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Host Marco Werman and his team of producers bring you the world's most interesting stories that remind us just how small our planet really is.
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For many, 2020 has been a scary year. In an effort to get to the root of why many people feel this way, the first thing we did was something we probably should have done a long time ago — we reached out to a psychiatrist. In a new season of "Things That Go Boom," The World's partner podcast from PRX, host Laicie Heeley also asked listeners, friends and family to answer what might seem like a pretty simple question: How safe do you feel? The answers weren't simple at all. Guests: Arash Javanbakht, psychiatry researcher; Bunmi Akinnusotu, host of What in the World? Additional reading: Sex and Death in the Rational World of Defense Intellectuals, Carol Cohn The politics of fear: How fear goes tribal, allowing us to be manipulated, Arash Javanbakht When mask-wearing rules in the 1918 pandemic faced resistance, Becky Little As the 1918 flu emerged, cover-up and denial helped it spread, Becky Little
Why did the US Navy reinstate celestial navigation as part of its curriculum a few years ago? Well, you can’t hack a sextant. In the seventh episode of the third season of "Things That Go Boom," our partner podcast from PRX, host Laicie Heeley looks at some of the vulnerabilities that come with an overreliance on high-tech defense systems. Guests Peter Singer and August Cole are national security experts who have taken to writing futuristic techno-thrillers to sound a few alarms. Among their warnings: The opening battles of World War III won’t happen on a battlefield, and they will probably be silent. Guests: Peter Singer, strategist and senior fellow at New America August Cole, non-resident senior fellow at the Scowcroft Center for Strategy and Security at the Atlantic Council Additional reading: Burn-In, Forbes. Ghost Fleet, The Diplomat. China Uses AI To Enhance Totalitarian Control, The Atlantic.
Disinformation and misinformation have been blurring the line between fantasy and reality since the start of communication itself. But over the last decade, they’ve posed an increasing threat to democracy in the United States, with the 2016 presidential election becoming a major flashpoint in Americans’ understanding of the consequences of fake news. In episode six of the third season of "Things That Go Boom," our partner podcast from PRX, host Laicie Heeley looks into how false information flooding the internet and spreading like wildfire on social media poses risks not just to national and election security, but to our health and safety. Guests: Mike Mazarr, senior political scientist at RAND Corporation Cindy Otis, author, former CIA analyst and disinformation investigations manager Camille Stewart, head of security policy for Google Play and Android Russell Jeung, professor of Asian American studies at San Francisco State University Additional reading True or False: A CIA Analyst's Guide to Spotting Fake News, Cindy Otis "Vote and die: Covering voter suppression during the coronavirus pandemic," Nieman Foundation "Combating disinformation and foreign interference in democracies: Lessons from Europe," Margaret L. Taylor
As the US reckons with systemic racism and a less-than-democratic past, China is doubling down on its authoritarian ways. Meanwhile, research on the health of democracy from across the globe indicates the patient is not well. In episode five of the third season of "Things That Go Boom," our partner podcast from PRX, host Laicie Heeley traces China’s rise from the 1990s, when American pop music held a place alongside patriotic education, to its more recent political assertiveness — not to mention its chokehold on civil rights in Hong Kong and Xinjiang. As China moves to assert itself on the world stage, is democracy losing? Guests: Connie Mei Pickart, writer and educator Yascha Mounk, associate professor at Johns Hopkins University and senior fellow at the German Marshall Fund Additional reading: How the world views American-style democracy, Eurasia Group Foundation Nationalism ruined my Chinese friendships, Connie Mei Pickart via SupChina In Hong Kong, defiance has gone quiet, The New York Times
Are we in the middle of a new Cold War — or have we rewritten the game? With old nuclear arms treaties expiring and no new ones being signed, are we adapting to the times — or playing with fire? In episode four of the third season of "Things That Go Boom," our partner podcast from PRX, host Laicie Heeley looks at the past and present of civil defense and nuclear arms control and asks what we can do — as individuals and as a nation — to prevent the existential threat of nuclear war. Guests: Alex Wellerstein, professor at the Stevens Institute of Technology and historian of nuclear weapons; Alexandra Bell, senior policy director at the Center for Arms Control and Non-proliferation. Additional Reading: NUKEMAP Trump Will Withdraw From Open Skies Treaty, The New York Times Time Running Out on the Last US-Russia Nuclear Arms Treaty, Defense News Will Donald Trump Resume Nuclear Testing?, The Economist
In Russia, after almost a decade in prison, businessman Yevgeny Prigozhin was released into a new world: Mikhail Gorbachev had given his last speech as leader of the Soviet Union and the Communist Party was outlawed. Soon, gangs were violently extorting new business owners and the murder rate soared in the country. But Prigozhin was comfortable with chaos. He started a hot dog stand and climbed his way up into the highest echelons of power — and then decided to diversify. In episode three of the third season of "Things That Go Boom," our partner podcast from PRX, host Laicie Heeley looks at a Russian businessman who takes on a new game — a war in the shadows — and how we prepare for what we can't see.
Andrii Shadrin is a 28-year-old Ukrainian corporal who serves in a military unit that repairs and replaces equipment damaged in frontline fighting. Shadrin describes what it’s like to return to the battlefield after an injury, when military equipment and ammunition are in short supply. And, Nuha al-Junaid, a Yemeni woman in exile, has been speaking with people across war-torn Yemen and in the diaspora. Their voices show a diversity of experiences that reveal how life does not stop for war. Also, American officials have said that they had warned the Kremlin of an imminent terrorist threat in the days leading up to the March 22 attack that left more than 130 people dead. This is part of a US policy that requires intelligence-sharing in instances where civilian lives are in danger. Plus, remembering Algerian Jewish pianist Maurice el Medioni, who died at the age of 95.
The container ship The Dali that crashed into the Francis Scott Key bridge in Baltimore had two local pilots navigating the large cargo carrier along the Patapsco River. We hear from a ship captain about the challenges of safely guiding a large container ship. And, the demand for language courses on US college campuses typically has reflected global shifts. But today, students are taking Korean — and it's all attributed to K-pop music and K-movies. Also, Senegal's president has led the country since 2012. But that's set to change now with the presumed victory of Bassirou Diomaye Faye, the opposition candidate in the elections held this week. Plus, what we know about ISIS-K.
After tense negotiations and four previous failures, the UN Security Council passed a resolution this morning calling for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza. For the first time, the US abstained on a Gaza ceasefire vote, rather than using its veto. And, according to Russian officials, the death toll from the Crocus City Hall shooting in Moscow currently stands at 137, with another 180 people injured. While many key questions remain unanswered, the Kremlin is already forming a narrative that will likely have severe political and security implications. Also, a new study in the Aquatic Mammals Journal suggests that a pod of orcas could be one previously uncategorized by researchers. These killer whales have been spotted far out to sea, as opposed to the pods that inhabit Pacific Northwest waters. Plus, a record year for the Barkley Marathons.
The Kremlin says that more than 40 people have died and more than 100 were wounded in a Friday night attack. The motive for the shootings or who may be responsible is not known. And, for more than a decade, Hosam Bahgat has been under criminal investigation for his work with the Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights, a human rights group. The court's investigation concluded this week and the charges against Bahgat were dropped. Also, Mongolia’s nomadic herders are facing a savage dzud winter, after more than 2 million livestock have frozen to death. Scientists say this lethal phenomenon — extreme cold and heavy snow following a summer drought — is occurring more frequently and is linked to climate change. Plus, on World Water Day, we hear how a farm in Iraq was hit by water shortages. 
Across Europe, the NATO military alliance is conducting its largest exercises since the Cold War, with tens of thousands of troops from 32 countries. NATO officials and European leaders are adding to the sense of urgency, warning that a direct conflict with Russia is becoming an increasing threat. And, this week, the United Nations said Sudan's civil war is one of the worst humanitarian disasters in recent memory. Fighting between the country's rival military and paramilitary forces has gone on for nearly a year and now humanitarians are warning of a looming hunger crisis. Also, more than three years after overthrowing an elected government, Myanmar’s military troops are under fire as armed revolutionaries fight to topple the unpopular regime.  The military is now conscripting civilians — a tactic that Myanmar’s population has long dreaded. Plus, walking to the Holy Land.
The Dominican Republic has stationed 10,000 soldiers on their border with Haiti. Foreign Minister Roberto Álvarez says his country’s national security is his top priority and does not support the establishment of a humanitarian corridor. And, despite Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s opposition, the US continues to push Israel to pursue a two-state solution with Palestinians — an independent Palestinian state alongside the Israeli state. What do former negotiators on both sides of the conflict have to say? Also, in Cambodia, the prime minister is hoping a ban on musical truck horns will stop young people from dancing near roadways. Plus, an exhibition on the Amazon of the imagination.
Japan's central bank has raised interest rates for the first time in 17 years. It's a milestone in a long economic recovery and sign of something afoot in the Japanese economy. And, from "Stories From The Stage," Eson Kim tells a tale about how she was held up at gunpoint with her dad in the family's hardware store when she was 12 years old. What happened next forever changed her. Also, all but one of the 100 cities with the world’s worst air pollution last year were in Asia, according to a new report from IQAir. Climate change is playing a pivotal role in bad air quality that is risking the health of billions of people worldwide. Plus, the earliest Japanese inventor of karaoke dies at age 100.
Russian President Vladimir Putin claimed a landslide victory in the country's elections held over the weekend, which means another 6 years in the Kremlin. According to the Russian election commission, Putin won 87% of the vote, but most Western countries have said that the elections were neither free nor fair. And, US troops are being asked to leave Niger after the government there revoked a security accord with the United States. There are about 1,000 American troops in Niger working to stabilize the West African nation and fight militants operating in the region. Also, the Sunflower Movement in Taiwan was a student-led grassroots movement that, 10 years ago, stopped the rushed passage of a bill that would have tied the island closer to China. It is credited with changing Taiwan's political direction. Plus, 90-year-old jazz legend Abdullah Ibrahim heads out on a world tour.
The pandemic has been a global trauma with a silver lining of immense scientific and medical development. Michael Mina, a physician-scientist who spent the pandemic focused on immunology and epidemiology at Harvard University, tells us where the world is now and how prepared we are for the future. And, Russian American director Michael Lockshin began his film adaptation of Mikhail Bulgakov’s classic novel, "Master and Margarita," before Russia’s full-scale invasion of Moscow. Now that it’s finally been released, Russians are crowding theaters to watch the cinematic send-up of state tyranny and it's hitting even closer to home. Also, Since Oct. 7, there has been an increase in violent settler activity across the West Bank, with more 260 Palestinians killed. There are also accusations of an increasingly blurred line between settlers and military forces. Plus, Berlin's techno scene is now on UNESCO's cultural heritage list.
Jordanian aid to Gaza

Jordanian aid to Gaza

2024-03-1448:02

As part of the effort to get more food and water into Gaza, the Jordanian Air Force is conducting air drops into the beleaguered territory. The World's Shirin Jaafari travels along on one of the flights to see what the logistics are like and what the air force thinks about delivering aid. And, French far-right groups say superstar Aya Nakamura is not the right performer for the Opening Ceremony of the Paris Olympics this summer. Also, Russian President Vladimir Putin is looking to secure his fifth term in office; he's been in power as president or prime minister since 1999. Yet, some Russians are still trying to monitor the elections to point out irregularities and falsifications. Plus, Britain expands its definition of extremism.
Across northeastern Syria, makeshift refineries are a major source of income for local residents who have endured more than a decade of conflict. But this critical resource is also making people sick and destroying the environment. And, US and Caribbean officials have reportedly told Haitian leaders they have 24 hours to name a transitional council that will appoint a new Haitian prime minister. US State Department deputy spokesperson, Vedant Patel, talks about US policy options in Haiti and Gaza. Also, in Germany on Wednesday, a court is weighing whether to remove the far-right party Alternative for Germany's designation as a suspected far-right extremist organization by the country's spy agency, the BfV, or the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution. Plus, a remembrance of Egyptian musician Zakaria Ibrahim.
Ariel Henry, Haiti’s besieged prime minister, has agreed to resign once a transitional presidential council is installed. We hear how gang violence in the capital has made Port-au-Prince increasingly unsafe. And, the US House of Representatives is set to vote on a bill that would force Chinese company ByteDance to sell TikTok or face a US ban. Also, Since Oct. 7, 2023, Palestinians from Gaza and the West Bank have been barred from working in Israel. Tens of thousands in the West Bank who were doing building or agricultural jobs are out of work, and it's drastically impacting their daily lives and the lives of many shopkeepers as people tighten their belts. Plus, can endangered languages be saved? A new book has the answer. 
Cyclists on the Gaza Sunbirds team have always dreamed of competing on the global stage at the 2024 Paris Paralympics. But amid the Israel-Hamas war, the athletes have pivoted to delivering food to community members in need. And, a new study says salmon populations produced in countries such as Norway, the UK and Canada are dying in large numbers. Warming waters and disease are seen as the main culprits for the depletion of farmed salmon. Also, in northwest Nigeria's Kaduna state, gunmen recently stormed into a rural town, rounded up 287 children and kidnapped them to a nearby forest. The circumstances differ from four day ago when Islamist militants kidnapped about 200 women and children elsewhere in Nigeria's rural north. We hear what's behind the most recent kidnapping and what it means for state security. Plus, the sound of "The Society of Snow." 
Ten years ago Friday, flight MH370 took off from Malaysia’s capital, Kuala Lumpur, carrying 239 people headed to Beijing. During the flight, the plane changed course, turning south toward the Indian Ocean. Its transponder was turned off midflight and was never heard from again. But their families never stopped searching. And, celebrated Japanese manga creator, Akira Toriyama, has died at the age of 68 in Japan. He's best known as the creator of the "Dragon Ball Z" series, which was adapted for TV in the 1990s. Also, the International Criminal Court has been using an old resolution from the UN Security Council on the Darfur region in Sudan in 2005, to investigate ongoing atrocities in the current conflict there. US Ambassador-at-Large for Global Criminal Justice Beth Van Schaack confirms that the United States is supporting the ICC investigation. Plus, Saudi Arabia on foot. 
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Comments (10)

Kathryn Ragsdale

This is a reminder of why the Vichy government was allowed to stand.

Apr 23rd
Reply

roberto cano

the hell is up with the sound over the guy talking on 21:50 lol.

Nov 30th
Reply (1)

Eli Gerzon

Seriously? No mention of the US orchestrating a coup against the democratically elected prime minister Mosadegh in 1953?

Oct 7th
Reply

Weather or Not

great discussion about me.... well the political side 9f me. But what about Mr. Singh of the NDP....It has been a third option for over a half a century. Maybe this our moment to ultimately confront racism!

Sep 22nd
Reply (1)

Bruna Diniz

indigenous womans and girls

Jun 5th
Reply

Andrea D

I really appreciate this show but am not sure what to make of all the audio glitches.. can't tell if it's just quickly edited for time or what...

Sep 5th
Reply (2)
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