critical coverage that a typical outlet doesn't show.
- Nigel Farage-0.29more critical vs. other showsShow↓↓ -0.22Other shows↗ +0.0711 eps
- Elon Musk+0.17more favorable vs. other showsShow↑ +0.20Other shows→ +0.0317 eps
- Pete Hegseth+0.11more favorable vs. other showsShow↗ +0.08Other shows→ -0.0312 eps
- Donald Trump+0.10more favorable vs. other showsShow↓ -0.16Other shows↓↓ -0.2652 eps
- Volodymyr Zelensky-0.08more critical vs. other showsShow↑ +0.12Other shows↑ +0.2013 eps
- Xi Jinping+0.08more favorable vs. other showsShow→ -0.02Other shows↘ -0.1027 eps
- Marco Rubio-0.05more critical vs. other showsShow↗ +0.08Other shows↑ +0.1313 eps
- JD Vance-0.04more critical vs. other showsShow→ -0.03Other shows→ +0.0212 eps
- Vladimir Putin-0.03more critical vs. other showsShow↓↓ -0.37Other shows↓↓ -0.3429 eps
- Benjamin Netanyahu+0.00more favorable vs. other showsShow↘ -0.08Other shows↘ -0.0815 eps
Delta = this show's tone toward the figure minus the average across all 227 other tracked outlets that covered them ≥3 times, Sep 2025–Aug 2026.
Positive = friendlier here; negative = harsher.
Editorial Identity
The editorial fingerprint of this center business show — who it elevates, who it goes after, and where it breaks from the pack.
The Intelligence (Economist) is a center-leaning business news show that critically examines global political figures and economic policies. It places a strong emphasis on policy analysis, particularly concerning the economy, international relations, and technology. The show is characterized by its critical coverage of leaders like Donald Trump, Vladimir Putin, and Keir Starmer, while maintaining a more neutral stance towards figures such as Xi Jinping and Elon Musk. Its editorial approach is data-driven, with a notable focus on economic and geopolitical challenges.
The show tends to cover technological advancements and economic issues more favorably, as seen in its positive tone towards figures like Sam Altman and Elon Musk. It champions discussions around Artificial Intelligence and Technology, as well as the Economy and Cost of Living, highlighting these as crucial areas of interest.
The Intelligence is notably critical of Robert F. Kennedy Jr., particularly in the context of his vaccine skepticism, and Nigel Farage, reflecting a harsher stance than the media average. The show also frequently critiques geopolitical figures such as Vladimir Putin and Keir Starmer, aligning with its critical posture towards global political leadership.
The show stands out for its extensive coverage of China and Russia & Ukraine, with a significantly higher lift in these areas compared to other outlets. It also diverges from the media average by offering a more neutral perspective on Xi Jinping, contrasting with the generally more critical tone found elsewhere.
Who The Intelligence (Economist) boosts and attacks
Tracked figures split by this show's average tone toward them, each with the clips behind the call — tap a quote to jump to the audio.
The Intelligence (Economist) is a reliable ally to Elon Musk, Volodymyr Zelensky, Marco Rubio; its prime targets are Vladimir Putin, Donald Trump, Nigel Farage.
“the drones are coming online now in numbers, in types, and using this Starlink satellite technology, which Russia basically can't use anymore after Elon Musk removed their right to use it, in the occupied territories.”
“Just after the IPO, Elon Musk, SpaceX's founder, became the world's first trillionaire.”
“I prefer the Elon Musk distorting markets theory, which seems to be that this unique individual can kind of make markets work as he wants them to work.”
“we can see right now Trump and Secretary of State Marco Rubio are remarkably popular in Venezuela.”
“they have faith in Trump. They have faith in particular in Marco Rubio, the Secretary of State, who's said a number of times that there will be elections in Venezuela.”
“Which is exactly where Hawks in the Trump administration, principally Secretary of State Marco Rubio, want it to be.”
“For Volodymyr Zelensky, it is a political disaster. Internal polling shared with me shows that trust in him has halved in the wake of the scandal.”
“Volodymyr Zelensky decided his only choice was to walk it back.”
“at the beginning of July, you saw Volodymyr Zelensky announced this 40-day intensification of drone operations.”
“Pete Hegseth, said the Iranians are toast and they know it. We are punching them while they're down, which is exactly how it should be.”
“America's Secretary of War, Pete Hegseth, traveled to SpaceX in Texas in order to release a new artificial intelligence strategy for the defense industry, and he drew inspiration from Elon Musk saying that the defense industry needed to accelerate like hell in the way that they make weapons.”
“America's Secretary of War Pete Hegseth announced what he referred to as a dramatic surge coming in firepower.”
“the attempts by the Trump administration to whitewash history are reprehensible.”
“If Donald Trump follows through on his threats, if he does what he said he's going to do, first of all, that will almost certainly qualify as a war crime.”
“All the damage that we've seen to the region and to the global economy, if Trump goes ahead with these threats, that is likely to become exponentially worse.”
“Vladimir Putin has found the way to monetize desperately poor, in his view, useless lives.”
“the best thing that people can do is... defending their normal life against all the stuff that Vladimir Putin has inflicted on them.”
“the stakes for Russia and the consequences for Russia of what is, in my mind, a disastrous war for it and for Vladimir Putin.”
“And why does Benjamin Netanyahu not want a peace deal?”
“Well, I think in this case it's not just Benjamin Netanyahu. I think in this case it's the entire Israeli defense establishment.”
“harsher language than we've learned to expect from Trump towards Benjamin Netanyahu in particular.”
“This turned towards the idea of Nigel Farage being the defender of the white majority is new and is arguably pretty dark.”
“Nigel Farage, the leader of Reform UK, has said that London is in a state of collapse.”
“Do you want Keir Starmer to be Prime Minister or do you want Nigel Farage to be Prime Minister?”
Coverage Volume
Transcribed episodes per week — last 26 weeks
Sentiment Trajectory
Average weekly tone toward figures — green favorable, red critical
Whose coverage is ramping up — and dropping
Cooling on Donald Trump.
Nothing ramping this window.
“Across N days” = distinct days behind the recent count; a single burst means it’s concentrated in ≤2 days — treat as one story, not a trend.
Top Issues The Intelligence (Economist) drives
Top Issues ranked by lift — how much harder this show pushes an issue than the average outlet. ≥ 1.25× over-indexes.
The Intelligence (Economist) pushes China hardest — 5.1× the average outlet's rate of coverage.