Episode Reviews

Remarkable and harrowing insight into the awful slavery going on at sea. Would have liked a short bio/detail on the victims' voices we hear: a kernel of backstory, tiny compared with Lang Long's searing profile, but enough to help humanise each one. Prodigious research and immersive reporting make this a standout documentary podcast. One quibble: host Ian Urbina, while clearly a brilliant journalist, does not have a strong presence as host. He sounds as if he's been interviewed, and the answers strung together as montage rather than personalised narration. The effect lowers the sense of connection we feel as listeners. Production could also be more nuanced, with more attention to punctuating segments and key moments.