BBC World Service English launches Asia Specific, a new visualised podcast presented by Mariko Oi

BBC World Service is launching a new visualised podcast, which will deliver in-depth analysis and expertise on stories from across Asia-Pacific.

Launching on 19 November, Asia Specific will bring Asian perspectives on the biggest global news stories, original journalism, and big picture insights on the political, social and economic trends shaping the region.

Airing twice weekly, Mariko Oi will present the podcast from BBC News’ Singapore bureau. She will be joined by correspondents and reporters from the BBC’s newsgathering and language service teams, with regular guests including South East Asia correspondent Jonathan Head and China correspondent Laura Bicker.

Asia Specific brings together a team of journalists from across Asia-Pacific, led by Bill Birtles, who joins the BBC after a decade of reporting from the region as ABC’s China correspondent in Beijing and Taipei, and more recently as Indonesia bureau chief in Jakarta.

Bill is joined by Derek Cai, who has worked in Asia and beyond, reporting and producing for the BBC, The Wall Street Journal and The Straits Times, and Rachel Lee, a seasoned reporter and producer from the BBC’s Korean Service.

Mariko Oi, presenter, says: "I am thrilled to be presenting Asia Specific. I have always been passionate about telling Asian stories to our global audiences and have covered some of the biggest stories in the region including the 2011 Japan earthquake, Trump-Kim summits, pro-democracy protests in Hong Kong and the Tokyo Olympics.

"Asia is incredibly vast and diverse but there are themes and stories that bind us together. Our team reflects that diversity, and we’ll be working in a truly multicultural newsroom in Singapore, representing almost every country in the region. This gives me confidence that we will be able to cover stories that are important to our audiences in Asia and across the globe.”

Jon Zilkha, Controller, BBC World Service English, says: “We are pleased to be announcing Asia Specific, a new English language podcast for our audiences in the Asia-Pacific region.

“We’ll be drawing expertise from across the BBC’s news teams, bringing trusted, in-depth reporting directly to our audiences. It’s an important addition to the BBC’s global storytelling, bringing original analysis on the stories shaping Asia – and the world.”

Episodes will land twice weekly on YouTube. Episodes will also be available on BBC Sounds in the UK and outside the UK on BBC.com, the BBC app, and wherever you get your BBC podcasts.