Imagine this horrifying scenario: Your father and brother get arrested by a foreign government. You believe they’re being tortured and forced to give false confessions. Soon, they’ll be facing a trial that could lead to a lifetime in prison, p

U.S. cracks down on products made by slave labor, but hurdles remain

Mar 12th, 2016 9m 42s

Last month, activists working to end child and forced labor got a big win. Congress passed a regulation banning the import of goods made by slave labor. Soon after, President Obama signed the bill into law.The companies that make these prod

Here’s the real story behind your cup of tea

Feb 12th, 2016 11m 20s

When you wrap your hands around a toasty cup of tea this winter, consider the source.The U.S. imports about 400 million pounds of tea each year, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Tea makers often market their product with the

Meet the private companies that sell spy tech to the NSA and Sudan

Jan 29th, 2016

The multi-billion dollar private surveillance industry does some of the U.S. government’s most critical electronic snooping. From “deep packet inspection” — that includes tracking and filtering emails — to phone taps, private contractors play

The government’s making a watchlist and checking it twice

Jan 15th, 2016

This week on Shortwave, we bring you Part Two in our series on tracking terrorists on U.S. soil. We speak with former Department of Homeland Security Expert Juliette Kayyem, who hosts “The Security Mom” podcast and will soon publish a book b

Was 2015 the end of America as a superpower?

Dec 31st, 2015 10m 30s

Parts of the global map literally have been re-drawn. From China building new islands in the South China Sea to the Islamic State taking (and losing) control of entire cities, the global order — and its impact on Americans — has shifted in a

Who watches the watch list?

Dec 17th, 2015

This is a podcast. That you listen to. Click on this link to subscribe.Many of the terrorists who carried out attacks on Western targets over the last decade were on government watch-lists prior to those attacks. For example, Boston Marathon

Meet the millionaire who’s spent a fortune rescuing migrants in the Mediterranean

Dec 3rd, 2015

This is a podcast. That you listen to. Click on this link to subscribe.In 2013, Louisiana native Christopher Catrambone was doing well for himself. His war-zone insurance company had made him rich, and he was able to take some time for a lux

Podcast: The women of the Islamic State

Nov 19th, 2015

This is a podcast. That you listen to. Click on this link to subscribe.Women make up 10 to 15 percent of foreigners that have traveled to the so-called Islamic State. And these women play a critical role in building the state.Audrey Alexan

Podcast: How the Chinese government gets its messages on America’s airwaves

Nov 5th, 2015

This is a podcast. That you listen to. Click on this link to subscribe. As China’s economy has exploded like a nitroglycerin firecracker, a campaign of positive messaging has emanated from Beijing. This week, a Reuters investigation uncove

The inside story of predator drones

Oct 29th, 2015

The predator drone, with its distinctive oblong head and inverted V-shaped tail, has become a sort of mascot for the U.S. global war on terror.But that wasn’t always the case. Lt. Col. T. Mark McCurley spent more than a decade flying drone

When marriage and citizenship don’t go hand in hand

Oct 22nd, 2015

In the 1990 romantic comedy Green Card, an American girl played by Andie MacDowell marries French guy Gérard Depardieu. It’s a win-win. He gets citizenship. She gets to put “married” on an application for a fabulous Manhattan apartment that we

U.S. and Persian Gulf airlines clash over $42 billion trade dispute

Oct 1st, 2015

Bart Jansen, who covers aviation for USA Today calls it “the single biggest trade dispute in history.” The three biggest U.S. airlines – American, United and Delta – have lodged a complaint with the U.S. government, alleging that three major

Is China feeding the U.S.’s deadly synthetic drug habit?

Sep 23rd, 2015

It’s as easy as ordering a pair of shoes from Zappos. Only the product is more dangerous and deadly than a pair of stilettos: synthetic drugs, almost all coming into the country from China. How are these drugs trafficked into the U.S.? And wha

What it’s like to walk with the refugees and migrants

Sep 17th, 2015

Up from Syria, across Turkey and over the sea to Greece. Then Macedonia, Serbia, Hungary.Like a living organism, the flow of refugees from Syria plods and sweats its way north by northwest. When this massive body faces a barricade, it chang

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