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GroundTruth

69 EpisodesProduced by The GroundTruth Project Website

At the height of the Vietnam War, a government insider named Daniel Ellsberg leaked 7,000 pages of classified documents to American newspapers. The Pentagon Papers revealed that Americans had been lied to for decades about the war. Fifty years later, Ellsberg reveals his evolution from Cold Warrior … read more

69 Episodes | 2015 - 2024

Farewell

February 22nd, 2024

0:39

An important message from RadioPublic

Special Message to Listeners

November 21st, 2021

1:08

After 10 seasons of the award-winning GroundTruth Podcast, we’re excited about what might come next. 

But to find the best way forward, we want to hear from listeners like you: What stories do you feel are …

The Whistleblower - Epilogue: Truth Is the First Casualty

September 10th, 2021

18:19

In war, truth is the first casualty.

It's a military maxim attributed to Aeschylus, the father of Greek tragedy. In the lead up to the 20th anniversary of 9/11 and ahead of the withdrawal from a war that became the …

The Whistleblower - Extra: Into the Archive

August 31st, 2021

18:26

A class of college students at UMass Amherst became the first group of researchers to take on Daniel Ellsberg's vast archive. For two students, it's …

The Whistleblower - Episode 5: The Doomsday Machine

June 23rd, 2021

40:02

Before he was helping plan the Vietnam War, Ellsberg was working at Rand Corporation as a nuclear war planner. In the late 1950’s and early 60’s, he …

The Whistleblower - Episode 4: Most Dangerous Man

June 10th, 2021

34:02

Now facing a possible 115 years in prison, Daniel Ellsberg awaits his federal espionage trial. Meanwhile, Nixon unleashes his Plumbers in an attempt to silence Ellsberg, and Barbra Streisand sings for the defense! In …

The Whistleblower - Episode 3: The Presses Roll

May 18th, 2021

44:26

On September 30, 1969, Daniel Ellsberg opened his newspaper to a story out of Vietnam that would act as the trigger for copying the Pentagon Papers. …

The Whistleblower - Episode 2: The Force of Truth

April 30th, 2021

39:05

Daniel Ellsberg leaked the Pentagon Papers to the press knowing he could face the rest of his life in prison. But what turned this Cold War hawk into …

The Whistleblower - Episode 1: The Lying Machine

April 15th, 2021

53:01

In the series premiere, we pick up on Ellsberg’s first day at the Pentagon, the day he became acquainted with what he came to call the “lying machine.” It was August 4, 1964. Contradicting accounts of an attack in The …

The Whistleblower: Truth, Dissent & the Legacy of Daniel Ellsberg TRAILER

April 2nd, 2021

4:19

Americans across the country opened their newspapers to the first reports based on classified documents leaked by a government insider, Daniel Ellsberg. Consisting of 7,000 pages of top secret documents, the Pentagon …

On the Ground: Election Episode – 2020 and Counting

October 31st, 2020

46:56

The turmoil of the 2020 presidential election campaigns has raised questions about just what it means to vote.

Who gets to pull the lever? How can …

On the Ground in Kentucky's District 67

October 29th, 2020

12:31

When you think about Kentucky's deep red politics today, it's likely the face of Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and his laconic drawl that …

On the Ground in the Mississippi Delta

October 2nd, 2020

23:05

The origins of Blues music is a complex weave of traditions, and the genre echoes suffering and endurance through centuries of hardship. Evolving …

On the Ground with Report for America: Woods Hole, Massachusetts

September 11th, 2020

13:11

For most of us, it's hard to ignore the rising threat of climate change. But the sheer magnitude of the devastation it could cause is daunting. For …

On the Ground with Report for America: Chicago's South Side

August 28th, 2020

19:07

For many growing up in Chicago, the barber shop is a refuge. Raised on the Windy City's West Side, Report for America corps member Manny Ramos knows that fact well.

"Barbers do more than just cut hair," he says, "they …

On the Ground with Report for America: Inside Mississippi's Prison System

August 13th, 2020

19:23

In August 2018, well before any thought of a pandemic sweeping the country, Mississippi’s prison system saw a spike in inmate deaths. Correctional officials attributed many of these to “natural causes.” But these deaths …

On the Ground with Report for America: Bird Singers of the American Southwest

July 31st, 2020

24:27

Bird Singing is an oral tradition that has been passed down for centuries among the tribes across the American Southwest. These stories are sung by male members of tribes – from young boys to elders – whose only …

On the Ground with Report for America: Deadly Force--An Investigative Report

July 17th, 2020

22:09

“Deadly Force,” a new podcast series from Report for America host newsroom WPLN in Nashville, focuses on the trial of the first Nashville police …

On the Ground with Report for America: Almost Independence Day

July 2nd, 2020

11:04

July 3, 2018. It was almost Independence Day.

Lee Eric Evans straightened a flag pole on his aunt’s front porch. He carefully unfurled an American …

On the Ground with Report for America: Pandemic and Protest, Coast to Coast, Part 2

June 30th, 2020

21:33

Report for America corps member Chris Ehrmann continues on his road trip across America, picking up in St. Louis, where economic recovery depends on where you live. Chris listens to protesters from Denver to Los …

On the Ground with Report for America: Pandemic and Protest, Coast to Coast, Part 1

June 19th, 2020

22:09

Report for America corps member Chris Ehrmann embarked on a road trip across America, literally, from Times Square to Los Angeles, California. He traced the new landscape of COVID-19 across time zones and state lines. …

On the Ground with Report for America - Trailer

June 9th, 2020

6:22

The 9th season of the GroundTruth Podcast is a playlist of stories from across America. We shadow our Report for America corps members as they bring us into their communities, and share the stories of people who’ve …

The Authoritarian's Playbook: Bonus Episode - Guardrails of Democracy

January 17th, 2020

24:28

As a thick morning fog was still lifting over the hills here above the San Francisco Bay, Ellsberg sat at his dining room table, sipping a cup of coffee and reading The New York Times. It was Friday, December 13th, the …

The Authoritarian's Playbook: Eroding Truth in America

December 26th, 2019

34:50

As Donald Trump took the oath of office and became the 45th President of the United States, journalists’ role of covering the White House and the …

The Authoritarian's Playbook: Dividing and Conquering in Poland

December 24th, 2019

30:57

LGBT communities face challenges in all parts of the world. But in Poland, the right-wing populist Law and Justice party spent the last year …

The Authoritarian's Playbook: Exploiting Religion in India

December 15th, 2019

35:43

In August, 1947, British colonial rule officially ended in India. Within 6 months, Mahatma Gandhi, the leader of India’s independence movement, was …

The Authoritarian's Playbook: Rewriting History in Hungary

December 7th, 2019

30:02

It is often said that journalism is the first draft of history. Prime Minister Viktor Orban’s dominance of Hungarian media gives him the power to not only write the first draft, but to rewrite history, in step
with his …

The Authoritarian's Playbook: Undermining Institutions in Colombia

November 28th, 2019

31:12

In September, 2016, Juan Manuel Santos, the President of Colombia, and Timochenko Jimenez, the rebel leader of the FARC--the Revolutionary Armed …

The Authoritarian's Playbook: Targeting Outsiders in Italy

November 14th, 2019

32:10

Matteo Salvini is one of Italy’s most popular politicians. His harsh rhetoric against migrants, the media, and cultural integration has resonated …

The Authoritarian's Playbook: Weaponizing Fear in Brazil

October 31st, 2019

36:06

Since taking office in January, Brazil’s President Jair Bolsonaro has weaponized the fear of widespread crime, and tapped into the country’s anger …

Democracy Undone: Series Intro

October 17th, 2019

3:37

The hallmarks of populist nationalism are gaining ground in many of the world’s largest democracies, from Modi’s India to Bolsonaro’s Brazil and …

Unheard in Appalachia

August 15th, 2019

31:18

Crossing the Divide is a collaboration with WGBH that brought together a team of five reporters from red states and blue states to travel across the …

New American Songbook: For My Ayeeyo

July 3rd, 2019

28:03

Somalia is often called a land of poets, a place where everything from teenage romance to legal disputes has been recorded and passed down through poems. As conflict and drought have driven hundreds of
thousands of …

Memorial Day Special - The Eleventh Hour

May 23rd, 2019

39:55

In honor of Memorial Day, we’re looking back at World War 1, the Great War. It’s been a century since the world powers gathered in Paris to hammer out terms for peace. No Germans were present. In fact, they were not …

The End of Days - Part 3 - A New Jerusalem - Shaping Mideast Policy

May 3rd, 2019

24:06

The Dead Sea lies at the lowest elevation on earth. And in the arid valley that stretches to the salt lake's western shore sits Ein Gedi, a nature preserve and oasis that ranges from lush, spring fed gardens, to parched …

The End of Days - Part 2 - The Armies of Heaven - Inside the Movement

April 26th, 2019

24:51

In the second chapter of this series, we go inside the Christian Zionist community in Jerusalem and the settlements in the West Bank. Micah Danney, our GroundTruth Fellow and guide for this episode, was a unique choice …

The End of Days: How Christian Zionism is Transforming US Policy in the Middle East

April 17th, 2019

29:35

Twenty years ago, a movement known as Christian Zionism was on the furthest fringes in the land of Israel.

Back then, mainstream theologians — …

The Eleventh Hour

December 7th, 2018

39:48

After four years of fighting, 20 million soldiers and civilians dead, and three collapsed empires, World War One ended and a new world order emerged. …

War Children

November 22nd, 2018

25:36

A year after the city of Mosul was liberated from ISIS rule, kids across Iraq are not alright. The most vulnerable are often overlooked: orphans, the …

What Ever Happened to Zika?

November 8th, 2018

32:22

Before Hurricane Maria, the Zika crisis was already pushing Puerto Rico’s health care system to the limit. Then the storm came and crippled it completely — no more testing pregnant mothers for Zika, and no more tracking …

The Dancing Ghosts of Duffy's Cut

October 25th, 2018

26:47

When Bill and Frank Watson were kids, their grandfather told them a ghost story. Decades later, the brothers discovered the source of that story in …

Hope (and Contraband) in a Bottle

October 11th, 2018

29:30

On a South Korean island just eight miles from the shores of North Korea, Jung Gwang-il is trying to save lives with rice and USBs. He’s a North Korean defector who survived torture and concentration camps, and is now

Refugees Lost in Translation

September 27th, 2018

33:21

*Refugees Lost in Translation *

Three refugees — from Syria, Afghanistan and Iraq — are working as interpreters for other refugees coming into Europe. With a foot in both worlds, they see things that refugees and …

Unheard in Appalachia

September 20th, 2018

28:27

In beautiful, mountainous Eastern Kentucky, local economies are struggling, coal jobs continue to disappear, and people are frustrated by decades of …

Season 5 Trailer

September 14th, 2018

3:07

From Puerto Rico to Pennsylvania, a new generation of journalists is reporting on the ground, documenting the most important stories of their time. Hosted by Charles Sennott, founder of The GroundTruth Project, in …

The New American Songbook: Nuevo Mariachi

November 16th, 2017

23:12

For Omar Naré, mariachi is in his blood. His grandfather, a Mexican farm laborer, brought the music with him to California’s Central Valley, where he settled his family. Omar grew up hearing mariachi at family …

The New American Songbook: Rhythms From Cyprus

November 9th, 2017

24:09

At age 20, percussionist George Lernis sought to travel halfway around the world from Cyprus, to follow in the footsteps of the American jazz …

The New American Songbook: Making It In The HMI

October 19th, 2017

27:59

HMI stands for Haitian Music Industry, but its artists and fans are spread around the globe. Vladimir Mead immigrated to Boston 10 years ago at age 16. Since then, he’s built up a music career under the name Masterbrain …

The New American Songbook: For My Ayeeyo

October 5th, 2017

26:52

Somalia is the “land of poets,” a place where love, law, war and peace have been carried out in verse for centuries. This is a story of what happens when that tradition is driven far from the dry soil and open skies …

The New American Songbook: Cambodia Reincarnate

September 21st, 2017

29:29

During the Cambodian genocide in the 1970s, nearly all of the country’s musicians were killed. But in a strange twist of fate, music saved the life of a Cambodian boy named Sovann. Now a U.S. citizen in Lowell, Mass., …

Making Music In The Syrian Diaspora

July 27th, 2017

27:05

Ahmad Naffory fell in love with the guitar in a Syrian grocery store, but he didn't know that his music would cause him to flee his home for another …

The Fix: Chapter 5 – We Need to Talk

June 1st, 2017

12:44

On Long Island, the rate of death from opioid overdose is rising the fastest in all of New York. Here, providers are being trained in basic communication and learning to treat substance abuse like any other chronic …

The Fix: Chapter 4 – A Better Way to Treat Addiction

May 25th, 2017

12:41

In the South Bronx, healthcare providers here are pioneering an approach that is way ahead of the rest of the country. This system, where all of the patients' needs are met in once place, allows them to live …

The Fix: Chapter 3 – Detox, Rehab, Relapse, Repeat

May 18th, 2017

11:09

To deal with the crisis on Staten Island, health officials and law enforcement are pioneering new kinds of treatment options. But residents are largely in denial about the problem, and those wanting to get clean are …

The Fix: Chapter 2 – Not My Kid

May 11th, 2017

14:44

Rampant prescriptions for painkillers laid the foundation for a deadly heroin epidemic in the mostly white, blue-collar community of Staten Island. …

The Fix: Chapter 1 – The History You Never Heard

May 4th, 2017

17:31

The South Bronx, New York's poorest neighborhood, has been dealing with a deadly heroin epidemic for generations. We look at the origins of the epidemic, residents' efforts to handle the crisis and the birth of a stigma …

Dispatch: Trump And The Next Chapter On Climate

December 16th, 2016

12:24

Donald Trump's victory in the U.S. presidential election sent shockwaves around the world, but particularly at U.N. climate conference in Marrakech. …

Living Proof: Anguish In Arctic Scandinavia

December 9th, 2016

26:41

A mental health crisis is taking root in Arctic Scandinavia among the indigenous Sami, as a changing climate threatens wildlife and ways of life. GroundTruth's Melody Schreiber reports from Sweden and Norway. Explore …

Living Proof: Storms, Sex And Survival In The Philippines

December 2nd, 2016

27:48

After covering the devastation of Typhoon Haiyan in 2013, GroundTruth's Aurora Almendral investigates how typhoons are driving waves of human trafficking in the Philippines. This is a coproduction with KCRW's …

Living Proof: Zika In The Americas

November 25th, 2016

23:58

Zika virus is now in dozens of countries, including the United States. GroundTruth's Beth Murphy documents the epidemic in Puerto Rico, exploring how climate change is affecting mosquito-borne diseases, here and around …

Living Proof: Jakarta's Fight Against Flooding

November 18th, 2016

17:48

The rising seas and increased storms that come with climate change pose a threat to many coastal cities. GroundTruth's Chris Bentley goes to Indonesia’s capital to investigate how even projects done in the name of …

Living Proof: Somalia’s Climate For Conflict

November 11th, 2016

29:08

For 25 years, drought and war have reinforced each other in a deadly cycle in Somalia. GroundTruth's Laura Heaton reports on how the underlying causes of Somalia's long-running civil war are being worsened by climate …

Dispatch: Drowned Out In Paris

March 24th, 2016

13:23

Are young people being shut out of the world's response to climate change? 

GroundTruth climate fellows Justine Calma and Chris Bentley kick off our new series of reports on global warming with this dispatch from the …

From Syria With Baklava

March 15th, 2016

34:05

The epic journey of a group of Syrian refugees brought together by a famous sweets shop called Salloura. Syrian-American correspondent Dalia Mortada tells the story. 

Extra: Covering Haiti's Unimaginable Earthquake

January 14th, 2016

18:27

What do you learn from seeing the world collapse? Veteran CBC reporter David Gutnik risked his life to cover the aftermath of Haiti's 2010 …

Razia's Way: One School's Fight for Afghanistan's Girls

December 30th, 2015

22:30

How do you convince the conservative men of Afghanistan to get behind girls' education? This is the story of one determined, Afghan woman from Massachusetts who seems to have found a way...and one student her …

War Reporting: A Love Story

November 12th, 2015

21:52

Conflict reporter Tracey Shelton has been willing to risk her life to tell the stories of ordinary people in war zones. But now that she's found love, is her work still worth the risk? GroundTruth Producer Nathan Tobey …

Foreverstan: The Aftermath

September 29th, 2015

19:21

Where is Afghanistan heading? GroundTruth correspondent Jean MacKenzie assesses the fall of Kunduz, and Charlie Sennott travels along the country's "Ring Road" with Iraq War veteran and photojournalist Ben Brody to …

Foreverstan: The First Casualty

September 10th, 2015

12:32

Correspondent Charles Sennott follows the roots of the war in Afghanistan from the 1993 World Trade Center bombing. He then returns to the scene of a …

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