FRONTLINE: Extras Podcast | PBS

Digital Nation

Mon, 1 February 2010 17:15:00 -0400

According to recent Kaiser Family Foundation data, American children aged 8 to 18 average more than 50 hours a week with digital media -- that's more than a full work week. Coming Feb. 2, 2010 to PBS, FRONTLINE's "Digital Nation" explores the implications of living in a world consumed by technology and the impact that this constant connectivity may have on future generations. In this segment from "Digital Nation," FRONTLINE correspondent Douglas Rushkoff travels to the edge of the digital frontier -- South Korea -- for a look at a country that's embraced the wired world more thoroughly than any place on Earth, and is now potentially facing a new public health crisis: internet addiction.

From Jesus to Christ: The First Christians

Fri, 11 December 2009 17:15:00 -0400

This Christmas, in what's become a PBS holiday tradition, FRONTLINE is rebroadcasting "From Jesus to Christ: The First Christians," a landmark four-hour documentary that explores the life and death of Jesus, and the men and women whose belief, conviction and martyrdom created the religion we know as Christianity. In this podcast, host Arun Rath speaks with author and religious studies professor L. Michael White of the University of Texas, chief academic advisor to the film, about the historical Jesus and what has been revealed since the film's initial broadcast.

The Card Game

Fri, 20 November 2009 17:15:00 -0400

As credit, debit and pre-paid card companies face rising public anger, new regulation from Washington and a potential perfect storm of economic bad news, FRONTLINE and "The New York Times" examine the future of the massive consumer loan industry and its impact on a fragile national economy in "The Card Game," airing Tuesday, Nov. 24 on PBS. In this podcast, correspondent and producer Lowell Bergman discusses how the economic collapse is ushering in "fundamental change" in the financial services industry, what efforts are right now underway to curb some of industry's more aggressive practices--and what this all will mean for consumers. Hosted by Arun Rath.

A Death in Tehran

Fri, 13 November 2009 17:15:00 -0400

In the height of the protests following Iran's controversial presidential election this summer, a young protester named Neda Agha Soltan was shot and killed. Her death -- filmed on a camera phone, distributed across the internet and watched by tens of millions across the world -- quickly became an international outrage, and Agha Soltan became the face of a powerful opposition movement. Through vivid eyewitness accounts of the protest and interviews with those closest to Agha Soltan -- made possible with the help of a unique network of correspondents reporting from inside and outside of Iran -- FRONTLINE sheds new light on the life and death of this young woman and the movement she helped to inspire in "A Death in Tehran," airing Tuesday, Nov. 17. In this podcast, host Arun Rath also talks with Kelly Niknejad, editor-in-chief of the Tehran Bureau Web site, about how her team is able to report news from Iran that no one else can cover, the cultural and historical context missing from much coverage in the West, and what her sources are telling her about the most recent opposition activity and protests.

The Medicated Child

Fri, 30 October 2009 17:15:00 -0400

(corrected) Six million American children -- some as young as 4 years old -- are being prescribed powerful medications designed to treat serious psychiatric disorders, and most of these drugs have never been tested in children. In "The Medicated Child," first broadcast in January 2008 and re-airing Tuesday, Nov. 3, FRONTLINE producer Marcela Gaviria follows three families as they grapple with their children's diagnosis and talks with psychiatrists, researchers and government regulators about the risks, benefits and many questions surrounding prescription drugs for troubled children. In this podcast, host Arun Rath catches up with Gaviria for an update on how the families profiled in the film are faring since the initial broadcast.

Close to Home

Sat, 24 October 2009 16:15:00 -0400

FRONTLINE producer Ofra Bikel chronicles how one unlikely neighborhood--New York's Upper East Side--is faring in this recession through the stories of the people she has come to know at her local hair salon in Close to Home, airing Tues, Oct. 27 at 9 pm on PBS (check local listings). In this podcast, host Arun Rath interviews Bikel about the surprising stories she found in her own backyard and talks with job search expert Steven Greenberg on the unique challenges faced by unemployed workers over 40.

The Warning

Sat, 17 October 2009 10:15:00 -0400

As Congress weighs new regulations over the complex derivatives market -- whose crash helped to trigger last year's financial crisis -- FRONTLINE traces back to the late 1990s and reveals the intense battle among high-ranking members of the Clinton administration about regulating these emerging, extremely lucrative securities in The Warning, airing Tuesday, Oct. 20, at 9 P.M. on PBS (check local listings). In this podcast, producer Michael Kirk sheds new light on the ideological clash that animated the epic battles between Brooksley Born, head of the federal Commodities Futures Trading Commission, and Clinton's pro-business, anti-regulation economic powerbrokers -- including Chairman of the Federal Reserve Alan Greenspan, Treasury Secretary Robert Rubin and his deputy Larry Summers. With Summers and Rubin acolyte Timothy Geithner now at top posts in the Obama administration, Wall Street Journal editor David Wessel discusses what this cautionary tale might reveal about current attempts to prevent the next economic crisis. Hosted by Arun Rath.

Obama's War

Fri, 09 October 2009 16:15:00 -0400

As the debate over Afghanistan intensifies in Washington, FRONTLINE reports the high stakes on the ground in "Obama's War," airing Tuesday, Oct. 13, at 9 P.M. on PBS (check local listings). In this podcast, host Arun Rath catches up with FRONTLINE producer Martin Smith for a first-hand account of the war's many fronts. From the harrowing firefights in Helmand province and political corruption in Kabul, to U.S. struggles with the Pakistani government over Taliban enclaves in its tribal areas, Smith provides fresh insights into the counterinsurgency effort and the president's difficult choices. Includes excerpts of Smith's interviews with key players--Gen. Stanley McChrystal, top commander in Afghanistan and Ambassador Richard Holbrooke, special envoy to Afghanistan and Pakistan.

Breaking the Bank

Fri, 12 June 2009 16:15:00 -0400

FRONTLINE tells the inside story of the rocky merger of two banks at the heart of the financial crisis -- Bank of America and Merrill Lynch -- and the government's new role in taking over the American banking system in "Breaking the Bank," airing Tuesday, June 16, at 9 pm on PBS (check local listings). In this podcast, FRONTLINE producer Michael Kirk takes listeners behind closed doors to the unprecedented moment when, in an attempt to save the financial system, Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson forces nine major banks to accept $125 billion in government funding. Also, former International Monetary Fund economist Simon Johnson talks about the fallout of this move towards "nationalization," the challenges ahead for the Obama administration and what America can learn from other large countries.

Tiananmen 20 Years Later

Fri, 5 June 2009 00:00:00 -0400

This week, FRONTLINE marks the 20th anniversary of the violent crackdown in Tiananmen Square with a rebroadcast of its 2006 documentary "The Tank Man" - the single individual who stood up to a column of tanks and became an iconic image of the fight for freedom around the world. In this podcast, FRONTLINE catches up with producer Antony Thomas for a behind-the-scenes glimpse at one of the film's most memorable moments. Also, Evan Osnos, who reports from Beijing for The New Yorker magazine and FRONTLINE/World, gives a first-hand account of how the city has changed since the film first broadcast--including young Beijingers' conflicting views over the Tank Man and the outcome of the pro-democracy demonstrations.

The Madoff Affair

Fri, 9 May 2009 00:00:00 -0400

FRONTLINE producers Martin Smith and Marcela Gaviria take you behind-the-scenes of their upcoming investigation "The Madoff Affair," airing Tuesday, May 12, 2009 at 9 pm ET on PBS (check local listings) and viewable online at pbs.org/frontline. Two of FRONTLINE's most celebrated producers reveal how they landed exclusive TV interviews with those closest to Madoff's operation and pieced together the inside story of the biggest Ponzi scheme in history. Includes excerpts from FRONTLINE's exclusive interview with Michael Bienes, one of two accountants Madoff hired to help recruit clients.