Underreported from WNYC's The Leonard Lopate Show

Undereported: Troubles in Northern Ireland

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 23 Aug 2012 17:25:18 +0000

Roughly 14 years have passed since the signing of the Good Friday peace accord, which ended decades of bloody conflict in Northern Ireland. But that doesn’t mean the area is free of conflict, tensions and even violence. Jamie Smyth of the Financial Times talks about the situation. His recent article is called "A Peace to Protect."

Underreported: The Syrian Refugee Crisis

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 9 Aug 2012 04:00:00 +0000

As violence escalates in Syria, thousands of refugees are pouring across the border into neighboring countries. International Rescue Committee’s Melanie Megevand and Sanjayan Srikanthan talk about what’s happening on the ground there.

Underreported: Inside Syria

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 12 Jul 2012 17:30:53 +0000

Donatella Rovera, senior adviser on crisis response for Amnesty International, spent several weeks this spring in 23 of Syria’s towns and villages. On this week’s Underreported, she describes the damage she saw as traveled around the country and the stories she heard from Syrians about the tactics of the national army as fighting continues there, 16 months after the protests first began.

Underreported: Massive Algae Bloom Found Under Arctic Ice

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 14 Jun 2012 17:52:43 +0000

Scientists recently made an unlikely discovery under thinning arctic ice: a massive algae bloom. Kevin Arrigo, a biological oceanographer at Stanford University who led the NASA-sponsored mission that discovered the algae, explains how it changes our thinking about arctic ecosystems and how they’re responding to climate change.

Underreported: The Accelerated Drone War in Yemen

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 14 Jun 2012 13:53:10 +0000

A report from the New America Foundation has found that the Obama Administration has dramatically escalated its drone war in Yemen. Peter Bergen talks about the report’s findings and their regional implications.

Underreported: Did Slaves Catch Your Seafood Dinner?

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 24 May 2012 20:29:49 +0000

Thailand is one of the largest exporters of seafood to the United States. On today’s Underreported segment, Global Post’s senior southeast Asian correspondent Patrick Winn investigates claims that forced labor is used on Thai fishing boats.

Underreported: The Martin Act & Investor Lawsuits

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 10 May 2012 20:53:29 +0000

University of Pennsylvania law professor David Skeel explains the recent judicial expansion of the Martin Act of 1921, which now makes it easier for private investors to file lawsuits against investment firms.

Underreported: Human Guinea Pigs for Pharmaceuticals

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 19 Apr 2012 18:59:04 +0000

On today’s Underreported, directors Michael Palmieri and Donal Mosher talk about the people who serve as human test subjects for medications being developed by pharmaceutical companies. They look at how those medications are being marketed, sold, and used throughout the United States after they’ve been approved. It’s the subject of their documentary, “Off Label,” which is being shown at the Tribeca Film Festival.

Underreported: Bear Bile Farming in China

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 12 Apr 2012 04:00:00 +0000

In China, Asiatic black bears are kept in cages for their bile, which is valued in Asian medicine. Jill Robinson, the founder and CEO of Animals Asia, who appears in the documentary "Cages of Shame," talks about bear bile farming and bear rescue efforts.

"Cages of Shame" premiers at the Rubin Museum of Art April 14.

Underreported: The Price of Quinoa's Success

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 5 Apr 2012 20:31:07 +0000

Quinoa has become an incredibly popular food in recent years, with prices for the whole grain tripling in the last five years. On today’s Underreported, Time writer Jean Friedman-Rudovksy talks about how the exploding market for quinoa has also created problems, including land disputes in Bolivia and environmental issues.

Underreported: NSA's Storage Facility

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 29 Mar 2012 20:26:05 +0000

Wired correspondent James Bamford describes the $2 billion Utah Data Center that is being constructed for the National Security Agency. It’s expected to be up and running in 2013 and will house their database for all forms of communication—emails, cell phone calls, Internet searches, and even bookstore purchases.

Underreported Update: The Democratic Republic of Congo

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 1 Mar 2012 22:52:41 +0000

In November, the Democratic Republic of Congo held presidential elections, even as the security situation there deteriorated. On today’s Underreported Update, Father Ferdinand Muhigirwa, the director of CEPAS (Centre d’Etudes pour l’Action Sociale), the oldest think tank in Congo, describes what’s happened since the contested election. He also looks at suppression of protests in Kinshasa and escalation of violence in the eastern part of the country. We’ll also be joined by Akwe Amosu, the director of Africa advocacy at the Open Society Foundations.

Underreported: Thorium Reactors

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 23 Feb 2012 15:41:57 +0000

Journalist Richard Martin discusses thorium as a potential nuclear fuel and looks at the efforts to promote it as a new form of green energy.

Underreported: Controversial Livestock Hormone

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 20:34:28 +0000

Helena Bottemiller, a reporter for The Food & Environment Reporting Network, looks at the controversial animal feed additive, ractopamine hydrochloride, which is widely used in the united states but the EU and China have banned it’s use, citing health concerns.

Underreported: The Stories You Missed in 2011

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 1 Dec 2011 15:50:45 +0000

On this week’s Underreported, Foreign Policy’s Joshua Keating discusses “The Stories You Missed in 2011,” including India’s military buildup and the shrinking supply of camel meat in Saudi Arabia.

Underreported: The Exploitation of International Domestic Workers

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 17 Nov 2011 18:50:31 +0000

On this week’s Underreported, Human Rights Watch researcher Nisha Varia describes abuses of migrant domestic workers in Asia and the Middle East, and why Cambodian women are particularly vulnerable to mistreatment in Malaysia. Plus, a look at efforts to implement international labor standards for domestic workers.

Underreported: Fukushima Update

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 17 Nov 2011 16:18:17 +0000

The crisis at the Fukushima reactor in Japan has been out of the headlines, but that doesn’t mean the crisis has been solved. We’ll speak with Dr. Edwin Lyman, a senior staff scientist in the Global Security program at the Union of Concerned Scientists

Underreported: Airport Body Scanners and Cancer

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 3 Nov 2011 13:54:29 +0000

Full body X-ray scanners are now commonplace in airports across America. ProPublica reporter Michael Grabell tells us about a new report that has found that the U.S. government glossed over a number of safety concerns about the the devices—even ignoring concerns about a potential increased risk of cancer.

Underreported: Intervention in Somalia

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 27 Oct 2011 17:45:20 +0000

Recently Kenyan forces invaded Somalia in a bid to fight the militant group Al-Shaabab. The United States has also been heavily involved in the country in recent years— allegedly establishing CIA bases, carrying out drone strikes, and providing funding for militants. The Nation’s Jeremy Scahill looks at the political situation in Somalia and the history of recent interventions in the war-torn and famine wracked country.

Underreported: Intervention in Uganda

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 27 Oct 2011 15:18:34 +0000

Earlier this month President Obama deployed 100 U.S. troops to Uganda in an advisory role to aid the fight against the Lords Resistance Army. Nate Haken, who works on conflict assessment issues in Uganda, and Patricia Taft, who served an adviser to the government of Uganda on war crimes prosecution and its case against the LRA, look at why this action was taken and the controversy surrounding it. Haken and Taft both work for The Fund for Peace.

Underreported: How Corporations Are Saving Billions in Taxes

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 6 Oct 2011 17:38:32 +0000

In the current economic downturn, governments around the world are looking to crack down on tax loopholes—corporations have been able to take advantage of tax breaks and loopholes that add up to billions of dollars in lost tax revenue. On today’s Underreported, ProPublica senior reporter Jeff Gerth and Megan Murphy, Investment Banking Correspondent for the Financial Times, describe how corporations are saving billions and how governments are now trying to close some of these loopholes.

Underreported: The Lives of Migrant Farm Workers

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 29 Sep 2011 14:37:53 +0000

When we’re in the supermarket, trying to figure out what to cook for dinner, the issues of immigration and migrant laborers usually aren’t on our minds. Yet migrant workers pick much of the produce that ends up on our tables. On today’s Underreported segment, GQ correspondent Jeanne Marie Laskas describes the season she spent with the migrant workers who pick the fruits and vegetables we find in our supermarkets, and why our food system depends on them. Her article "Hecho en América" appears in the October issue of GQ.

Underreported: Clashes in South Africa

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 1 Sep 2011 15:06:53 +0000

This week major clashes erupted in South Africa over the future of the African National Congress, the country’s ruling party since the end of apartheid. New York Times reporter Alan Cowell and Franz Krüger, Director of the Wits Radio Academy in Johannesburg, join us to explain South Africa's political scene.

Underreported: Eritrea

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 25 Aug 2011 20:39:58 +0000

Journalist Michela Wrong looks at Eritrea and its president Isaias Afewerki. She has spent 13 years reporting in Africa and is the author of In the Footsteps of Mr. Kurtz, about the Congolese dictator Mobutu, and I Didn't Do It for You, about Eritrea.

Underreported: A Secret History of the Bay of Pigs

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 18 Aug 2011 04:00:00 +0000

More than 50 years have passed since the United States sponsored a covert invasion of Cuba that came to be known as the Bay of Pigs. Now, one of the most coveted documents surrounding the disaster been released to the public: the top secret multi-volume CIA history of the operation. Peter Kornbluh of George Washington University’s National Security Archive led the effort to obtain the documents.

Underreported, Part I: Drought in the Horn of Africa

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 21 Jul 2011 17:54:37 +0000

The Horn of Africa is facing its worst drought in 60 years. Already, 10 million people are in urgent need of food in Ethiopia, Somalia and Kenya and yesterday the United Nations declared its first famine in 27 years for parts of Somalia. On today’s first Underreported, Nora Love, the International Rescue Committee’s deputy director of programs, discusses the situation across the region.

Underreported, Part II: Concerns about Terrorism Delay US Aid to Somalia

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 21 Jul 2011 16:31:19 +0000

More than 2.5 million Somalis are now in desperate need of food, but it wasn’t until late Wednesday that the State Department announced that it would send food aid to the country. The reason? Concerns that sending food aid would be aiding al-Shabab, which controls parts of southern Somalia and which the United States views as a terrorist organization. On today’s Underreported, Eliza Griswold, Senior Fellow at the New America Foundation and author of The Tenth Parallel, describes why the State Department was concerned that al-Shabab would use the food as a weapon and the challenges of providing food aid to areas where aid workers were banned until quite recently.

Underreported: Deep Sea Mining

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 7 Jul 2011 21:09:26 +0000

This week, a team of Japanese scientists announced that vast deposits of rare earth minerals—considered essential for the production of certain electronics—have been found under the Pacific Ocean. Cindy Lee Van Dover, Director of Duke University Marine Laboratory and Peter B. Kelemen, an Earth & Environmental Studies Professor at Columbia University, tell us about the deposits and how deep sea mining works.

Underreported: Ongoing Questions on Fukushima

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 23 Jun 2011 17:29:00 +0000

A number of scientists believe that the nuclear disaster at the Fukushima reactors in Japan is much worse than what governments are revealing. Al Jazeera reporter Dahr Jamail discusses what some in the scientific community are saying about the effects of the meltdown.

Underreported: What the WikiLeaks Cables Reveal about Haiti

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 16 Jun 2011 21:01:39 +0000

On this week’s Underreported, Dan Coughlin, reporter for The Nation magazine, Kim Ives, editor for Haiti Liberté, discuss what the WikiLeaks cables reveal about American diplomatic attitudes toward Haiti – both before and after the devasting earthquake there in 2010. A new series of reports about the 1,918 cables that relate to Haiti is being published in a partnership between The Nation and the Haiti Liberté newspaper.

Underreported: Boat of Migrant Africans Left to Drift for 16 Days

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 19 May 2011 18:56:20 +0000

In late March and early April, a boat filled with dozens of African migrants drifted in the Mediterranean for 16 days with almost no food, fuel or water. Although the boat made contact with various European authorities, no rescue was attempted and 61 people died. On this week’s Underreported, Fred Abrahams, Special Advisor at Human Rights Watch, describes what happened aboard the ship and why an investigation has been launched into how NATO and its member states responded to the ship’s distress calls.

Underreported: The Influence of Medical Device Makers

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 12 May 2011 21:07:59 +0000

Charlie Ornstein and Tracy Weber, ProPublica senior reporters, discuss medical societies and their financial ties to drug and medical device makers. Ornstein and Weber are the authors of the article "Financial Ties Bind Medical Societies to Drug and Device Makers," part of ProPublica's series Dollars for Doctors.

Underreported: Crackdown on Protests in Puerto Rico

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 5 May 2011 14:27:23 +0000

Since last summer, there has been a sometimes violent standoff between students at the University of Puerto Rico and the government over an announced budget cut and an increase in tuition fees, but that may just be part of a wider pattern of First Amendment violations. Jennifer Turner, a Human Rights Researcher at the ACLU and Rosie Perez, who just returned from a fact-finding mission in Puerto Rico, describe how authorities have dealt with students, striking workers, journalists, and civilians in recent months.

Underreported: The Evangelical Adoption Movement

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 28 Apr 2011 21:25:03 +0000

On today’s Underreported segment, The Nation’s Kathryn Joyce explains how evangelical Christians are trying to increase the number of international adoptions.

Underreported: The Antarctic King Crab Invasion

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 21 Apr 2011 20:53:33 +0000

Climate change is having dramatic effects on the world’s oceans as ice sheets collapse and the sea becomes more acidic. Warmer temperatures allow some deep sea predators, like King Crab, to expand their range into new areas—to the detriment of many other sea creatures. According to James McClintock, a Professor of Physiology & Ecology of Aquatic & Marine Invertebrates at the University of Alabama, an army of deep sea King Crabs are slowly working their way up the Antarctic slope, a habitat they have never been found in before, and are potentially decimating the extremely delicate marine ecosystem.

Underreported: The Chiquita Papers

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 14 Apr 2011 21:21:09 +0000

It has long been known that Chiquita Brands International made controversial payments to violent guerilla and paramilitary groups in Columbia in the 1990s and 2000s. The company was fined $25 million dollars in a 2007 plea-agreement for making payments to AUC, which was designated as a terrorist group by the US State Department in 2001. Michael Evans, chief researcher on Colombia at the National Security Archive, explains that a newly released trove of internal Chiquita memos obtained by the National Security Archive suggest that, contrary to company claims that the money was extorted, the payments often resulted in direct benefits for the banana giant.

Underreported: The Acquittal of Luis Posada Carriles

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 14 Apr 2011 17:21:52 +0000

Eighty-three-year-old Luis Posada Carriles is a former CIA operative. He has been connected to the Bay of Pigs fiasco, the funneling of U.S. money to the Contras in Nicaragua in the 1980s, a series of attacks on Havana hotels in 1997, and the 1976 bombing of a Cuban airliner that killed 73 people. Posada was acquitted this month of charges that he lied to U.S. immigration officials when he entered the country in 2005. Jefferson Morley, a former editor at The Washington Post and the author of Our Man in Mexico: Winston Scott and the Hidden History of the CIA, looks at Posada's background and his recent acquittal.

Underreported: Indian Point and Water

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 24 Mar 2011 20:55:37 +0000

Concerns about seismic activity at the Indian Point Nuclear Power Plant are grabbing the headlines this week, but other issues have been raised in the debate over whether the Nuclear Regulatory Commission should renew the plant's license. WNYC’s Bob Hennelly looks at environmental concerns about 90-100 degree waste water coming out of the plant into the Hudson River.

Underreported: Crisis in Côte d'Ivoire

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 17 Mar 2011 15:48:37 +0000

Côte d'Ivoire has been rocked by a political and humanitarian crisis following the disputed presidential election in November. Adam Nossiter, New York Times West Africa Bureau Chief, and Renzo Fricke, an Emergency Coordinator for Doctors Without Borders, talk about the turmoil there.

Underreported: Who Was Behind the Stuxnet Worm?

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 3 Mar 2011 18:00:00 +0000

The Stuxnet virus made headlines when it damaged computers at Iran’s nuclear program. On this week’s Underreported segment, Vanity Fair writer Michael Joseph Gross looks at who could have built Stuxnet and why Israel may not have been behind the computer worm as many initially assumed. Plus, we’ll look at what Stuxnet means for the future of cyber warfare.

Underreported: Rising Food Prices and Global Uprising

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 3 Feb 2011 21:23:45 +0000

Lester Brown, president of the Earth Policy Institute and author of World on the Edge: How to Prevent Environmental and Economic Collapse, describes what’s driving the rise in food prices around the world – from the changing environment to population growth. Plus, find out how commodities prices are connected to the rising dissatisfaction in many developing countries.

Underreported: The Plight of the American Dairy Farmer

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 13 Jan 2011 21:57:07 +0000

In 1970, there were nearly 650,000 dairy farms in the United States. Today, there are only 54,000 farms—many of them run by large operators who dominate the industry. As milk prices have fallen—fetching half as much in 2009 per gallon as they did in 2008—small dairy farmers have taken a huge hit. Barry Estabrook explains the crisis facing small dairy farmers in the United States and efforts to pass a price-fixing agreement in Congress. Barry Estabrook’s article, "A Tale of Two Dairies," appears in Gastronomica.

Underreported: Mefloquine use at Guantanamo

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 6 Jan 2011 22:30:17 +0000

Detainees held by the United States government at the Guantanamo Bay prison have been administered very high doses of the drug Mefloquine, according to a new report from Seton Hall Law School. While the drug is a powerful anti-malarial, it also has a number of adverse side effects, which include hallucinations, paranoia and depression. On today’s Underreported segment Mark Denbeaux, one of the reports authors and director of the Seton Hall Law Center for Policy & Research, discusses why administration of the drug to detainees (at five times the regular dosage) is controversial.

Underreported: The Hidden Dangers and High Costs of Dialysis

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 30 Dec 2010 15:48:34 +0000

In 1972, Congress launched the nation’s most ambitious experiment in universal health care: virtually anyone diagnosed with kidney failure, regardless of age or income, was granted comprehensive coverage under Medicare for dialysis. Almost 40 years later, the costs of dialysis are the highest in the Western world--$77,000 per patient--as is the mortality rate. ProPublica's Robin Fields joins us to discuss her two-year investigation into the treatment options that dialysis patients face.

Underreported: The 2010 Census of Marine Life

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 23 Dec 2010 16:43:27 +0000

Dr. Ron O'Dor, Senior Scientist, Census of Marine Life, Consortium for Ocean Leadership, tells us about the first Census of Marine Life—a 10-year exploration carried out by scientists from 80 nations. It reveals what, where, and how much lives and hides in the world’s oceans. He’ll explain how the census was carried out and what it shows about life under water.

Underreported: DNA Databases, Crime & Civil Liberties

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 16 Dec 2010 20:38:46 +0000

The use of forensic DNA databanks by law enforcement has exploded since the mid 1990s. We’ll examine the implications widespread stockpiling of genetic information has for criminal investigations and civil liberties. We’ll speak with Tufts University professor Sheldon Krimsky and former ACLU science advisor Tania Simoncelli, co-authors of the book Genetic Justice: DNA Data Banks, Criminal Investigations, and Civil Liberties.

Underreported: Cancun Climate Change Talks

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 9 Dec 2010 18:23:19 +0000

Global talks on climate change have been underway in Cancun, Mexico for days now. New York Times columnist Andy Revkin tells the latest on what’s happening and why expectations have been so low this year.

Andy Revkin NY Times columnistAndy

Underreported: Agribusiness and India

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 2 Dec 2010 21:29:16 +0000

Mira Kamdar, senior fellow at the World Policy Institute and associate fellow at the Asia Society, examines why U.S. agribusinesses are extremely interested in India, especially when it comes to the development of new GMO crops.

Underreported: Prospects for Indian-Pakistani Peace

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 4 Nov 2010 15:30:54 +0000

President Obama travels to India this weekend, and while his trip may come at time of heightened tensions between in the region, but India and Pakistan have been feuding for decades. Ending that conflict has become a centerpiece of the President’s foreign policy. On today’s second Underreported segment Mira Kamdar, senior fellow at the World Policy Institute and an associate fellow at the Asia Society looks at prospects for a comprehensive (and elusive) peace deal between India and Pakistan, and what it could mean for U.S. interests in the region, including in Afghanistan.

Underreported: Protecting Human Rights in Egypt

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 4 Nov 2010 14:32:49 +0000

Hossam Bahgat, founder and director of the Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights, discusses his work to protect civil and religious rights in Egypt, and the threat of violence and discrimination aimed at the country’s religious minorities. And, with Egypt’s parliamentary elections less than a month away, he describes the government’s crackdowns leading up to the vote. He received the Human Rights Watch’s Alison Des Forges Award for Extraordinary Activism earlier this week.

Underreported: Transparency at the Treasury

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 28 Oct 2010 17:19:53 +0000

Daniel Indiviglio, staff editor at TheAtlantic.com, discusses whether the U.S. Treasury Department has been as transparent as it can (or should) be.

Underreported: Gays & Lesbians in Iraq

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 21 Oct 2010 21:39:31 +0000

There are no exact figures on the number of gays and lesbians who have been killed in Iraq since the 2003 invasion, though a 2009 Human Rights Watch report puts the number “in the hundreds.” On today’s Underreported segment, freelance journalist Michael Luongo discusses what life is like for gays and lesbians there, from underground clubs in Baghdad and hiding in safe houses, to the constant threat of violent attacks from militia members. His four-part series on gay life in Iraq appears in the Gay City News.

Underreported: Update on Pakistan's Flood-Stricken Regions

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 7 Oct 2010 17:31:55 +0000

It’s been more than two months since flood waters started rising in Pakistan. On today’s Underreported, as the waters from the worst flooding in 80 years continue to recede, we get an update on how relief efforts are going and the challenges that workers there face. Michelle Fanzo, Project Leader for the World Policy Institute, and Dorothy Blane, Country Director for Concern Worldwide, join us to discuss how the flooding continues to affect Pakistan and its government.

Underreported Update: Newtown Creek Gets Superfund Status

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 30 Sep 2010 21:26:47 +0000

On Monday, the Environmental Protection Agency named Newtown Creek, the polluted industrial waterway that runs between Brooklyn and Queens, a Superfund site. On today’s Underreported Update, Katie Schmid, director of the Newtown Creek Alliance, explains what the designation will mean for the creek and the people who live nearby, and why it’s taken so long for any cleanup effort to begin.

Underreported: U.S. Extradites Colombian Paramilitaries and Seals their Case Records

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 30 Sep 2010 16:45:43 +0000

Since 2006, the United States has extradited more than a dozen Colombian paramilitaries, only to seal the records of their court cases. On this week’s Underreported, Jennifer Janisch and Oriana Zill de Granados of PBS’s Wide Angle series, explain how they discovered that the cases, and what the use of judicial secrecy here in the U.S. means for their Colombian victims seeking justice.

Underreported: Roma in Europe

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 23 Sep 2010 21:04:56 +0000

In recent weeks, France has been locked in a war of words with the European Union over its effort to expel the Roma living there. But the Roma in Italy have also been facing discriminatory policies and prejudice. On today's Underreported, Bernard Rorke, director of Roma Initiatives at the Open Society, discusses what’s behind these restrictive policies towards Roma.

Underreported: Uighur Update

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 16 Sep 2010 17:35:47 +0000

New York Times reporter Andrew Jacobs discusses the ongoing tensions between the Han Chinese and the Uighur population in Western China. He’ll recount the violence that erupted and killed nearly 200 people last July, and look at what’s happened since.

Underreported: Teaching the Afghan Army to Read

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 16 Sep 2010 17:01:45 +0000

The American-led strategy in Afghanistan relies on training local Afghan forces so they’re able to take over their own security. Only 18 percent of those 243,000 Afghans in the army and police have more than a Kindergarten-level ability to read. Noah Shachtman, contributing writer for Wired magazine, discusses the US military’s efforts to teach Afghan security forces to read as well as to fight.

Underreported: Human Egg Trafficking

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 9 Sep 2010 21:40:31 +0000

On today's first Underreported segment, Scott Carney, contributing editor at WIRED Magazine, tells us about the rise in human egg trafficking in Cyprus and Spain, and how loose regulations for egg donation and IVF in certain countries are resulting in a global egg trade. His article “Unpacking the Global Human Egg Trade” appears in the September issue of Fast Company.

Underreported: Guinea-Bissau's Cocaine Coast

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 9 Sep 2010 15:05:35 +0000

In 2005, the small coastal West African nation of Guinea-Bissau was a poor, sleepy backwater whose main export was cashews. Now, in 2010, it is the hub of West Africa's burgeoning cocaine trade, and many observers believe that it is in danger of becoming a narco-state--completely at the whim of drug traffickers in Latin America and Hezbollah leaders who depend on a cut of a profits to fund their terrorist efforts. For today's second Underreported segment, James Traub, a contributing writer to the New York Times Magazine, and Paolo Gorjao, the director of the Portuguese Institute of International Relations and Security, a think tank that focuses on Portugal and former Portuguese colonies like Guinea-Bissau, tell us how Guinea-Bissau became the hub of this new drug nexus.

Underreported: Katrina's Effects on Hurricane Research

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 2 Sep 2010 21:25:08 +0000

Hurricane Katrina fundamentally changed the landscape of New Orleans and radically altered the way the federal government responds to natural disasters. It also changed the way scientists study hurricanes—what factors they consider and where research funds are directed. Atmospheric scientists James Kossin of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and Judith Curry of the Georgia Institute of Technology, explain and look ahead to how we're preparing for Hurricane Earl.

Underreported: Space Junk

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 26 Aug 2010 21:39:21 +0000

Orbital debris is quickly becoming a serious problem for satellites and manned spacecraft. Collisions and other incidents have increased the amount of potentially harmful space junk floating around in low earth orbit by a third in the past year-and-a-half alone. Mark Matney, of NASA’s Orbital Debris Program Office, and Derrick Pitts, chief astronomer at the Franklin Institute, tell us about the problem and what (if anything) can be done about it.

Underreported: The North Atlantic Garbage Patch

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 26 Aug 2010 15:24:15 +0000

On today's second Underreported segment, Kara Lavender Law and Giora Proskurowski, both oceanographers at the Sea Education Association (SEA), discusses the North Atlantic garbage patch, where plastic bags and bottles form a floating, swirling mass in the ocean. They’ll talk about the 22 years of research on the garbage patch, and new research that shows it hasn’t been growing.

Underreported: Counterfeit Drugs

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 19 Aug 2010 21:03:21 +0000

Journalist Paula Park discusses the proliferation of counterfeit drugs around the world, and how these fake medications have led to the development of drug-resistant strains of malaria. We’ll find out who’s making and distributing these counterfeit drugs, and more about the efforts being made in Cambodia and other countries to close down illegal outlets. Her article “Lethal Counterfeits” appeared in World Policy Journal’s summer issue.

Underreported: Libel Tourism

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 5 Aug 2010 21:38:34 +0000

Rachel Ehrenfeld, writer and director of the American Center for Democracy, discusses the "libel tourism" bill passed last week by the U.S. Senate designed to shield U.S. journalists and writers from libel suits by repressive governments or wealthy business tycoons in foreign jurisdictions. Ms. Ehrenfield, the author of Funding Evil: How Terrorism is Financed and How to Stop It, talks about being sued for libel in England. Unlike the United States, the law is skewed in favor of the plaintiff in England, even though neither she, nor the wealthy Saudi businessman who sued her, were residents of the UK.

Underreported: Whistleblower Claims Denied

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 5 Aug 2010 16:16:14 +0000

Eight years ago, in the wake of the collapse of Enron, Congress passed the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, intended to expand protections for corporate whistleblowers. But the Agency charged with carrying out the law—the United States department of Labor—has dismissed 98 percent of claims seeking whistleblower protection status. We’ll talk with Michael Hudson, a staff writer with the Center for Public Integrity.

Underreported: Guatemala's Drug Problem

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 22 Jul 2010 14:23:47 +0000

It’s estimated that between 275 and 385 tons of cocaine passes through Guatemala each year. On today’s Underreported: Tim Johnson, Mexico City bureau chief for McClatchy News Service, explains how Mexico’s drug war to the north and Colombia’s drug growers to the south have destabilized Guatemala.

Underreported: Turkey and the Kurds

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 15 Jul 2010 20:09:32 +0000

Turkey’s Kurdish region in the country’s southeast has exploded into violence once again. We’ll get the latest from Aliza Marcus, author of the book Blood and Belief: The PKK and the Kurdish Fight for Independence.

Underreported: The Exploitation of Migrant Tobacco Workers in Kazakhstan

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 15 Jul 2010 20:08:12 +0000

According to a new report from Human Rights Watch, migrant tobacco workers in Kazakhstan have been exploited and even trapped on farms that supply Philip Morris’s Kazakhstan operation, and children as young as 10 were working on the farms. Rachel Denber, head of the European Division of Human Rights Watch, explains what conditions on these farms are like and the steps that Philip Morris has agreed to take to protect these workers.

Underreported: BP's Response to 2005 Refinery Blast

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 8 Jul 2010 17:48:32 +0000

In 2005, a blast at a British Petroleum refinery in Texas City, Texas, killed 15 people. On today’s Underreported, reporter Ryan Knutson describes the safety violations that led up to the blast, how the oil company responded to the disaster, and the parallels with the Deepwater Horizon explosion in April.

Underreported: New Blackwater Contracts

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 1 Jul 2010 20:02:33 +0000

Despite its long list of troubles, including federal investigations and indictments, the company formerly known as Blackwater has been awarded millions of dollars in contracts by the Obama Administration. The Nation’s Jeremy Scahill, author of Blackwater: The Rise of the World’s Most Powerful Mercenary Army, explains why.

Underreported Update: Whaling Talks Collapse

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 1 Jul 2010 20:00:05 +0000

Philip Hoare, author of The Whale: In Search of the Giants of the Sea, discusses why the international talks on lifting the whaling moratorium and proposed reductions on whaling by Norway, Japan, and Iceland have failed.

Underreported: Chemical Fingerprinting of Oil Spills

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 24 Jun 2010 20:26:13 +0000

The emerging field of environmental forensics may be the best way to determine the impact that the oil spill will have on the gulf coast. Merv Fingas, former Chief of the Emergencies Science Division of Environment Canada, is a leader in the field and will explain what chemical fingerprinting is and how it can help us understand what will happen in the Gulf.

Underreported: Under the Radar Oil Spills

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 24 Jun 2010 15:30:28 +0000

The attention being paid the Deepwater Horizon oil spill has many residents of Nigeria, Egypt, and Chile scratching their heads. Devastating oil spills in these countries in the past decades have gone relatively unnoticed by the mainstream press. Both Dr. Erich Gundlach, director of E-Tech International, an oil spill clean-up firm, and Richard Steiner, professor of marine conservation at the University of Alaska, have first-hand experience working with oil spills around the world. They'll discuss some of the largest oil spills that have gone unnoticed and what was done to clean them up.

Underreported: The Whaling Moratorium

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 10 Jun 2010 20:29:50 +0000

Philip Hoare, author of The Whale: in Search of the Giants of the Sea , discusses this month’s International Whaling Commission meeting in Morocco. On the agenda is a repeal of the 1986 moratorium which outlawed the hunting of great whales.

Unusual Spill Solutions: Oil Eating Bacteria

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 3 Jun 2010 22:20:27 +0000

Chemical dispersants are already being used to cleanup the Gulf of Mexico, but what about oil-eating bacteria?

Underreported Update: Oil, Ecuador, and Investigative Journalism

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 20 May 2010 21:23:54 +0000

In his film Crude: The Real Price of Oil, documentarian Joe Berlinger chronicled the story behind a law suit filed by thousands of indigenous Ecuadorians against Chevron for oil pollution in the Amazon river. Earlier this month, a New York judge ordered him to turn over hundreds of hours of outtake footage from the film to Chevron.

Underreported: Update on the Newtown Creek Oil Spill

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 20 May 2010 17:11:20 +0000

Alex Matthiessen, president of Riverkeeper, gives us an update on the Newtown Creek oil spill.

Update: Shaping Iraq's Future

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 6 May 2010 19:51:23 +0000

NPR’s Baghdad Bureau Chief Quil Lawrence discusses Iraq, the disputed election there, and what lies ahead as the U.S. military prepares to start drawing down troops over the course of the summer.

Underreported: Niger's Food Crisis

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 6 May 2010 19:51:22 +0000

Erratic weather in Niger has disrupted production of millet, one the country’s staple food crops. Now, upwards of 60 percent of the population there is facing hunger. We’ll talk to Concern Worldwide’s country director in Niger, Niall Tierney about the crisis on today’s first Underreported segment.

Underreported Update: The Democratic Republic of Congo

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 22 Apr 2010 18:21:52 +0000

Earlier this month, eight International Red Cross workers were kidnapped and later released in the Democratic Republic of Congo. On this week’s second Underreported, Jon Elliott, Africa Advocacy Director for Human Rights Watch describes the situation in the DRC and why violence there continues.

Underreported Update: Refugees In Pakistan

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 22 Apr 2010 18:21:52 +0000

It has been nearly a year since fighting in north-west Pakistan displaced more than 3 million people. Today, there are still an estimated 1.3 million refugees in the country. We’ll get an update on the situation from Michael Young, International Rescue Committee’s Asia Regional Director, who until recently was director of Pakistan programs for the International Rescue Committee.

Undereported: Brazil, Biofuels, and Deforrestation

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 15 Apr 2010 18:21:27 +0000

Plant-derived ethanol has long been touted as a green alternative to regular gasoline for cars. Since the 1970s, Brazil has embraced ethanol derived from sugar cane and lavished the sugar industry with government subsidies, making the biofuel cheap and plentiful. Today, 90% of new cars sold in Brazil can run on ethanol, and the country has avoided emitting hundreds of millions of tons of carbon into the atmosphere. But the explosion of sugar cane production for ethanol threatens the rainforest and could end up exacerbating global warming. We’ll talk to writer Nikolas Kozloff for today’s Underreported segment. He’s written about this issue for Foreign Policy Magazine and is also the author of No Rain in the Amazon.

Underreported: The Massive Obama 2011 Defense Budget

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 8 Apr 2010 18:20:59 +0000

President Obama’s Nuclear Posture Review was released this week and has been hailed in some arms control circles for its limits on the first-use of nuclear weapons by the United States. But, the Obama Administration’s FY 2011 defense budget—even when adjusted for inflation—is larger than any Pentagon budget since World War II. We’ll talk to Slate’s "War Stories" columnist Fred Kaplan about the Obama defense budget on today’s Underreported segment. Mr. Kaplan is also the author of the book 1959: The Year Everything Changed, you can hear his last interview with Leonard here.

Underreported: Food Fraud

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 1 Apr 2010 18:20:42 +0000

As much as 7 percent of the nation’s food is mislabeled to fool consumers into paying more. On today’s Underreported, Lyndsey Layton, National Political Reporter for the Washington Post, explains why food fraud is on the rise and why both large corporations and small-scale producers are looking to the FDA to crack down on these ersatz products. Read her latest article here.

Underreported: Oyster Poaching in Chesapeake Bay

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 25 Mar 2010 18:20:18 +0000

On today’s Underreported segment, Jeffrey Levinton, distinguished professor of Ecology and Evolution at Stony Brook University, and Ken Paynter, associate professor and director of Marine Estuarine Environmental Sciences Program at University of Maryland, discusses the damage oyster poachers are wreaking in Chesapeake Bay and efforts to restore the bivalves to the bay and New York Harbor.

Burma’s Never-Ending War

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 18 Mar 2010 18:19:54 +0000

For today’s Underreported, Mac McClelland talks about the Burmese government’s secret ethnic cleansing campaign, and her experience living with associates of a US-designated terrorist organization battling Burma's. She’s the author of For Us Surrender Is Out of the Question: A Story of Burma’s Never-Ending War.

Underreported: Linking Cancer to the Permian Extinction

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 11 Mar 2010 19:19:29 +0000

For decades women in Xuan Wei, a county in southern China, have suffered from an astronomically high rate of lung cancer and the reason why has remained largely a mystery. Now, researchers think they have solved the case: the coal that is burned in Chinese kitchens is to blame, but this is not just any coal. Over 200 million years ago a particularly toxic kind of coal formed right around the time of the great Permian Extinction and it seems that the toxic chemicals from that event are still killing to this day. We’ll speak with Bob Finkelman, a geologist at the University of Texas at Dallas for today’s first Underreported segment.

Underreported: Accelerated Tree Growth and Climate Change

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 11 Mar 2010 19:19:29 +0000

Geoffrey Parker, a forest ecologist at the Smithsonian Institution has been measuring the size and rate of growth of tree trunks for 22 years. After looking at his data, he determined that many of the trees he was surveying were growing at rate two to four times faster than expected and climate change may be to blame. We’ll speak to Mr. Parker for our second Underreported segment.

Underreported: Zimbabwe's Blood Diamonds

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 4 Mar 2010 19:19:06 +0000

Despite international bans, Zimbabwe continues to mine “blood diamonds” from fields in Marange. On today’s second Underreported, Rona Peligal, the deputy director of the Africa division for Human Rights Watch, describes the human rights abuses there and why they continue.
You can read the HRW's report on Zimbabwe's Marange mine here.

Underreported: The UN Response to Zimbabwe's 2008 Cholera Outbreak

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 4 Mar 2010 19:19:06 +0000

In 2008, up to 100,000 Zimbabweans got cholera. On today’s first Underreported, Foreign Policy’s Assistant Managing Editor Elizabeth Dickinson explains why one former United Nations official is now criticizing the organization’s response to the outbreak, and what it says about the UN’s relationship with authoritarian President Robert Mugabe. Read Elizabeth Dickinson’s article here.

Underreported: Farm Foreclosures

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 25 Feb 2010 19:18:48 +0000

We’ve heard a lot about the home foreclosure rate over the last two years, but what about farm foreclosures? On this week’s first Underreported, Michael Boehlje, Distinguished Professor in the Department of Agricultural Economics and the Center for Food and Agricultural Business at Purdue University, explains why we don’t hear that much about them and why economists are predicting that farm foreclosures will rise in 2010.

Underreported: U.S. Announce $1.25 Billion Settlement with Black Farmers

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 25 Feb 2010 19:18:48 +0000

Last week, the Obama Administration announced at a $1.25 billion settlement in a case brought by thousands of black farmers who were discriminated against in federal farm loan programs. On today’s second Underreported, segment, Krissah Thompson, Washington Post National Reporter, explains why it took 10 years to reach this settlement. You can read her story here.

Underreported: Iraq's Ongoing Refugee Crisis

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 18 Feb 2010 19:18:25 +0000

A new report by the International Rescue Committee has found that many Iraqi refugees have yet to return home, even as the war enters its seventh year. Many are scattered inside Iraq, but also in Jordan and Syria. For today’s Underreported segment, we’ll speak with Bob Carey, IRC’s Vice President of migration and resettlement policy about the situation confronting Iraqi refugees.

Underreported: On Thin Iceland

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 11 Feb 2010 19:18:03 +0000

On today’s second Underreported, segment we’ll take a look at Iceland’s repeated attempts to dig itself out of financial ruin, and efforts by the country to repay the United Kingdom and the Netherlands money those countries lost in a failed Icelandic bank. We’ll talk to Landon Thomas Jr., financial correspondent for the New York Times based in London.

Underreported: How Goldman Sachs Helped the Greek Government Paper Over Its Debt

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 11 Feb 2010 19:18:02 +0000

On today’s first Underreported, Stacy-Marie Ishmael of the Financial Times explains how Goldman Sachs used a derivatives deal to help Greece’s government hide how serious their debt was. Plus, an update on the negotiations in Europe to bail out Greece.

We discussed Greece's public debt in December. You can listen to that interview here.

Underreported: The Mexican Drug War

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 28 Jan 2010 19:17:12 +0000

Mexico’s war against drugs has accelerated in recent years—with deadly results. For today’s second Underreported segment, we’ll speak with Ken Ellingwood, a correspondent for the Los Angeles Times based in Mexico City and author of the book Hard Line: Life and Death on the U.S.-Mexico Border. You can read the LA Times's complete coverage of the Mexican drug war here.

Underreported: Tropical Diseases and Poor Countries

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 28 Jan 2010 19:17:12 +0000

Today, nearly all of the 1.4 billion people who live below the World Bank’s poverty line are infected with hookworms or related parasites. We’ll look at the impact neglected tropical diseases, such as hookworm, has had on the world poorest countries with Dr. Peter J. Hotez. He is President of the Sabin Vaccine Institute and Chair of the Department of Microbiology, Immunology, & Tropical Medicine at George Washington University. He recently wrote the article "Gandhi’s Hookworms" in the latest issue of Foreign Policy magazine. More information is available at www.globalnetwork.org.

Underreported: Limbo States

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 21 Jan 2010 19:16:51 +0000

Places like Iraqi Kurdistan, Somaliland, and The Republic of Abkhazian may not have a seat at the UN or show up on many maps, but they still act like quasi-countries in the hopes of one day becoming independent. On today’s Underreported segment we’ll look at some of these places with Graeme Wood, a staff editor for The Atlantic. His article "Limbo World" appears in the Jan/Feb issue of Foreign Policy Magazine.

Underreported: UN Cutting Back on Fraud Investigations

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 14 Jan 2010 19:16:21 +0000

In 2006, the United Nations established an anticorruption task force. During its brief existence the unit uncovered at least 20 major schemes affecting more than $1 billion in foreign aid and UN contracts. The UN shuttered the unit in 2009 and transferred its responsibilities to another part of the organization. Now the number of new fraud cases has plummeted and existing investigations have languished. On today’s second Underreported segment, we’ll talk with Associated Press writer John Heilprin about the UN’s ability to police itself.

Underreported: Geoengineering in New York Harbor

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 14 Jan 2010 19:16:20 +0000

Geoengineering projects aimed at mitigating the effects of climate change are gaining traction following the failure of the Copenhagen Climate talks last year. A new paper released by a team of Columbia scientists proposes injecting and storing carbon-dioxide emissions into basalt rock formations under the sea, including the area right off the coast of New York City. On today’s first Underreported segment David Goldberg, Senior Scientist at Columbia University's Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory explains his idea to stash greenhouse gases in geological formations.

Underreported: Contractors in Afghanistan

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 19:15:01 +0000

Earlier this month President Obama announced the United States would increase its military presence in Afghanistan. But more than just extra troops are going to the country—they will likely be accompanied by an additional surge of private contractors in support roles. What’s more, the government has contracted with an additional outside firm to help track all the contractors already in the country. We’ll speak with Jeremy Scahill, he's a correspondent for The Nation and author of the book Blackwater: The Rise of the World's Most Powerful Mercenary Army. He recently wrote about this subject for The Nation, and you can read his article "Contractors Watching Contractors" here.

Underreported: Greece's Debt Crisis

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 17 Dec 2009 19:15:01 +0000

Is Greece the new Dubai? On this week’s first Underreported, Stacy-Marie Ishmael of The Financial Times, explains what’s behind Greece’s ballooning debt and how the government is trying to address the budget crisis. Plus, we’ll find out how the European Central Bank is reacting to Greece’s troubles and whether the euro will be affected.

Underreported: Alaska's Melting Permafrost

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 19:14:40 +0000

It’s estimated that the world’s permafrost contains 1,600 billion tons of carbon. As global temperatures rise, there are growing concerns about that all that permafrost could melt, releasing those gasses into the atmosphere. On today’s second Underreported Vladimir Romanovsky, a geophysics professor at the University of Alaska at Fairbanks explains what happens when permafrost melts and what’s happened to villages in Alaska that have already been affected by the effects of melting permafrost.

Underreported: The Death of Sergei Magnitsky

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 19:14:39 +0000

In November, a 37-year-old tax lawyer named Sergei Magnitsky died in a Russian jail cell. Before he passed away, Magnitsky drafted a series of letters and petitions describing the squalid conditions in Russia’s prisons. Now, those documents have leaked and have created an unusual firestorm of criticism in a country where millions once perished in the Soviet Gulag. We’ll speak with Washington Post foreign correspondent Philip P. Pan, who just returned from Russia and has written about the case. You can read his article about Magnitsky's letters here.

Underreported: The Prosecution of a Right Wing Radio Host Turned FBI Informant

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 3 Dec 2009 19:13:59 +0000

For years Hal Turner hosted a right-wing internet radio show from northern New Jersey that catered to white supremacists and neo-Nazis. For most of that time Turner also received thousands of dollars from the FBI for acting as an informant who spied on the same groups he was broadcasting to. Now he’s on trial in Brooklyn for posting death threats against three federal appeals court judges on his blog. On today’s second Underreported, we’ll speak with Mike Kelly, a columnist for The Record of northern New Jersey, who is covering the trial and wrote an exposè on Turner’s story last Sunday. You can read it here.

Underreported: Swine Flu and Ukraine's Presidential Election

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 3 Dec 2009 19:13:58 +0000

Ukraine will hold its presidential election in January, but in recent weeks swine flu has threatened to delay the vote. On this week’s first Underreported: Julia Ioffe of Foreign Policy explains how fears about swine flu have been politicized and why next year’s election is so important to the future of Ukraine. You can read Julia Ioffe’s article here.

Underreported: Yemen's Civil War

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 19:13:17 +0000

On today’s second Underreported we’ll look at the civil war in Yemen and accusations that Iran is waging a proxy against Saudi Arabia by supporting the rebels. We’ll be joined by freelance journalist Ginny Hill.

Underreported: China's Gulag Prison System

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 19:13:16 +0000

President Obama was in China this week and he did speak out on the country’s human rights record. On today’s first Underreported segment, we’re taking a look at China’s expansive prison system, formerly called Laogai. We’ll examine how it was modeled after the Soviet gulag system and the accusations that forced labor is used in the camps. We’ll speak with Harry Wu, founder of the Laogai Research Foundation and Nicole Kempton, who edited the foundation’s book Laogai: The Machinery of Repression in China.

Underreported: India's Maoist Insurgency

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 19:12:58 +0000

A group of Maoist rebels—also known as the Naxalite insurgency—has taken a violent foothold in 20 of India’s provinces. The group has burned schools, killed more than 900 security officers, and, in at least one province, detonated more than 1,000 improvised explosive devices over the past five years. The Indian government is preparing to send thousands of soldiers into the Maoists strongholds, which also happen to be some of the most impoverished and economically underdeveloped parts of India. We’ll speak with Brad Adams, Executive Director of Human Rights Watch’s Asia Division, in India.

You can read a report a report HRW wrote on the Naxalites here.

Underreported: Foreign Countries and Lobbying

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 5 Nov 2009 19:12:41 +0000

Countries such as Honduras and Sudan have come under fire recently for hiring PR and lobbying firms to make the case for them to American lawmakers. We’ll speak with Ken Silverstein, Washington Editor for Harper’s magazine about how foreign governments use lobbying firms in Washington D.C. to advance their agenda.
You can read Ken's article "Their Men in Washington" from 2007 here.

Underreported: Algae as a Weapon of Mass Extinction

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 18:12:18 +0000

Over the past decade many species of algae have expanded their range toward the poles and into areas where they previously have not been found and many speculate that global warming is to blame. New research into the fossil record is linking the toxins produced by algal blooms to numerous mass extinctions in our planet’s history. On today’s first Underreported we’ll speak to Professor Jim Castle and Professor John Rodgers, both of Clemson University, authors of a paper on mass extinctions and algae.

Underreported: Algae's Biofuel Potential

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 18:12:18 +0000

Many scientists are hoping that algae could provide the basis of a biofuel. On today’s second Underreported, Dr. Anastasios Melis, Professor of Biology at University of California, Berkeley, explains why algae have so much potential for becoming a source of biofuel and the hurdles that remain for making it a viable alternative.

Underreported: Gene Patenting

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 18:11:57 +0000

Twenty percent of the human genome has been patented by biotechnology companies, universities, and research institutions. The patenting of two genes associated with breast and ovarian cancer is also the subject of a lawsuit filed by the ACLU and the Public Patent Foundation against Myriad Genetics, a company that offers diagnostic tests for the genes. On today’s Underreported segment we’ll look at the controversial practice of gene patenting and the serious ethical, medical, and public policy questions it raises. We’ll be joined by Dr. David Koepsell, a philosopher, attorney, and Assistant Professor at the Technology University of Delft in the Netherlands. His book is called Who Owns You? The Corporate Gold Rush to Patent Your Genes.

Underreported: Censored 2010

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 15 Oct 2009 18:11:39 +0000

On this week’s Underreported, we look at 25 important stories you’ve never heard of – including articles about nuclear waste pools in North Carolina and Ecuador becoming the first country to grant human rights to nature. Mickey Huff, the co-editor of Censored 2010, tells us about this year’s best underreported stories. Find out more about Project Censored here.

Underreported: The Golden Bubble?

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 8 Oct 2009 18:11:19 +0000

The price of gold has been reaching record highs this week. On today’s second Underreported, Fortune’s Scott Cendrowski explains why investors are turning to gold and what that says about the global financial markets.

You can read his article on gold here.

Underreported: Politicians and their PAC Money

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 8 Oct 2009 18:11:19 +0000

Political Action Committees were established to enable politicians to raise money for their colleagues and support their campaigns. On this week’s Underreported, ProPublica reporter Marcus Stern explains how several law makers are now using their PAC money – from golf outings to casinos to commissioning portraits – and why the rules for PAC money aren’t tighter.
You can read his article that appeared in the Washington Post here.
Read the ProPublica article here.
You can look up information about your congressmember's leadership PAC here.

Underreported: The Placebo Effect

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 1 Oct 2009 18:11:01 +0000

"The placebo effect" has been known to scientists for a very long time. But for some reason, the placebo effect is getting stronger and researchers don’t know why. In fact, an increasing number of medications are unable to beat sugar pills in clinical trials. Steve Silberman, is a senior writer for Wired magazine and wrote about this subject in the August issue.
You can read his article here.

Underreported: Coal Ash Sites

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 1 Oct 2009 18:11:00 +0000

There are almost 600 coal ash sites throughout the United States. On today’s first Underreported, Lisa Evans, Senior Administrative Counsel for Earthjustice, explains why these toxic leftovers are so dangerous, how they’re disposed of, and what the Environmental Protection Agency proposes to do about coal ash sites.
You can read Earthjustice's report on Coal Ash sites here.

Underreported: The New French GDP

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 17 Sep 2009 18:10:22 +0000

Earlier this week French President Nicolas Sarkozy announced that his country would now be taking happiness and well-being into account when it calculates its Gross Domestic Product. Ben Hall Paris correspondent for the Financial Times explains how this change will affect France’s GDP and why the country is urging other nations to adopt its new formula.

Underreported: Underbanking

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 17 Sep 2009 18:10:22 +0000

Over 100 million Americans are “underbanked”—meaning they either cannot access or choose not to use traditional financial services offered by mainstream banks. Instead, they turn to alternatives like check cashing services, prepaid cards, and payday loans. On today’s first Underreported Melissa Koide, deputy director of the Asset Building Program at the New America Foundation, explains this shadow banking system.

Underreported: Pirates vs. Private Security Firms

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 10 Sep 2009 18:09:50 +0000

Private security firms are increasingly being used in the fight against pirates who operate off the coast of Africa. One company, Eos Risk Management, says it has fended off at least 15 attacks from Somali pirates since January. The practice of using security contractors to provide maritime defense "in appropriate circumstances" has even been endorsed by the US State Department. We’ll be joined by Jonathan Ledgard, the East Africa correspondent for the Economist magazine. His article "Piracy and Private Enterprise" appears in the August 20th Issue of the magazine.

Underreported: The Fight for the Independence Party

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 3 Sep 2009 18:09:36 +0000

We talk to City Hall magazine reporter Sal Gentile about how the New York Independence Party is in turmoil at the state and local level as various interest groups vie for control of it and its important ballot line.

We spoke to Mr. Gentile about State Senator Pedro Espada’s early political career on Backstory on July 23, 2009. You can listen to that interview here.

Underreported: Turks & Caicos

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 27 Aug 2009 18:09:13 +0000

Earlier this month, Britain imposed direct rule on the Caribbean islands of Turks & Caicos. On this week’s first Underreported, Mark Wilson, a correspondent for The Economist, explains what led to the unusual decision and why Britain decided that removing the prime minister, dissolving the parliament, and suspending the constitution was necessary to address the problems on the island.
You can read Mike Wilson’s article about Turks & Caicos here.

Underreported: Elections in Gabon

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 27 Aug 2009 18:09:13 +0000

President Omar Bongo of Gabon died this past June after four decades in office. Elections in the tiny African nation are slated for August 30th, but the vote is already mired in controversy. For our second Underreported, we’ll talk to Professor Douglas Yates, assistant professor of political science at the American University of Paris and a Gabon expert.

Underreported: The Facebook Empire

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 20 Aug 2009 18:08:43 +0000

Last week, Facebook quietly bought FriendFeed, a platform that keeps track of just about everything you do online. On this week’s second Underreported, Chadwick Matlin, staff reporter for Slate’s TheBigMoney.com, explains what the social networking site hopes to gain by buying FriendFeed.
Read Chadwick Matlin's article about the purchase of FriendFeed here, and his article on Facebook's new collaboration with the Huffington Post here.

Underreported: Humanitarian Crisis in the Congo

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 20 Aug 2009 18:08:40 +0000

A joint military offensive against a group called the Lord’s Resistance Army in the Democratic Republic of the Congo has ravaged parts of the country. It’s also created a dire situation for civilians, many of who have been forced to flee their homes. On today’s first Underreported we’ll look at the humanitarian crisis in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and neighboring countries with Bruno Jochum, director of operations for Doctors without Borders in Geneva, Switzerland, and with Alexandre Morhain a project coordinator with the organization in Southern Sudan.
Lynn Nottage's play "Ruined" deals with the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Hear Leonard's interview with Nottage and actor Saidah Arrika Ekulona here.

Underreported: Geo-Engineering and Global Warming

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 13 Aug 2009 18:08:19 +0000

As the threat of Global Warming grows more urgent, some scientists are looking at ways to change the climate through geo-engineering. Proposals include everything from sulfur-dioxide spewing zeppelins to simply blocking out the sun. The only catch is that most of these technologies come with dangerous and extremely undesirable side effects. Graeme Wood wrote about geo-engineering for the July/August issue of the Atlantic Magazine.

Underreported: Counterfeiting in Korea

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 6 Aug 2009 18:07:51 +0000

Vanity Fair contributing editor David Rose investigates North Korea's Office 39, a secret department within North Korea’s government. Office 39 manages Kim Jong Il's multi-billion-dollar personal bank accounts; it also allegedly produces counterfeit currency, cigarettes, and pharmaceuticals, and organizes the sale of heroin, crystal methamphetamine, and other drugs. David Rose's Vanity Fair article, "North Korea's Dollar Store" is available here.

Underreported: Trying to Thaw Iceland's Economy

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 30 Jul 2009 18:07:29 +0000

Iceland's economy came to a screeching halt in the fall of 2008 when its banking sector collapsed. On today’s first Underreported, we look at how the International Monetary Fund is trying to jump start the economy by refinancing the national debt. Landon Thomas, Jr., a financial correspondent for the New York Times, describes the political debate that’s emerged on how to pay off the country's creditors.

Underreported: Baghdad's Underground Railroad

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 30 Jul 2009 18:07:29 +0000

On today’s second Underreported, we find out about Baghdad’s Underground Railroad that helps women who have been victims of sexual assault. Anna Badkhen describes the network of safe houses in her article, "Baghdad Underground," which appears in the Summer issue of Ms. Magazine.

Underreported: Failed States Index

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 18:07:08 +0000

Many nations that were already on the brink in good times are sliding closer and closer to becoming failed states as the global economic slump continues. Foreign Policy magazine, in conjunction with The Fund for Peace, has compiled a list of the world’s top failed states using 12 indicators ranging from "external intervention" to "uneven development." We’ll speak with Elizabeth Dickinson, Assistant Editor at Foreign Policy Magazine who helped compile the report.
You can read the Failed States 2008 Index here.

Underreported: The New York Independence Party and Its Benefactors

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 16 Jul 2009 18:06:43 +0000

On today's first Underreported segment, we take a look at the long and twisted history of the New York Independence Party and how they’ve become intertwined both with Mayor Bloomberg’s reelection campaign and Judge Sotomayor's confirmation process, with Errol Louis, New York Daily News columnist.

Underreported: Sharks under Threat

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 16 Jul 2009 18:06:43 +0000

One-third of the world's open ocean shark species are threatened with extinction. On today’s second Underreported we'll speak with Merry Camhi, a member of the Shark Specialist Group with the International Union for Conservation of Nature and lead editor of the book Sharks of the Open Ocean.

Underreported: Pakistan's Humanitarian Crisis

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 9 Jul 2009 18:06:11 +0000

The Pakistani government's campaign against Taliban insurgents has created over 2 million internally displaced refugees in Pakistan. On today's Underreported we'll speak with Dominic MacSorley, who recently returned from Mardan District in Pakistan's North West Frontier Province. He is Director of Operations of Concern Worldwide USA.

From Russia with Love

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 9 Jul 2009 18:06:08 +0000

Before President Obama went to Italy, he headed to Russia. We look at what came out of Obama's visit and what the meeting means for both countries with Steven Cohen, contributing editor to the Nation and author of Soviet Fates and Lost Alternatives: From Stalinism to the Cold War. Plus, we'll find out the role that Russia is playing the ongoing G8 summit.

Underreported: GE Benefits from Bank Bailout

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 2 Jul 2009 18:05:42 +0000

On this week’s Underreported, find out how GE, the world’s largest industrial company, has used a loophole to benefit from a government rescue program that's aimed at helping banks. ProPublica senior reporter Jeff Gerth explains how the loophole has helped GE get the money while avoiding many of the program’s restrictions.

Read the Washington Post article co-written by Jeff Gerth here.

Underreported: The Latest on Honduras

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 2 Jul 2009 18:05:40 +0000

Honduras is still in turmoil four days after a coup removed President Manuel Zelaya from power. We'll get the latest on the situation from Americas editor for the Economist magazine Mike Reid from London and New York Times Mexico City Bureau Chief Marc Lacey from Honduras.

You can read Marc's latest article for the Times here

Underreported: The Honduran Coup and the Media

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 2 Jul 2009 18:05:40 +0000

In the aftermath of last Sunday's coup in Honduras, there has been a massive media crackdown on reporters and organizations that are not seen as favorable to the new government. We’ll get the latest from Miami Herald foreign correspondent Frances Robles who is in the Honduran capital, Tegucigalpa.

You can read Frances's article on press censorhip in Honduras here

Underreported: Political Corruption in Kenya

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 18:05:12 +0000

On today's Underreported, Michaela Wrong, author of It's Our Turn to Eat: The Story of a Kenyan Whistleblower, discusses John Githongo, a pillar of the Kenyan establishment turned whistle-blower, becoming simultaneously one of the most hated and admired men in Kenya. She also explores the factors that continue to blight Africa—ethnic favoritism, government corruption, and the smug complacency of Western donor nations—probing the very roots of the continent's predicament.

Underreported: Eco-Barriers in Brazil

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 18 Jun 2009 18:04:48 +0000

Walls are going up around the slums of Rio de Janeiro. The Brazilian government is calling them "eco-barriers," designed to prevent Rio’s shantytowns from spilling into the city’s heavily forested hillsides, but opponents of the walls see them as a form of "geographic discrimination" that imprisons the residents. On today’s second Underreported we’ll talk to Antonio Regalado, The Wall Street Journal’s correspondent in Brazil about the walls and the controversy surrounding them.

Underreported: Middle Eastern Reaction to Iranian Turmoil

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 18 Jun 2009 18:04:48 +0000

Iraq, like Iran, is one of the few the countries in the world with a Shi'ite Muslim majority. And though the two countries were long rivals, many of today's Iraqi leaders — especially Shi'ites — spent the Saddam Hussein years as guests of the mullahs in Tehran. On today’s first Underreported we’ll look at how the controversy over Iran’s elections is playing in Iraq with Time magazine senior editor Bobby Ghosh and New York Times UN Bureau Chief
Neil MacFarquhar.
You can read Bobby Ghosh's article on the subject here.
And you can read Neil MacFarquhar's latest article here.

Neil MacFarquhar was on the Leonard Lopate Show May 13, 2009, to discuss his book The Media Relations Department of Hizbollah Wishes You a Happy Birthday. You can listen to that interview here.

Underreported: The Recession's Impact on Human Rights

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 28 May 2009 18:03:35 +0000

The economic crisis has radically changed many of the ways in which the world functions, but one of the great recessions most disastrous side effects is an increase in global repression. Widespread economic problems are creating extensive social problems as people and governments cope with limited access to food, jobs, clean water, land, and housing. What’s more, growing unrest about the economy is leading to violence and political repression in many countries. We’ll speak with executive director of Amnesty International Larry Cox about where the suffering is worst and who is the most affected.

Underreported: The Food and Drug (and Tobacco?) Administration

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 14 May 2009 18:02:38 +0000

For years, the tobacco industry has resisted efforts to make tobacco a substance that’s regulated by the Food and Drug Administration, but a bill making its way through Congress could change that. Washington Post staff writer Lyndsey Layton describes how FDA regulation would change the tobacco industry and whether the bill has a chance of passing.

Underreported: Ungrades to US Nuclear Weapons Facilities

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 14 May 2009 18:02:34 +0000

Despite President Obama's recent pledge to seek a world free of nuclear weapons, the Department of Energy's National Nuclear Security Administration is proposing a major upgrade to the nation's nuclear weapons complex, including the construction of new facilities that could produce thousands of new warheads over time. Bill Hartung is Director of Arms and Security Initiative at the New America Foundation.

Underreported: Child Soldiers in Burma

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 7 May 2009 18:02:04 +0000

It’s been a year since a massive cyclone devastated Burma. Though much of the country is still in ruins the Burmese Armed Forces and associated armed groups have continued a decades long low-level conflict with opposing groups. According to a new report put out by Watchlist the Burmese government is coercing children as young as nine into the armed forces. On our second Underreported we’ll be joined by Julia Freedson, executive director of Watchlist and by Jennifer Haigh from the Karen Human Rights Group.

Underreported: The Melting Polar Ice Cap Resource Bonanza

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 7 May 2009 18:02:03 +0000

As the polar ice caps melt, scientists are mapping the floor of the Arctic Ocean – including the natural resources like natural gas and oil. On today's first Underreported, McKenzie Funk describes the Healy Mapping Mission and how countries around the world are trying to lay claim to what’s underneath the ice caps. His article appears in the May issue of the National Geographic Magazine.

Underreported: The Psychology of Disease Panic

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 30 Apr 2009 18:01:32 +0000

The emergence of Swine Flu has set off a pandemic panic, but why? Dr. Robert Klitzman is Director of the Ethics and Policy at the HIV Center at Columbia University and researches why our culture overreacts to some diseases like Swine Flu but under-reacts to other threats. His latest book is When Doctors Become Patients.

Underreported: Worries about Spanish Deflation

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 30 Apr 2009 18:01:31 +0000

Economists are always worried inflation, but now some economists are worried about the possibility of price deflation in Spain. On today’s first Underreported, Nelson Schwartz, European economic correspondent for the New York Times, explains what’s driving down prices in Spain and what that tells us about the country’s economy. You can read Nelson Schwartz's story about Spanish deflation here.

Underreported: War Zone Contractors

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 23 Apr 2009 18:01:07 +0000

Civilian contractors like KBR have been used extensively in both Iraq and Afghanistan to support the American war efforts there, and up to 31,000 of them have been injured. Find out why these injured contractors have to fight insurance companies, including AIG, to get the medical care their injuries require. T. Christian Miller, a senior reporter for ProPublica, has co-written a story about the problems in the Los Angeles Times. We’ll also be joined by Tim Newman, who was injured while working in Iraq.

Underreported: The Persecution of Iraqi Gays

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 23 Apr 2009 18:01:06 +0000

Iraq's LGBT community is facing a wave of violence and persecution. Iraqi Police sources say that in the past month alone, the bodies of six young men have been found in Sadr City, some with placards labeling them "perverts" or "puppies", the derogatory Iraqi term for gays. We’ll speak with Ali Hili, founder of the Iraqi-gays-in-exile group Iraq LGBT from England. We’ll also be joined by US Representative Jared Polis, who recently returned from Iraq and has spearheaded efforts to investigate the treatment of Iraqi gays.

Underreported Update: Newtown Creek

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 16 Apr 2009 20:56:59 +0000

We take a look at the status of cleanup efforts in the heavily polluted Newtown creek on Brooklyn/Queens border. Alex Matthiessen and Phillip Musegaas are with the Riverkeeper organization.

Underreported: Neodymium and Green Energy

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 16 Apr 2009 18:00:38 +0000

Neodymium is a rare earth metal and important component in the electric car engines and wind turbines that are being touted as the future of alternative energy. But, neodymium is not without it’s problems. We'll look at what neodymium is and why we may soon face a global shortage of it with New America Foundation Fellow Lisa Margonelli. Lisa is also author of the book Oil on the Brain

Underreported: Jersey City Hexavalent Chromium

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 9 Apr 2009 17:59:51 +0000

In the 1982 the State of New Jersey began investigating the presence of the dangerous chemical hexavalent chromium on a 16-acre site in Jersey City. Today, the site remains contaminated. We’ll talk to Nancy S. Marks, senior attorney for the Natural Resources Defense Council, about why it’s taken so long to clean up the site and why the NRDC filed a new lawsuit in February to enforce the clean-up effort.

Underreported: Energy Hearings

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 9 Apr 2009 17:59:50 +0000

The Obama Administration is hoping to take the county in a new direction on energy. We’ll get the latest news on the Department of the Interior’s hearings on US energy policy from Wall Street Journal energy reporter Brian Baskin.

Underreported: The Nuclear Scientist Shortage

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 2 Apr 2009 17:59:17 +0000

Nuclear energy is slated to become a bigger part of America's energy mix, but who will work at the plants once they've been built? Dr. Ivan Oelrich joins us to talk about the shortage of nuclear technicians and operators in the United States today. Dr. Oelrich is Vice President for Strategic Security programs at the Federation of American Scientists. We'll also be joined by Michael Scott Moore, a staff writer at Der Spiegel Online in Berlin.

Underreported: German Car Banks

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 26 Mar 2009 17:58:37 +0000

In Germany, savers are pulling their money out of traditional banks and depositing the money into German Car Banks. BMW’s Bank has seen deposits jump almost 70% over the past five months and the cash infusion is helping the company cope with the frozen credit markets. Jonathan Rosenthal is European Business and Finance Correspondent for the Economist magazine. He joins us from Berlin.

Underreported: South African Refugee Camp Closure

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 5 Mar 2009 18:57:11 +0000

Musina, South Africa is just across the border from Zimbabwe and home to a refugee camp there. Earlier this week, the South African government decided to close the camp which provides medical care, housing and food to its thousands of residents. We'll talk to Rachel Cohen, head of mission in South Africa for Doctors without Borders about the South African government’s decision to close the camp.

Underreported: Mexican Remittances in a Bad Economy

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 26 Feb 2009 18:56:52 +0000

Remittances (money sent home from immigrants) are Mexico's second-largest source of foreign income after oil and they dropped significantly in 2008 for the first time on record. The decline could signal trouble for the Mexican economy, but it also has real impacts on Mexican’s living in the United States.
Sam Quinones is a reporter for the Los Angeles Times and the author of Antonio's Gun and Delfino's Dream: True Tales of Mexican Migration. Dr. Robert Smith is associate professor of immigration studies at Baruch College and at CUNY. He is the author of Mexican New York.

Underreported: Peak Water

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 19 Feb 2009 18:56:24 +0000

A large portion of China and India’s fresh water supply comes from glaciers found on the Tibetan Plateau and the Himalayas. According to a new report by the World Economic Forum, those glaciers will be gone by 2100. That means the water sources for 2 billion people will simply dry up. Dr. Peter Gleick is the President and Co-founder of the Pacific Institute, a nonpartisan research institute that works for sustainable management of resources.

Underreported: Bush's Legacy in the Oceans

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 12 Feb 2009 18:55:33 +0000

In his final days before leaving office, President Bush created the largest marine sanctuary in the world off the coast of Hawaii. But, he also opened up large parts of the American coastline to oil drilling. Michael Sutton is Vice President of the Monterey Bay Aquarium in California and directs the aquarium's Center for the Future of the Oceans. He'll take us into the murky depths of Bush Administration's marine policies.

Underreported: AQ Khan on the Loose

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 12 Feb 2009 18:55:33 +0000

AQ Khan, the father of Pakistan's nuclear program, has admitted to selling nuclear secrets to Libya, Iran, and North Korea. Late last week a Pakistani ordered Khan's release after five years of house arrest. David Albright, President of the Institute for Science and International Security in Washington, D.C., joins us to discuss the impact of Khan's release as US Special Representative Richard Holbrooke prepared to tour the region.

Underreported: Thailand’s Royal Family

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 29 Jan 2009 18:54:26 +0000

Thailand recently banned the latest edition of the Economist magazine and jailed an Australian writer – both over negative comments about the Thai royal family. Brad Adams of Human Rights Watch tells us more about the Thai monarchy and press freedom, and gives us an update on the ongoing political troubles there.

Underreported: Ocean Garbage Patch

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 22 Jan 2009 18:53:49 +0000

In the Central North Pacific, plastic outweighs surface zooplankton 6 to 1. Find out why the problem of garbage and plastic floating around in our oceans could be one of the most pressing environmental disasters we face now. Dr. Marcus Eriksen of the Algalita Marine Research Foundation sailed from California to Hawaii this past summer on a raft, JUNK, made out of 15,000 plastic bottles.

Underreported: Islamic Finance

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 15 Jan 2009 18:53:20 +0000

Find out about the growing trend of Islamic finance – banking and investing based on the Koran – and how it’s faring in the current global economic crisis. Journalist Carla Power is and author of the Jan./Feb. Foreign Policy magazine article "Faith in the Market."

Underreported: Amtrak Under the Obama Administration

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 8 Jan 2009 18:52:50 +0000

Barack Obama will arrive in DC for the inauguration by train, and Joe Biden is also known as “Amtrak Joe” thanks to his years of daily commutes to Washington via Amtrak. Is this a sign that the next four years will be more rail-friendly than in previous administrations? We look into what Amtrak can expect from the Obama White House, and the role trains can play in improving America’s transportation system. Thomas Downs is a transportation expert and former president of Amtrak (1993-1998).

Underreported: Mia Farrow on the DRC

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 18 Dec 2008 18:51:41 +0000

Actress and UNICEF ambassador Mia Farrow just returned from a humanitarian trip to the Democratic Republic of Congo. She tells us what she saw, what’s being done to stop the spread of cholera there, why fighting has resumed, and whether children are again being recruited to serve as soldiers in the DRC.

Underreported: Disappearing Fireflies

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 18 Dec 2008 18:51:40 +0000

Fireflies seem to be disappearing throughout the world. We look into where they’re going, why they might be disappearing, and how their absence could affect our ecosystem. Dr. Christopher Cratsley is a biology professor and firefly expert at Fitchburg State College.

Underreported: NF3s and Global Warming

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 11 Dec 2008 18:51:13 +0000

Switching to solar energy may not be as green as it seems. Many of the newest solar panels are made with a gas, NF3, that is 17,000 times more potent than carbon dioxide in contributing to global warming. NF3 is also used in the manufacture of flat-screen TVs, iPhones, computer chips, and lots more. Michael Prather is professor at UC Irvine.

Underreported: What Happens to Released Guantanamo Detainees

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 4 Dec 2008 18:50:48 +0000

President-Elect Obama plans to close the Guantanamo prison camp. What will happen to the detainees there? Find out what's happened to former Guantanamo prisoners after being released following years of detention. Eric Stover of UC Berkeley’s Human Rights Center is co-author of a recent study profiling former captives.

Underreported: Forensics of Torture

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 4 Dec 2008 18:50:47 +0000

Dr. Rajeev Bais and Dr. Lars Beattie describe the physical scars torture leaves, and how they use those scars to corroborate asylum seekers’ stories of torture. They're co-founders of Elmhurst Hospital’s Libertas Human Rights Clinic in Queens.

Underreported: Opening Public Land for Drilling in Utah

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 20 Nov 2008 18:50:19 +0000

On Election Day, the US Bureau of Land Management (BLM) announced a Dec. 19 auction of over 50,000 acres of oil and gas parcels right next to national parks in Utah. Steve Bloch, attorney for the Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance, explains why Utah’s Park Service and national conservation groups are concerned.

Underreported: Bush’s Last-Minute Environmental Policy Changes

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 20 Nov 2008 18:50:18 +0000

The Bush administration is working to rush through some environmental policy changes before leaving power in January - including relaxing regulations protecting endangered species. John Kostyack is Executive Director of Wildlife Conservation and Global Warming at the National Wildlife Federation.

Underreported: Reform in Russia

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 13 Nov 2008 18:49:55 +0000

We discuss the pace of reform in Russia, Moscow’s current attitudes towards the West, and why Pres. Dmitry Medvedev is now pushing to extend the presidential term.

Nina Khrushcheva teaches international affairs at the New School; she’s also the author of Imagining Nabokov: Russia Between Art and Politics and is the granddaughter of Nikita Khrushchev. Her article in the Fall 2008 World Policy Journal is "Russia's Rotting Empire."

Underreported: US-Iran Relations in an Obama Administration

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 6 Nov 2008 18:49:29 +0000

We look at how an Obama presidency could affect the U.S.’s relations with Iran, and what we should look for in Iran’s own elections happening next year. Robert Powell is Middle East Analyst for the Economist Intelligence Unit.

Underreported: Bats and White Nose Syndrome

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 30 Oct 2008 17:49:09 +0000

Bats are not only an iconic symbol of Halloween...they’re also a key part of our ecosystem. We get an update on the white nose syndrome that has been threatening bat populations. Ecologist Merlin Tuttle is founder of Bat Conservation International.

Underreported: Censored Stories of 2007-08

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 23 Oct 2008 17:48:41 +0000

There are plenty of major news stories you probably didn’t hear or read about in the last year – like the fact that the Iraqi death count reached 1 million, and US-backed militarism is resurgent in Latin America. Hear about the top censored stories of the past year.

Peter Phillips is Director of Project Censored, and has co-edited the new book Censored 2009. Jessica Lee is an editor and reporter with The Indypendent newspaper. She’s written about another censored story, the Homegrown Terrorism Prevention Act, and is a contributor to Censored 2009.

Underreported: Survival in Darfur

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 16 Oct 2008 17:48:23 +0000

Halima Bashir, a physician in her native Sudan, was tortured and repeatedly raped for informing on atrocities in Darfur. She then had to flee, and now lives as a refugee in London. She tells us about her new life, and what she thinks needs to happen to bring about peace in Darfur. Her new memoir is Tears of the Desert.

Underreported: Panic of 1873

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 16 Oct 2008 17:48:22 +0000

Many are measuring the current financial crisis against the Great Depression – but what’s happening now may be more like the Panic of 1873, a little-known economic crash that started in Europe with a building boom and led to a banking collapse. Scott Reynolds Nelson is professor of history at the College of William & Mary.

Underreported: Canada’s Elections

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 9 Oct 2008 17:48:01 +0000

In the midst of the frenzy over next month’s elections here in the U.S. – did you know that Canada is holding its big elections next week on October 14th? Find out what’s at stake for our neighbors to the north, and whether the governing Conservative Party could be unseated by the Liberal opposition. Adam Radwanski is a member of the Globe and Mail’s editorial board, and writes a political blog for that paper.

Underreported: Renditions in the Horn of Africa

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 2 Oct 2008 17:47:33 +0000

A 2007 rendition program in the Horn of Africa led to nearly 100 men, women, and children being rounded up in Kenya and eventually rendered to Ethiopia. At least 10 victims of this program still languish in Ethiopian prisons, with little recourse; still others are missing. We find out why these people are being held and what should happen next.
Jennifer Daskal is Senior Counterterrorism Counsel at Human Rights Watch.

Underreported: NYCHA’s Woes

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 25 Sep 2008 17:47:05 +0000

The New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA) is the nation’s largest public housing authority. It’s also facing big troubles. It has a huge operating deficit on its budget, and is also dealing with rising fuel costs, deteriorating properties, and budget cuts. We look into how things got this bad, and what can be done to help save NYCHA. Leonard talks to Councilwoman Rosie Mendez and Manhattan Institute Senior Fellow Julia Vitullo-Martin.

Underreported Update: Newtown Creek Oil Spill

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 18 Sep 2008 20:56:25 +0000

The worst oil spill in U.S. history happened right here in New York City, at Newtown Creek in Brooklyn. Find out how cleanup efforts are going, whether Greenpoint residents should be worried about negative health effects, and why Newtown Creek might have a new problem to deal with – illegal concrete dumping! Alex Matthiessen is president of Riverkeeper.

Underreported: California’s Lower Ninth Ward?

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 18 Sep 2008 17:46:44 +0000

The Sacramento delta provides drinking water for 23 million Californians. It’s maintained with jury-rigged levees which are not well-equipped to deal with earthquakes or climate change. We look into why the Sacramento delta is in crisis, and what can be done to save it. Barry Nelson is Western Water Project Director for the NRDC, which has published an article about the crisis in the latest issue of its OnEarth magazine.

Underreported: Thailand

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 11 Sep 2008 17:46:22 +0000

We explain the ongoing political chaos in Thailand. On Tuesday, Prime Minister Samak Sundaravej was forced from office after the Constitutional Court found him guilty of violating the constitution for receiving payment while hosting a popular TV cooking show. Meanwhile, anti-government groups have been staging massive protests since Dec. 2007. Sunai Phasuk of Human Rights Watch joins us to talk about what’s happened, and what’s next for Thailand.

Underreported: Is NYC Ready for a Major Hurricane?

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 4 Sep 2008 21:21:00 +0000

70 years ago, in September 1938, a major hurricane struck the northeast and killed almost 700 people…and caused the modern equivalent of nearly 5 billion dollars in damage! Find out whether the New York City metro area is prepared for another major hurricane, and the disasters that could follow. Sarah Newkirk is Coastal Program Director of The Nature Conservancy on Long Island; Dr. Nicholas Coch is Professor in the Queens College School of Earth and Environmental Sciences.

Underreported: Offshore LNG Terminals in NY and NJ

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 4 Sep 2008 17:45:55 +0000

Environmentalists in New Jersey and New York are fighting proposals to build offshore terminals to store liquefied natural gas (LNG). Hear why ExxonMobil and private investment firms want the terminals to be built, and why many are concerned about the terminals’ potential impact. David Byer is Water Policy Attorney for Clean Ocean Action.

Underreported: Termite Guts

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 28 Aug 2008 17:45:31 +0000

Could termite guts hold a solution to global warming? Some scientists think that a better understanding of how termites devour wood so efficiently could eventually allow us to create valuable biofuel. Phil Hugenholtz is head of the Joint Genome Institute’s Microbial Ecology Program and is involved in mapping the contents of the termite gut.

Underreported: Is Pollution Poisoning China’s Children?

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 21 Aug 2008 17:45:03 +0000

With the Beijing Olympics underway, everyone’s talking about how air pollution there is affecting athletes’ performances. But how is it affecting Chinese children’s physical and intellectual development? Dr. Frederica Perera, director of Columbia University’s Center for Children’s Environmental Health, joins us to explain how China’s pollution problem may be poisoning its children.

Underreported: Eating Mud Cakes in Haiti

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 21 Aug 2008 17:45:02 +0000

As Haiti’s food prices skyrocket, many poor Haitians are resorting to eating mud cakes - the cheapest way to quell hunger in a country whose food import bill will leap 80% this year, the fastest price jump in the world. Rory Carroll is a correspondent for the Guardian.

Underreported: Coming to Terms with Pinochet

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 7 Aug 2008 17:44:24 +0000

Judge Juan Guzmán had supported General Augusto Pinochet’s 1973 coup that toppled democratically-elected President Salvador Allende and left thousands of others dead or disappeared. But when in 1998 Judge Guzman was assigned the first criminal cases against Pinochet, what he learned about the past changed his mind about the General, and forced him to confront his own role in the tragedy. He joins Leonard, along with Elizabeth Farnsworth, director of a new documentary called "The Judge and the General." It airs on PBS on August 19 at 10 pm.

Event: “The Judge and the General” will be screened Thursday, August 7, at 6:30 at the Film Society of Lincoln Center W. 65 St., between Broadway and Amsterdam Tickets and more information is here

Underreported: Small Business Money Goes to Corporate Giants

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 31 Jul 2008 17:44:09 +0000

During 2006 and 2007, the Department of Interior awarded over $430 million in small business contracts to corporate giants like Xerox and John Deere. We look into how that happened, and whether that’s part of a larger pattern of directing small business money to large corporations. Lloyd Chapman is president and founder of the American Small Business League, a non-partisan group advocacy group for small businesses.

Underreported: Women in Post-War Liberia

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 24 Jul 2008 17:43:49 +0000

Many women in post-war Liberia are jobless and lack decent housing and medical care. Compounding the problem are the more than 30,000 women and girls who served with fighting forces in Liberia’s recent wars. They were constant targets for rape and sexual violence. Find out how former female Liberian soldiers are struggling to piece together their lives again.

Jackie Redd served in Charles Taylor’s forces throughout her teens and early 20s; Florence Ballah worked as a cook and porter in Liberia’s rebel group ULIMO. Both were abducted in their early teens and subsequently joined fighting forces. Tania Bernath is Liberia researcher for Amnesty International.

Events: Amnesty International's documentary "Women of Liberia: Fighting for Peace" will be shown Thurs., July 24 92nd St. Y Tribeca 7pm-9pm Screening, Debate and Discussion 200 Hudson Street

and

Sun., July 27
Riverside Church
11 AM service, After Service Program, 1pm-4pm
Screening, Liberian lunch, Liberian live music and DJ
490 Riverside Drive

Underreported: Sudan Update

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 17 Jul 2008 17:43:22 +0000

Georgette Gagnon, Africa program director for Human Rights Watch, gives us an update on the latest from Khartoum. We’ll talk about the ongoing proxy war between Chad and Sudan, and the recent ICC request for a warrant of arrest for Sudan’s president Omar al-Bashir on charges of ten counts of genocide, crimes against humanity, and war crimes.

Underreported: Haitian Paramilitary Leader on Trial in New York

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 10 Jul 2008 17:43:07 +0000

Emmanuel “Toto” Constant, former leader of the Haitian paramilitary group FRAPH, went on trial earlier this week in New York. But he’s not being tried for his human rights violations – he’s on trial for mortgage fraud! After fleeing Haiti to avoid a warrant for his arrest, he lived a comfortable life in Queens as a mortgage broker. Jennie Green is Senior Attorney with the Center for Constitutional Rights, which has sued Toto Constant on behalf of 3 women who survived FRAPH’s campaign of violence against women.

Underreported: Nurse-Patient Ratios and the Future of Health Care

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 3 Jul 2008 17:42:39 +0000

By 2020, it’s estimated that the US will be short 1 million nurses! On Underreported, Suzanne Gordon, of the University of Maryland and UCSF Schools of Nursing, and John Buchanan, Director of the Workplace Research Group at the University of Sydney, discuss how nurse-patient ratios are partly responsible for the nurse shortage, and how that ratio needs to change in order to attract and retain more nurses. They are co-authors of Safety in Numbers: Nurse-to-patient Ratios and the Future of Health Care.

Underreported: The World’s Failed States

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 26 Jun 2008 17:42:27 +0000

The world’s weakest and failed states can disrupt the stability of other countries all over the world. The Fund for Peace and Foreign Policy magazine have released their fourth annual Failed States Index. Patricia Taft, senior associate at the Fund for Peace, joins us to talk about where the worst failed states are, and how instability spreads from one country to another.

Underreported: Book Power

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 19 Jun 2008 17:42:00 +0000

When Francisco Goldman's book The Art of Political Murder was published in the U.S., it had ripple effects in Guatemala, where the book was used to prove points by warring factions in the country's civil war. Nathaniel Popper has written a new article, "The Novelist and the Murderers," in the July 7th issue of The Nation about how a single book can have a dramatic effect on a country's political climate.

We'd like to hear from you. Has a single book had a dramatic impact on your own political views? Tell us about the book, and why you reacted so strongly to it.

Underreported: Peace Deal in Somalia

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 12 Jun 2008 17:41:47 +0000

Somalia has been mired in war for 17 years. On Monday night, a peace deal was signed, but some rebel factions have already denounced the deal’s terms. David Shinn is former director of East and Horn of African Affairs for the U.S. State Department. He’s currently adjunct professor at George Washington University’s Elliott School of International Affairs.

Underreported: Horseshoe Crabs

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 12 Jun 2008 17:41:47 +0000

Horseshoe crabs predate dinosaurs by more than 100 million years. They’ve also saved more than a million human lives thanks to a substance in their blood that the medical industry uses to fight infections! Find out why the horseshoe crab population has been in a downward spiral since the mid-1990s, and what’s being done to save them. William R. Hall is a marine researcher at University of Delaware, which runs a horseshoe crab education website.

Underreported: The End of Nepal’s Monarchy

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 5 Jun 2008 17:41:32 +0000

Last week, Nepal officially abolished its 240-year-old monarchy. Now Nepal’s ex-king is vacating his palace, and the country’s political parties are squabbling over power-sharing in the new government. Journalist and photographer Thomas Laird has reported on Nepal for both Time and Newsweek; he lived in Nepal for more than 30 years. He’s the author of several books including The Story of Tibet. Social and political activist Dr. Tara Niraula is the immediate past president of America-Nepal Friendship Society and the current Senior Vice President of the Nepalese Americas Council, an umbrella group for 28 Nepali American groups in North America.

Underreported: Lebanon’s New President, Michel Suleiman

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 29 May 2008 18:58:13 +0000

Lebanon’s new President, Michel Suleiman, has just taken office after a 6-month presidential void. We find out more about why President Suleiman has become a symbol of unity, and whether he can help heal the country's deep divisions. Dr. Fawaz Gerges is an author, Mideast scholar and Beirut native who holds the Christian A. Johnson Chair in International Affairs and Middle Eastern Studies at Sarah Lawrence College. His new article for Dissent magazine is "Hezbollah and the Future of Lebanon."

Underreported: Longest-Serving Inmate

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 29 May 2008 17:41:17 +0000

The longest-serving inmate in the United States prison system is William Heirens, also known as the Lipstick Killer for the message left scrawled in lipstick at a crime scene. He’s been continuously incarcerated for 62 years and counting. Journalist Adam Higginbotham tells us about Heirens’s many years in prison. His article in the June GQ magazine is “The Long, Long Life of the Lipstick Killer.”

Underreported: America's Last Wild Buffalo

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 22 May 2008 17:40:53 +0000

America's last herd of wild buffalo are in Yellowstone. When they wander outside of park limits, they are vulnerable to "hazing" - i.e., capture and slaughter - because ranchers and the Montana Department of Livestock fear that the buffalo can transmit brucellosis to cattle. But some scientists and activist groups like the Buffalo Field Campaign say that the threat of brucellosis transmission is extremely low, and the buffalo are an essential part of the plains ecosystem and need to be protected. Journalist Christopher Ketcham has written an article about the fight over the buffalo in the June Harper's magazine.

Underreported: Air Pollution and Bees

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 15 May 2008 17:40:34 +0000

A new study by University of Virginia researchers suggests that air pollution interferes with bees’ and other insects’ ability to follow the scent of flowers to their source, which interferes with the pollination process. UVa’s Department of Environmental Sciences Professor Jose D. Fuentes explains more about their findings and what it means for the pollination process and bee populations.

Underreported: Justice for Darfur

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 8 May 2008 17:40:20 +0000

Last year, the International Criminal Court (ICC) issued arrest warrants for two people for their alleged role in war crimes and crimes against humanity in Darfur. But Sudanese authorities have not only refused to arrest and hand over the two suspects, they have given one of them increasingly prominent public positions and released the other from prison. Richard Dicker of Human Rights Watch and the “Justice for Darfur” campaign talks about why it’s been so difficult to achieve justice for Darfur war crimes.

Underreported: Ecotourism vs. Land Rights in Kenya

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 8 May 2008 17:40:20 +0000

We look into how ecotourism may be interfering with ancestral land rights in Kenya. In 1974, the Endorois community were evicted from their land by the Kenyan government to make way for a game reserve and tourist resort. They’ve been fighting for repatriation and reparations since then, and now have taken their claim to the highest regional human rights body, the African Commission on Human and People’s Rights.
Korir Singoei of Kenyan NGO Centre for Minority Rights Development (CEMIRIDE) and WITNESS have co-produced a new film about the Endorois, “Rightful Place.”

Underreported: Chevron in Burma

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 1 May 2008 17:40:04 +0000

Find out more about Chevron's support of the repressive military regime in Burma. Chevron co-owns the Yadana natural gas pipeline, which is the Burmese government’s single largest source of income and undermines international sanctions against the regime. Rick Herz is litigation coordinator with Earth Rights International, which worked on the Doe v. Unocal lawsuit brought by Burmese villagers against Unocal (which was later bought by Chevron).

Underreported: Albania

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 1 May 2008 17:40:04 +0000

Albania is fledgling democracy with a tumultuous political climate and a controversial prime minister. It’s also a strategic ally of the United States, yet we rarely hear about it in the American media. Erion Veliaj is a recipient of the United Nations Civil Society Award and was director of Albania’s leading watchdog group, MJAFT , from 2003 to 2007.

Underreported: Crisis in Mogadishu

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 24 Apr 2008 17:39:39 +0000

Violence in Somalia’s war-torn capital, Mogadishu, has worsened in the last week, leaving dozens of people dead after fighting between Ethiopian forces and Islamist fighters. We’ll find out more about what’s happening and how it could further destabilize the Horn of Africa. David Shinn is former US ambassador to Ethiopia and currently adjunct professor with George Washington University's Elliot School of International Affairs.

Underreported: Swaziland’s Royal Family

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 24 Apr 2008 17:39:39 +0000

Swaziland is Africa’s last remaining absolute monarchy. Its Royal Family lives a very lavish lifestyle, while much of the rest of the country lives in dire poverty and suffers from the world’s highest rate of HIV/AIDS. Michael Skolnik has directed a new documentary about Swaziland’s monarchy called “Without the King.” It opens April 25 at the Quad Cinema (34 W. 13th St.).

Underreported: New Planet Forming?

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 17 Apr 2008 17:39:22 +0000

Scientists may be closer to understanding how new planets form. Astrophysicist Ben Oppenheimer of the American Museum of Natural History and his colleagues at the Lyot Project have put together an image of material that seems to be coalescing into either a planet or a brown dwarf (which is an object with mass that neither a star nor a planet).

Underreported: Eating Insects

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 10 Apr 2008 17:39:00 +0000

Insects are a high-protein food source. In a world where increasing numbers of people are competing for shrinking resources, farming insects could be a nutritious, low-impact way to feed more of the world’s people. Dr. Robert Kok of McGill University’s Bioresource Engineering department has been working for years to convince people to farm insects.

Weigh in: Have you ever knowingly eaten insects? If so, how did they taste?

Underreported: Spain’s Old Wounds

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 3 Apr 2008 17:38:43 +0000

We look into whether Spain is becoming an increasingly divided country. Debates over Basque terrorism and the 3/11/04 Madrid train bombings may be helping to open old wounds from the Spanish Civil War and Franco. Giles Tremlett is the Madrid correspondent for the Guardian; his most recent book is Ghosts of Spain: Travels Through Spain and Its Silent Past.

Underreported: The Great Lakes and the Economy

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 3 Apr 2008 17:38:42 +0000

Cleaning up the Great Lakes will bring big economic benefits to an area that’s been hit hard by manufacturing job losses, according to John Austin, Senior Fellow with the Brookings Institution and director of the Great Lakes Economic Initiative. He tells us more about the strong connection between healthy Great Lakes and a healthy economy.

Underreported: The News from East Timor

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 27 Mar 2008 17:38:31 +0000

Since achieving independence from Indonesia in 2002, East Timor has been struggling to achieve a stable democracy. Charles Scheiner of East Timor and Indonesia Action Network (ETAN) and East Timorese activist Guteriano Neves tell us more about that country’s continuing problems and violence, and what can be done to improve the situation.

Event: Charlie Scheiner and John M. Miller of ETAN will be speaking at "Justice, Poverty and Oil: Unresolved Issues in East Timor" Tues., April 8th at 7 pm Bluestocking Books,172 Allen St. New York, NY

Underreported: Iraq’s Marshlands

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 20 Mar 2008 17:38:08 +0000

The marshlands of southern Iraq and Iran were once the largest in western Eurasia, encompassing an area larger than the Florida Everglades. During the 1990s, under Saddam Hussein, damming and drainage projects almost completely destroyed them. It’s been called one of the world's greatest environmental disasters. Dr. Azzam Alwash of The Eden Again Project is working to restore the marshlands, and educate the world about their cultural and ecological significance.

Event: Azzam Alwash will be participating in an international water issues panel discussion Saturday, March 22 at 3 pm American Museum of Natural History, Kaufman Theater Central Park West and 79th Street Free with museum admission, for more info, go here.

Underreported: Women and Water

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 20 Mar 2008 17:38:07 +0000

The burden usually falls to women to find and manage domestic water resources throughout developing countries in Africa and Asia. We look into why it’s so important for planners to involve women in developing sustainable water plans. Lydia Zigomo is a human rights lawyer from Zimbabwe who serves at WaterAid’s Head of Region for East Africa and is Chairperson of the Zimbabwe Women’s Network. Patricia Dandonoli is CEO ofWaterAid America.

Event: A panel discussion, "The Heaviest Load," will be at the American Museum of Natural History Saturday, March 22 at 12 pm Kaufman Theater, First Floor Central Park West and 79th Street Free with museum admission, for more info, go here. It will also be webcast live here

Open Phones: Your Under the Radar News

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Sat, 15 Mar 2008 03:28:26 +0000

Today is all about the stories that unfolded while the Spitzer scandal broke. We want to hear about what "under the radar" news stories you are hearing. Comment below on the international events that matter, the latest news from your block, cultural stories to keep an eye on... Be specific, and be unique!

Underreported: Nanotechnology in Consumer Products

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 13 Mar 2008 17:37:40 +0000

The EPA is requiring that all products containing nanotechnology for antibacterial purposes (like nanosilver) must apply for registration by March 21, 2008. We find out what will happen to the many nanosilver-containing products currently on the market after the EPA deadline passes, and why consumers have the right to know if they’re using nanoproducts. Jennifer Sass is a nanotechnology expert and senior scientist with the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC).

Underreported: Reunification for Cyprus?

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 6 Mar 2008 18:37:19 +0000

The island of Cyprus has been split between its Greek and Turkish populations for more than 30 years. Now with the recent election of a Marxist president, Demetris Christofias, in the Republic of Cyprus (the Greek half of the island) – the island may be a few steps closer to reunification. Dr. James Ker-Lindsay is a Cyprus expert and Senior Research Fellow at Kingston University London.

Underreported: Unfair Crack and Cocaine Sentencing Guidelines

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 28 Feb 2008 18:37:05 +0000

According to current federal sentencing guidelines, convictions for the sale of 500 grams of powder cocaine – and only 5 grams of crack cocaine – both result in a 5-year mandatory minimum sentence. Jesselyn McCurdy, legislative counsel for the ACLU, explains why this sentencing disparity is unfair and fails to address the larger problem of the drug trade. Karen Garrison is the mother of 2 sons who are each serving long sentences in federal prison for non-violent crack cocaine offenses.

Underreported: Iron Ladies of Liberia

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 21 Feb 2008 18:36:44 +0000

Since becoming President of Liberia, Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf has appointed women to key positions throughout the government. These women call themselves "Iron Ladies of Liberia." On today’s Underreported, we’ll find out more about these powerful women, and what they’re doing to help Liberia recover from its brutal civil war. Jonathan Stack is producer of the documentary film "Iron Ladies of Liberia"; he also set up a film collective in Liberia.

"Iron Ladies of Liberia" is showing at BAM on Sun. Feb 24 at 2pm and Thurs. Feb 28 at 4:30pm as part of the African Diaspora Film Festival. It will also air on PBS on March 18 at 10:00 pm as part of the Independent Lens series.

Underreported: Algeria

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 14 Feb 2008 18:36:21 +0000

Algeria is adding 15,000 extra police officers each year over the next few years as the North African country deals with terrorism and a growing Al-Qaeda presence. Martin Evans is a historian at the University of Portsmouth and co-author (with John Phillips) of Algeria: Anger of the Dispossessed.

Underreported: Future of Bananas

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 14 Feb 2008 18:36:20 +0000

Americans eat more bananas than any other kind of fruit; in some parts of the world, bananas help keep millions of people alive. But the future of bananas may be in danger. Most bananas are genetically identical, and a disease has been ravaging banana plantations around the world. We look into the uncertain future of bananas with Dan Koeppel, author of Banana: The Fate of the Fruit That Changed the World.

Underreported: Tiger Corridor from Bhutan to Malaysia

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 7 Feb 2008 18:35:30 +0000

Dr. Alan Rabinowitz of the Wildlife Conservation Society is helping to create a multi-national tiger conservation effort stretching from Bhutan to Malaysia. It’s a very complex undertaking, requiring the cooperation of businesses, NGOs, and governments – including the repressive military regime of Myanmar. Dr. Rabinowitz’s recent book is Life in the Valley of Death: The Fight to Save Tigers in a Land of Guns, Gold, and Greed.

Event: Dr. Alan Rabinowitz will be in conversation with Robert Krulwich Thursday, Feb. 7 at 8:15 pm 92nd Street Y Lexington Avenue at 92nd Street Tickets and info here or call (212) 415-5500

Underreported: Dawn Probe

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 31 Jan 2008 18:35:50 +0000

NASA's Dawn probe is giving scientists a closer look at two of the most overlooked objects in the solar system: asteroids Vesta and Ceres. Find out why Vesta and Ceres can teach us about the origins of the solar system. Dr. Thomas Prettyman is a member of the Dawn science team and a planetary scientist at Los Alamos National Laboratory in NM; Dr. Tom McCord is also a member of the Dawn team and is a planetary scientist with Bear Fight Institute in Washington.

Underreported: NASA’s Investigations of its Scientists

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 31 Jan 2008 18:35:49 +0000

Scientists at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory are suing NASA over the Bush administration’s attempts to investigate the scientists’ personal lives. Attorney Dan Stormer is representing the scientists.

Underreported: Congo’s Ongoing Crisis

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 24 Jan 2008 18:35:26 +0000

War in the Democratic Republic of Congo officially ended five years ago, but an estimated 45,000 people still die there every month. Dr. Richard J. Brennan is Health Director of the International Rescue Committee; Alyoscia D’Onofrio, regional director of the DRC for the IRC, joins us from Bukavu in eastern Congo, close to the border with Rwanda, Burundi, and Uganda.

Underreported: Ocean Iron Fertilization to Slow Global Warming?

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 17 Jan 2008 18:35:06 +0000

A controversial scientific theory holds that fertilizing the ocean with massive amounts of iron would reduce greenhouse gases - and thus slow global warming. But critics says that large-scale environmental tampering is too risky. Dr. Scott Doney, Senior Scientist at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, explains more about the pros and cons of ocean iron fertilization.

Underreported: The Power of Hippo Sweat

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 17 Jan 2008 18:35:06 +0000

Find out what humans can learn from studying hippo sweat, which may have powerful antibiotic and sunblock properties. Herpetologist Dr. Brady Barr explains more about the promises of hippo sweat, and why he has to don a 200-pound hippo decoy suit in order to collect samples of hippo sweat to be tested. Dr. Barr stars in the National Geographic Channel's "Dangerous Encounters with Brady Barr: Undercover Hippo," which airs on Sunday, January 20, at 9:00 PM ET/PT.

Underreported: FEC Shutdown and What it Means for the Elections

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 10 Jan 2008 18:34:56 +0000

The Federal Election Commission (FEC), the agency that administers and enforces campaign finance laws, has essentially shut down due to a shortage of commissioners. We’ll look into the reasons behind the shortage, why the Senate has been in a stalemate over commissioner nominees, and what it could mean for the presidential campaigns if the FEC impasse isn’t resolved soon.
Paul S. Ryan is FEC Program Director of the Campaign Legal Center, a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization which works in the areas of campaign finance and elections, political communication and government ethics. J. Gerald Hebert is Executive Director of the CLC and law professor at Georgetown.

Underreported: Mexico’s Murdered Grupero Singers

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 10 Jan 2008 18:34:55 +0000

In Mexico, grupero musicians are being killed at an alarming rate – 13 in the past year and a half. Last month, singer Zayda Pena was shot to death in a hospital emergency room; Sergio Gomez of K-Paz de la Sierra beaten, tortured, and strangled. Maureen Meyer of the Washington Office on Latin America (WOLA) explains what these murders have to do with Mexico’s brutal drug wars.

Underreported: The 10 Most Underreported Humanitarian Stories of 2007

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 3 Jan 2008 18:34:41 +0000

People struggling to survive violence, forced displacement, and disease in Somalia, Sri Lanka, and elsewhere went underreported in the news this year. Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières has released its 10th annual “Top Ten” Most Underreported Humanitarian Stories of 2007. Executive Director of MSF-USA Nicolas de Torrenté discusses the list.

Underreported: Cyberwars

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 27 Dec 2007 18:34:20 +0000

Cyberwars may be the wars of the future. In April 2007, cyberattacks from Russia crippled the banking, police, and government offices of Estonia; in June, the US accused the Chinese military of hacking into a network used by Defense Secretary Gates. Leonard talks to Andrew Macpherson of Justiceworks at the University of New Hampshire.

Foreign Policy magazine featured cyberwars in their article "The Top Ten Stories You Missed in 2007."

Underreported: Cellphones in the Global Economy

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 27 Dec 2007 18:34:20 +0000

Cellphones are helping to connect the world’s poor to the global economy. Nicholas P. Sullivan is author of You Can Hear Me Now.

Underreported: Are Sex Offender Laws Working?

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 20 Dec 2007 18:34:02 +0000

US sex offender laws may do harm than good, according to a recent report from Human Rights Watch. Strict notification laws and residency requirements don’t reflect the reality of the risks children face, may not protect victims, and violate the basic human rights of former offenders.

Sarah Tofte is a researcher at Human Rights Watch; Linda runs a support group for families of registered sex offenders. Elizabeth J. Letourneau, Ph.D. works with juvenile sex offenders. She's Associate Professor at the Family Services Research Center of the Medical University of South Carolina.

Weigh in: What do you think about current sex offender laws? Are they working? We’d like to hear from people associated with both victims and offenders.

Underreported: What Life is Like for US Soldiers in Afghanistan

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 13 Dec 2007 18:33:44 +0000

The war in Iraq gets more headlines, but US soldiers in Afghanistan are still battling it out with the Taliban and Al Qaeda the old-fashioned way – traveling on foot, building crude bunkers, and advancing slowly. Sebastian Junger and photographer Tim Hetherington joined an American platoon in the Korengal Valley, one of the most desperately fought-over pieces of terrain in the world.

Underreported: Afghan Public Opinion Poll

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 13 Dec 2007 18:33:44 +0000

Most of the news from Afghanistan focuses on the Taliban, or US and NATO troops, or the opium poppy crop. We hear very little about what the people Afghanistan think about what’s happening to their country. Pollster and political scientist Craig Charney of Charney Research recently conducted a poll of Afghan public opinion.

Underreported: Sarah Chayes with an Update on Afghanistan

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 6 Dec 2007 18:33:28 +0000

Former NPR correspondent Sarah Chayes lives and works in Kandahar, Afghanistan, where she’s founded a soapmaking company, Arghand, to help rebuild the war-torn country. She tells us the latest on the resurgence of the Taliban there.

Sarah Chayes' article in the Dec. 2007 issue of the Atlantic Monthly magazine is "Scents and Sensibility."

Sarah Chayes's recent book, The Punishment of Virtue: Inside Afghanistan After the Taliban, is available for purchase at amazon.com

Underreported: Why Belgium Has No Government

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 29 Nov 2007 18:33:16 +0000

Belgium has been without a government since June. And there’s a movement afoot to split Belgium apart, into the Dutch-speaking Flanders region and French-speaking Wallonia. Journalist Robert Lane Greene of the Economist joins us for today’s Underreported.

Underreported: Biofluorescence

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 15 Nov 2007 18:32:49 +0000

Scientists have a lot to learn from fireflies and glowing jellyfish. On Underreported: a look at the science of biofluorescence, and how it could lead to revolutionary advances in brain research and even military technology. Vincent Pieribone and David Gruber are co-authors of the book Aglow in the Dark.

Aglow in the Dark is available for purchase at amazon.com

Underreported: Update on Sri Lankan Press Freedom

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 8 Nov 2007 18:32:32 +0000

Back in August, veteran Sri Lankan journalist Iqbal Athas told us why he was in grave danger because of government crackdowns on freedom of the press. He joins us again today to update us on the situation there, and whether the threats against him have died down.

Underreported: Congo Radio

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 8 Nov 2007 18:32:32 +0000

Radio is THE medium in the eastern Congo. Wanda Hall of Interactive Radio for Justice (IRfJ) produces radio shows there exploring ways to achieve justice and reconciliation post-conflict in the Ituri region of the Congo, where millions have died during the war.

Underreported: Selective Justice in Alabama

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 1 Nov 2007 17:32:15 +0000

In 2006, Alabama’s Democratic Governor Don Siegelman was convicted of corruption charges, and he was sentenced to 7 years in prison. But top Alabama Republicans involved in the same scandal were not investigated or prosecuted. On Underreported, Adam Zagorin, a journalist for Time magazine, talks about what happened, and whether Karl Rove may have been involved.

You can read a recent article about Siegelman's conviction by Adam Zagorin here.

Underreported: American Hostages in Colombia

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 18 Oct 2007 17:31:37 +0000

The Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) have been holding prisoners and hostages for years, including high-profile former Colombian presidential candidate Ingrid Betancourt, as well as three Americans who were captured after a plane crash in 2003. For the second part of today's Underreported, we'll look into who the hostages are, what FARC wants, and Hugo Chavez's recent talks with the leadership of FARC. Joshua Goodman is an AP reporter based in Bogota and George Gonsalves is the father of Marc Gonsalves, one of the three American hostages held since 2003.

To find out more about Marc Gonsalves, go here

Underreported: New Hopes for Treating HIV/AIDS

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 18 Oct 2007 17:31:37 +0000

New hopes for treating HIV/AIDS lie in part with a group of people called "elite controllers," patients who have been infected with HIV for as many as 30 years -- without ever getting sick or needing medication. These patients are relatively rare, but researchers are trying to find out what makes their immune systems unique in the hopes that it could be applied to all patients, and maybe even a vaccine. On today’s Underreported, Leonard speaks with Dr. Bruce Walker, Director of the Partners AIDS Research Center at Massachusetts General Hospital and head of a new multimillion dollar study of these elite controllers.

To find out more about the HIV Elite Controllers study at Mass General, go here

Underreported: Nanosilver

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 11 Oct 2007 17:31:25 +0000

The EPA recently issued a ruling that a Samsung washing machine must be regulated as a pesticide. That's because the washing machine, the "Silvercare" model, claims to kill germs by injecting 100 quadrillion silver ions into each wash load. The wastewater would be released into public water systems, and there have been questions about the safety of widespread nanosilver use. On today's Underreported, we'll look into potential misuses of nanotechnology.
Leonard speaks with Dr. Jennifer Sass, Senior Scientist in the Natural Resource Defense Council’s Health and Environment Program. Also, Dr. Samuel Luoma, senior research scientist at the U.S. Geological Survey.

A recent article in the NRDC's On Earth magazine explores the safety of nanosilver; you can read it here.

Underreported: Poultry Antibiotics May Not Be Effective

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 11 Oct 2007 17:31:25 +0000

An estimated 70 percent of all antibiotics sold in the United States are used on farms, mostly in animal feed. Health researchers have long worried that this heavy load of antibiotics is causing strains of bacteria to evolve that are impervious to the drugs. Plus, these resistant bacteria can pass on resistance to other bacteria and infect humans. Farmers have long justified using growth-promoting antibiotics on the grounds that fatter birds mean fatter profits. But a groundbreaking study by Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health has undermined this argument. On today’s Underreported, Leonard speaks with Dr. Mary Pearl, President of Wildlife Trust, about this serious public health issue.

Underreported: New Meat Inspection Rules

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 11 Oct 2007 17:31:25 +0000

The farm bill passed by Congress in July contained a little-noticed provision that would eliminate a 40-year old requirement of federal inspection for meat and poultry sold across the United States. States would then have more authority to inspect meat and poultry. On today’s Underreported, Leonard speaks with Christopher Waldrop, Director of the Consumer Federation of America’s Food Policy Institute, about what the changes mean for consumer safety and for the meat processing industry.

Underreported: Hate Crime and Racism in Russia, Part II

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 4 Oct 2007 17:31:09 +0000

On the second part of Underreported, Leonard speaks with Paul Goble, Professor at the Institute of World Politics in Washington, D.C., to look at the broader context through a discussion of public attitudes about race, ethnicity, and religion in Russia.

Hate Crime and Racism in Russia, Part I

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 4 Oct 2007 17:31:08 +0000

Three years ago, the brutal murder of a 9-year old Tajik girl in Saint Petersburg turned international attention to the rise of neo-fascist groups and hate crime in Russia. Since then, the situation has not only gotten worse, it’s also fallen off the mainstream media radar. Attacks are up 28% since 2006, and many observers think the actual number of crimes is even greater. On the first part of Underreported, Leonard will be speaking with Paul LeGendre, Interim Director of the Fighting Discrimination Program at Human Rights First, and Nickolai Butkevich, Research and Advocacy Director at the Union of Councils for Jews in the Former Soviet Union.

Underreported: The Cassini-Huygens Space Mission

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 27 Sep 2007 17:30:54 +0000

The Cassini-Huygens Mission to Saturn is a multinational cooperation between three space agencies and 17 nations, with a total cost of over $3 billion. Launched in 1997, its goal was to orbit Saturn and its moons, and probe the atmosphere of Titan and land on its surface. The spacecraft has provided startling discoveries about Saturn, our solar system, and planet Earth, with more surprises doubtless to come. On today's Underreported, Leonard will speak with two of the mission's teams members about their discoveries: Dr. Carolyn Porco, the leader of the imaging team and Director of the Cassini Imaging Central Laboratory for Operations, and Dr. Torrence V. Johnson, Chief Scientist for the Solar System Exploration Programs Directorate at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory.

To learn more about the mission, visit the Cassini-Huygens homepage

Weigh in: Have you heard much in the media about the Cassini-Huygens space mission?

Underreported: Violent Clashes in Eastern Congo

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 20 Sep 2007 17:30:43 +0000

There is renewed violence and instability in the Eastern region of the Democratic Republic of Congo. Clashes have erupted between troops loyal to the Congolese Tutsi general, Laurent Nkunda, and government forces. General Nkunda claims he is protecting ethnic minorities Tutsis living in Congo from the Hutu genocidal rebels that escaped Rwanda following the genocide in 1994. Rwanda has also entered the conflict by issuing thinly veiled threats to the Congolese government. On today’s Underreported, Arnaud Zajtman, a BBC reporter based in Kinshasa, and David Mugnier, Central Africa Project Director at the International Crisis Group, join Leonard to brief us on the conflict and how it may affect regional stability in central Africa.

Underreported: Burmese Press Under Attack

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 13 Sep 2007 17:30:29 +0000

The military regime that governs Burma is working hard to prevent news gathering. Burmese journalists have been threatened, harassed, and physically assaulted. On the second part of today's Underreported, Leonard speaks with Shawn Crispin, a Bangkok-based journalist. Mr. Crispin is an Asia program consultant for the Committee to Protect Journalists and was bureau chief for the Hong Kong-based Far Eastern Economic Review in Bangkok from 1999 to 2004.

Underreported: Health Crisis in Burma

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 13 Sep 2007 17:30:28 +0000

Burma/Myanmar has been under military rule since 1962, and decades of repression, civil war, and poor governance have contributed to the spread of infectious diseases like HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, and malaria. Now the Burmese government's extreme travel restrictions have forced most aid workers out of the country. On the first part of today's Underreported, Leonard speaks with Aryeh Neier, President of the Open Society Institute, and Brian Williams, UNAIDS country coordinator for Burma, about the dire health conditions in Burma.

Event: Aryeh Neier and Brian Williams will be participating in a panel discussion on the challenges of delivering humanitarian aid to Burma, co-sponsored by the Asia Society and the Open Society Institute. The panel is called "Human Rights and Public Health: The Burma/Myanmar Tragedy." The panel is tonight, Sept. 13, from 6:30 - 8:00 pm at the Asia Society 725 Park Avenue (at 70th Street) New York City For tickets, call the Asia Society box office at (212) 517-ASIA or visit tickets.asiasociety.org

Underreported: Ethiopia’s Campaign in the Ogaden

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 6 Sep 2007 17:30:03 +0000

While the West focuses on Darfur, another humanitarian disaster seems to be developing in the Horn of Africa. The Ethiopian government - a recipient of a great deal of western aid money - has launched a military campaign in the Ogaden, a remote region of Ethiopia that borders on Somalia. Civilians have been killed or displaced, villages have been burnt, and livestock has been destroyed. The Ethiopian military and the US military have a close working relationship, by the Pentagon's own admission. On the second part of Underreported, Leonard talks to Tom Porteous of Human Rights Watch about the destruction in the Ogaden, and how the United States government is complicit.

Underreported: Berhanu Nega, Ethiopian Activist

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 6 Sep 2007 17:30:02 +0000

Dr. Berhanu Nega is a recently released Ethiopian political prisoner, and is also a leading member of the CUD, Ethiopia’s main opposition party. He joins Leonard on the first part of today's Underreported to talk about his harrowing prison experience, and provide a first-hand view of Ethiopian prime minister Meles Zenawi's heavy-handed suppression of political dissent.

Event: Dr. Berhanu Nega will be giving a talk Tonight, Thursday, Sept. 6th at 7:30 pm New School for Social Research Swayduck Auditorium 65 Fifth Avenue, between 13th and 14th streets The event is free and open to the public.

Underreported: Sri Lankan Journalist In Danger

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 30 Aug 2007 17:29:53 +0000

Veteran Sri Lankan journalist Iqbal Athas has faced a great deal of danger over the course of his career. More recently, grave threats have been made against him following his investigations into irregularities surrounding a 2006 government deal to purchase fighter jets from Ukraine. Mr. Athas joins us by phone from Sri Lanka to tell us more about his investigative report, why it's putting him in danger, and how much press freedom there is in Sri Lanka right now.

You can read the Committee to Protect Journalists' letter to the president of Sri Lanka regarding threats to Iqbal Athas by going to CPJ's website here

Underreported: Government Abuses in Sri Lanka

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 30 Aug 2007 17:29:52 +0000

Unlawful killings, disappearances, and crackdowns on press freedom have been intensifying in Sri Lanka over the last year, as major conflicts between Sri Lanka's government and Tamil separatists have resumed. On today's Underreported, we'll find out more about the human rights situation in Sri Lanka. Joining Leonard are Kavita Menon, of the Committee to Protect Journalists, and Charu Hogg, of Human Rights Watch.

Underreported: Women Migrant Workers in Saudi Arabia

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 23 Aug 2007 17:29:40 +0000

Approximately 2 million women from Indonesia, Sri Lanka, the Philippines and other countries work as migrant domestics in Saudi Arabia. They are routinely underpaid, overworked, confined to the workplace, or subject to verbal, physical, and sexual abuse. And two Indonesian women were recently killed by their employers. On the second part of Underreported, Nisha Varia of Human Rights Watch speaks with Leonard about her recent trip to Saudi Arabia where she interviewed some of these domestic workers, and how the Saudi government should reform immigrant sponsorship laws.

Underreported: Darfuri Women’s Stories, As Told By Mia Farrow

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 23 Aug 2007 17:29:39 +0000

Mia Farrow, actor and UN Goodwill Ambassador, feels so strongly about ending the atrocities in Darfur that she recently offered her own freedom in exchange for that of an imprisoned Darfuri rebel. Ms. Farrow just returned from another trip to Chad, where she met with Darfuri women in refugee camps. On the first part of Underreported, she tells us about the women that begged her to tell the rest of the world their stories, in the hopes that hearing about the horrific abuses they've lived through would urge the rest of the world to bring an end to the atrocities in Darfur.

Underreported: The Darker Side of Compact Fluorescent Light Bulbs

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 16 Aug 2007 17:29:30 +0000

Energy-efficient compact fluorescent bulbs are catching on as stores like Wal-Mart and Home Depot encourage their customers to make the switch. But inside each bulb is about 5 milligrams of toxic mercury. On the second part of Underreported, Leonard will be speaking with Lisa Rainwater, policy director at Riverkeeper, to find out whether that mercury offsets the environmental benefits of using the bulbs, and what lawmakers and retailers are doing to help customers safely dispose of their used compact fluorescents.

New Yorkers can drop off their used compact fluorescents at special drop-off sites around the city. For more information, go to NYCWasteLe$$ website. IKEA is also accepting used CFBs for recycling.

Underreported: Conservation, Big and Small

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 16 Aug 2007 17:29:29 +0000

Which is more effective: large-scale conservation practices or smaller, more localized organizations? Large international NGOs like The Nature Conservancy and the World Wildlife Fund have contributed a lot to global conservation efforts. But some scientists and policymakers worry that conservation is being corporatized, at the expense of local programs and leadership. On the first part of this week’s Underreported, Leonard speaks with Dr. Mary Pearl, President of Wildlife Trust, and Jon Paul Rodríguez of the Center for Ecology of the Venezuelan Institute for Scientific Investigations. They're co-authors of a recent article in Science magazine, which you can download here from wildlifetrust.org.

Underreported: Uighurs in the USA

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 9 Aug 2007 17:28:57 +0000

Alim Seytoff, General Secretary of the Uyghur American Association talks about the Uighur Diaspora here in the United States, and what Uighur-Americans are doing to influence Chinese politics.

Underreported: China’s Uighurs

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 9 Aug 2007 17:28:57 +0000

China's Uighur people are Turkic Muslims from Central Asia, and the Chinese government has a long history of discriminating against them. Uighur separatists have been calling for an independent state since the 1940s. Since 9/11, a rise of Islamic fundamentalism among China's Uighurs has resulted in further religious repression. On today's Underreported, Blaine Kaltman, a sociologist and author of Under the Heel of the Dragon: Islam, Racism, Crime, and the Uighur in China; and Sharon Hom, Executive Director of Human Rights in China, join us to talk about the conflicts and mutual suspicion between the Uighurs and China's government.

Under the Heel of the Dragon is available for purchase at amazon.com

Underreported: El Salvador and the “Suchitoto 13”

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 2 Aug 2007 17:28:45 +0000

On the second part of Underreported, Mike Ring, Former National Director of US-El Salvador Sister Cities, joins Maj Fiil to talk about the case of the “Suchitoto 13.” These 13 anti-privatization protesters, including one journalist, were arrested on July 2 during a nonviolent protest in Suchitoto. They were subsequently detained under a new anti-terrorism statute, and it remains to be seen if the charges will stick or if the government will see the folly of its response.

Underreported: El Salvador’s Water Issues

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 2 Aug 2007 17:28:44 +0000

Across Latin America, governments have been privatizing water resources, usually amid protests and always with mixed results. The argument for it is that private companies will invest in much-needed infrastructure, but the result is often even lower quality water, no major infrastructure improvements, and prices that hurt the poorest citizens. On the first part of this week’s Underreported, Maj Fiil, Director of The Water for All Project at Food & Water Watch, joins us to discuss El Salvador’s plans for the privatization of their water resources.

Underreported: Kosovo

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 26 Jul 2007 17:28:27 +0000

Kosovo is still a Serbian province, although it has been under UN and NATO administration since 1999. Although the country is relatively stable, there is a general economic recession, high unemployment, poverty, and repression of civil liberties. And the situation is particularly dire for women. On the first part of today's Underreported, Hamide Latifi, Director of Women for Women International’s Kosovo chapter, will discuss her efforts to support and empower women in Kosovo.

Underreported: An Independent Kosovo?

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 26 Jul 2007 17:28:27 +0000

On the second part of Underreported, we’ll speak with Patricia DeGennaro, Associate Professor of International Affairs at New York University, about why Russia has recently blocked a United Nations Security Council resolution endorsing independence, and what will happen as a result.

Underreported: More on Iraq's Healthcare Crisis

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 19 Jul 2007 17:28:13 +0000

Last week we heard about Iraq's healthcare crisis. This week, find out what's being done to help Baghdad's sick and wounded in Jordan and in northern Iraq. Nicolas de Torrente of Doctors Without Borders has just returned from a trip to the region to try to set up faster and more effective ways to treat Iraqi patients.

Underreported: Gatumba Massacre Survivors

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 19 Jul 2007 17:28:12 +0000

On the night of August 13th, 2004, Hutu militants crossed from Congo into Burundi and attacked the Gatumba Transit Center in which fifteen hundred Banyamulenge Congolese Tutsi refugees had sought safe haven. Hundreds were killed and wounded. Now nearly 600 hundred of the survivors have been resettled in the US. On today's Underreported, we'll find out what happened during the massacre, and how the survivors are dealing with the aftermath and getting the help they need. Leonard talks to Sasha Chanoff of Mapendo International, one of the architects of the Gatumba resettlement; also, Olivier Mandevu, president of the Gatumba Refugee Survivors Foundation.
Event:
The Third Annual Gatumba Genocide Memorial
will be held on Sunday, August 12
at Pinnacle Mountain in Voorheesville, NY
For more information, go to gatumbasurvivors.org

Underreported: Iraq's Health Care Meltdown

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 12 Jul 2007 17:27:56 +0000

What happens to the people who are gravely injured in the almost-daily attacks and bombings in Iraq? Iraq's health care system appears to be in a downward spiral. Hospital beds have been stolen, there are not enough medicines and equipment to go around, and some patients have even been murdered while in the hospital. Science writer Michael Mason traveled to Iraq to see firsthand what's happening in Iraq's health care system. His new article in the August issue of Discover magazine is "Iraq's Medical Meltdown."

Underreported Update: Libya 6

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 12 Jul 2007 17:27:56 +0000

Yesterday, the Libyan Supreme Court upheld the death sentence against the so-called Libya 6, the 5 Bulgarian nurses and a Palestinian doctor accused of deliberately infecting over 400 children with HIV in Libya. We've been following their case on Underreported for awhile, and today journalist Declan Butler explains yesterday's developments. Butler is a senior reporter with Nature who runs a blog about the case.

Underreported: The Spread of Failed States

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 28 Jun 2007 17:26:06 +0000

The world's weakest states aren't just a danger to themselves. They can disrupt the stability of countries halfway across the world. The Fund for Peace and Foreign Policy magazine have recently released their third annual Failed States Index, and on today's Underreported, we'll find out what a failed state is, where the worst ones are, and how instability spreads from one country to another. Leonard talks to political scientist Pauline H. Baker, president of The Fund for Peace. She has more than 40 years of experience working on issues concerning weak and failing states.

Underreported: Anti-Union Violence in Colombia

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 5 Apr 2007 17:24:37 +0000

In mid-March, the Ohio-based banana company Chiquita Brands admitted to paying $1.7 million to Colombian right-wing death squads who have killed thousands, including union organizers. In Colombia, trade unionists and organizers who are not murdered are often threatened, attacked, or kidnapped. On Underreported, we'll find out what's behind the anti-union violence there, and how it might affect US-Colombian free trade agreements. Maria McFarland is a researcher with Human Rights Watch, and Adam Isacson is director of programs for the Center for International Policy’s Colombia Program.

Underreported: Is the Endangered Species Act Endangered?

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 29 Mar 2007 17:24:25 +0000

Since George W. Bush became president, 57 species have been declared endangered, usually as a result of lawsuits. That's fewer than under any president since the Endangered Species Act was signed by Nixon in 1973. Now Bush administration officials are reviewing proposed changes to the way the ESA is enforced. On today's Underreported, we'll look at which species are threatened and which are thriving these days....and how the proposed changes to the ESA could affect the survival of endangered species. Leonard talks to Stuart Pimm, a conservation biologist and Professor of Conservation Ecology at Duke University.

Underreported: Fish for the Future

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 29 Mar 2007 17:24:25 +0000

Scientists have warned that fish in the seas could be extinct by 2048. Now a group of experts has come up with a way to prevent sea extinction, rebuild fishing stocks, and restore fishing communities. David Festa, director of the Oceans Program at Environmental Defense, tell us the details of the plan.

Underreported: Girl Soldiers in the DRC

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 1 Mar 2007 18:23:27 +0000

Former Congo militia leader Thomas Lubanga will be brought to trial soon at the International Criminal Court. He's accused of war crimes that include conscripting child many girl soldiers he conscripted were also kept as sex slaves. Bukeni Tete Waruzi, director of AJEDI-Ka/Projet Enfants Soldats in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, talks about these girl soldiers, and what happens to them when they're demobilized and returned to their villages.

Underreported: New Garbage Solutions

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 15 Feb 2007 18:23:07 +0000

Dogs and cats in the United States produce about 10 million tons of waste each year. Biowaste expert Will Brinton (director of Woods End Laboratories explains how all these pet droppings could be converted into a valuable energy source. And he talks about turning food scraps into yet another useful energy source.

Underreported: The Prophet of Garbage

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 15 Feb 2007 18:23:07 +0000

Science journalist Michael Behar tells us how a machine known as a Plasma Converter can turn the vilest trash into clean energy. Michael Behar's new article "The Prophet of Garbage" will be appearing in Popular Science.

Underreported: Flipping the Coin

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 8 Feb 2007 18:23:01 +0000

On Feb. 15, the U.S. Mint will release its latest edition of U.S. currency: a new series of one-dollar presidential coins. But one-dollar coins have never really caught on in the US. What will it take to make Americans accept one-dollar coins? Also: should the penny be abolished?
Leonard talks to Douglas Mudd, curator of the American Numismatic Association’s Money Museum and author of the book All the Money in the World; and Austan Goolsbee, a professor of economics with the University of Chicago.

Underreported: Uncontacted Tribes Who Choose to Remain Separate

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 8 Feb 2007 18:23:00 +0000

There are an estimated 107 tribes living in remote areas worldwide who have little to no contact with the rest of the world. Most remain separate because they choose to. Jonathan Mazower of Survival International looks into why they don't want contact, and how they're faring in an increasingly complex and interconnected world.

Underreported: Tortilla Wars

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 1 Feb 2007 18:22:43 +0000

The price of tortillas in Mexico recently shot up by more than 50% in some regions. That’s in part because a single company owns 70% of the tortilla and cornmeal market there. And one communications firm owns 94% of landlines in Mexico. Leonard talks to Professor George Grayson, a Mexico expert at the College of William and Mary. And Sara Miller Llana of the Christian Science Monitor joins us from Mexico City to explain big business’s tight grip on the Mexican economy, and why President Calderon may have to take action soon.

Underreported: Calderon’s Crackdowns

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 1 Feb 2007 18:22:42 +0000

Police in Tijuana recently had their guns confiscated and were issued slingshots instead as part of President Felipe Calderon’s new crackdown on drug gangs. We’ll look into President Felipe Calderon’s policies since taking office, and how they’re affecting his popularity in Mexico. Leonard talks to Maureen Meyer of the Washington Office on Latin America.

Underreported: How Clean is New York City's Drinking Water?

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 18 Jan 2007 18:04:51 +0000

After hearing about the everyday substances that collect in our water supplies, you may be wondering whether it is safe to drink New York City tap water. We ask Eric Goldstein of the Natural Resources Defense Council how clean our drinking water is.

To get the latest information on your state's water quality, visit the EPA's website here.

Underreported: Hand Soap in Lakes and Streams

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 18 Jan 2007 18:04:50 +0000

As American consumers have embraced antibacterial hand soap, compounds in the soap have been building up in lakes and streams around the US. Dr. Rolf Halden of Johns Hopkins studies the distribution of antibacterial soap products in natural waters, and talks about how the buildup might affect the health of humans, animals, and the environment.

Underreported: Do Jets Contribute to Climate Change?

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 4 Jan 2007 18:04:37 +0000

Coat sales are dismal. Blooming azaleas have been spotted in Central Park. Dr. David Travis, a climatologist at the University of Wisconsin, looks at whether jets and the condensation trails they leave behind are contributing to climate change.

Underreported: Beijing to Tibet Railway

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 4 Jan 2007 18:04:37 +0000

China's train from Beijing to Tibet made its maiden voyage six months ago, as part of the ambitious Chinese plan to develop its western provinces. Since then, it's attracted throngs of migrant workers and tourists to Lhasa. Critics say the train also disrupts Tibet's culture and threatens its fragile environment. Thomas Laird and Lila Buckley talk about the pros and cons of the train. Mr. Laird was the Nepal correspondent for Asiaweek for a decade. Ms. Buckley is Beijing correspondent for China Watch; she's just returned from a trip on the Beijing-Tibet train.

The Story of Tibet is available for purchase at amazon.com

Into Tibet: The CIA's First Atomic Spy is available for purchase at amazon.com

Under the Radar

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Fri, 29 Dec 2006 04:09:33 +0000

William Dobson,

managing editor of Foreign Policy magazine

on the magazine's pick for
Top 10 Stories You Missed in 2006

Underreported: The Power of Documentaries

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 26 Oct 2006 15:48:16 +0000

Film Forum is hosting a retrospective celebration of the 10th Anniversary of the Soros/Sundance Documentary Fund. We ask Bruni Burres, director of the Human Rights Watch International Film Festival, and Gara LaMarche, vice president of the Open Society Institute (who also sits on the board of the Sundance Documentary Fund), if documentaries really can make a difference. They talk about some of the fund’s groundbreaking films that have succeeded in raising awareness for human rights issues. And they’re joined by filmmaker Antoin Kattin, who discusses his new short “There are Women in Russian Villages.” The film focuses on the lives of two women in rural Russia—where poverty and domestic violence are often a part of everyday life.

Underreported: Outsourcing Political Activism?

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 26 Oct 2006 15:48:16 +0000

Dana R. Fisher, an Assistant Professor of Sociology at Columbia, tells us about her research into political canvassing in progressive politics. She claims that the left is outsourcing political activism—sending paid workers out to do the work of grassroots outreach. And she argues that it’s destroying the left’s political infrastructure, and holding back the Democratic Party.

Activism, Inc.: How the Outsourcing of Grassroots Campaigns is Strangling Progressive Politics in America is available for purchase at amazon.com

Underreported: Native American Teen Suicide

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 5 Oct 2006 15:47:46 +0000

Steve Sanderson is the creator of Darkness Calls, a comic book he hopes will discourage Native American teens from committing suicide. He’s joined by Sean Muir, the Executive Director of the Healthy Aboriginal Net, who reports that suicide is the second cause of death for American Indians and Alaska Natives aged 15 to 24.

Underreported: Are Midterm Elections Highly Predictable?

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 5 Oct 2006 15:47:46 +0000

We kick off our coverage of Underreported election issues with Joseph Bafumi, an Assistant Professor of Government at Dartmouth, who says midterm elections are highly predictable. Find out what he thinks we can expect this November.

Do you have an election prediction? Which party do you think will control Congress in November?
Tell us your opinion

Underreported: An Update from Somalia

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 3 Aug 2006 15:46:07 +0000

Somalia has been without a functioning central government since 1991. Now, it may be on the brink of civil war. On today's Underreported, David Shinn--who served as Ambassador to Ethiopia from 1996 to 1999 and is now an Adjunct Professor in the Elliott School of International Affairs at George Washington University--brings us up to date on the unfolding situation in Somalia. And Rob Crilly, a stringer for the Christian Science Monitor, joins us by phone from Baidoa, Somalia.

Underreported: Haiti and the Dominican Republic: Uneasy Neighbors on One Small Island

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 6 Apr 2006 15:43:22 +0000

On today's Underreported, a look into the history of discrimination against Haitians in the Dominican Republic, and why the two neighbors are so culturally and politically different. Leonard talks to Dr. Edward Paulino, professor of history at CUNY's John Jay College; and Julissa Reynoso, an attorney and activist in New York City. She recently co-authored an article for Clamor magazine called »On Reversals: Blackness And Political Freedom On Hispaniola.

Human Cargo

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 2 Mar 2006 16:42:32 +0000

On this week's edition of Underreported: survival stories from the world’s refugees. In Human Cargo, Caroline Moorehead describes the living conditions she encountered while traveling among refugees for two years. Worldwide, 17 million people are living in limbo. We'll find out why, for many, escaping genocide, political persecution, and sexual violence is only half the battle.

Underreported: Violent Crackdown in China

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 15 Dec 2005 16:40:48 +0000

Up to 20 protesters were killed last week by Chinese police in a fishing village near Hong Kong. On today's edition of our regular Underreported feature, we'll find out what caused the protests, and what led what could be China's biggest use of force on citizens since the Tiananmen Square massacre in 1989. Sharon Hom, the executive director of Human Rights in China, calls in from Hong Kong. And journalist Jasper Becker phones in from Beijing. We'll ask if the protest was part of a larger pattern of unrest throughout China. And we'll find out if this crackdown is affecting the WTO negotiations that began in Hong Kong this week.
Music:
“Fallout” by Euphone

“Pole Tricks” by Japancakes

Environmental Injustice

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 1 Dec 2005 16:40:25 +0000

On today's Underreported feature, the politics of pollution. Some experts feel that “environmental racism” is keeping industrial waste and toxins in poor and minority communities, and out of affluent neighborhoods. We'll talk to Melissa Checker, the author of Polluted Promises: Environmental Racism and the Search for Justice In A Southern Town, and Majora Carter, the founder/director of Sustainable South Bronx and a 2005 MacArthur Fellow.
Music:
Erin Brockovich Soundtrack, tracks 2, 1, and 3

Underreported: Uzbekistan

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 15 Sep 2005 15:38:14 +0000

Four months ago, Uzbekistan authorities opened fire on a peaceful demonstration in Andijann. Hundreds (perhaps even 1,000) people were killed in the worst massacre of demonstrators since Tiananmen Square. In this week’s Underreported feature, we’ll look into what caused the violence, and what’s been done in response.
Music:
“Royksopp’s Night Out” by Royksopp
“Meta, Beta, Tarabeta” by Pangeia Instrumentos

Tamil Tigers

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 11 Aug 2005 15:37:28 +0000

Guest host Philip Gourevitch looks into the prospects for peace in Sri Lanka after the Tsunami on our weekly feature Underreported. He is joined by Dayan Jayatilleka, Sinhalese political scientist and newspaper columnist in Sri Lanka.

Real Live Aid

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 7 Jul 2005 15:36:31 +0000

On today's Underreported, Leonard asks John Chiahemen, Reuters chief correspondent for Southern Africa, about poverty, debt reduction, and the real benefit of events like Live Aid and Live 8.

» Underreported series
Music: Kronos Quartet, Pieces of Africa, White Man Sleeps composed by Kevin Volans

Murder in Mexico

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 2 Jun 2005 15:35:42 +0000

Almost 400 women have been killed in Ciudad Juarez and Chihuahua City since 1993. On today's Underreported feature, we’ll find out why it's likely that the killers remain free, while the killings continue and innocent people may be behind bars. We’ll hear from Laurie Freeman, Associate for Mexico and Security Policy at WOLA (Washington Office on Latin America), and Guadalupe Morfin, a federal commissioner appointed by Vicente Fox to investigate the killings. She has dismissed Chihuahua's previous investigation of the slayings as a facade and an apparent cover-up.

» Underreported series
Music:
“Tomorrow” by Amp

        Edit of “Poor Leno” by Royksopp

Reproductive Health

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 26 May 2005 15:35:33 +0000

Refugees are forced to deal with many critical issues throughout the world. In today’s Underreported feature, we’ll examine some of the specific issues that refugee women are struggling with, including gender-based violence and grossly inadequate reproductive health care. Gertrude Garway, a former refugee from Liberia, tells us about her work to curb gender-based violence in West Africa. She’s joined by Sandra Krause, Director of the Reproductive Health Progam at the Women’s Commission for Refugee Women and Children.

» Women's Commission website
» Underreported series
Music:
“Royksopp’s Night Out” by Royksopp

“Meta, Beta, Tarabeta” by Pangeia Instrumentos

Wage Gaps

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 5 May 2005 15:35:07 +0000

Avis Jones-DeWeever, the Poverty, Welfare, and Income Security Study Director for the Institute for Women’s Policy Research, gives us an update on the earning gap between men and women, and how race further widens wage discrepancies. Women earn 76 cents for every dollar earned by the average American man. But African American women earn only 66 cents on the dollar, and Hispanic women earn 55 cents on the dollar.
» More on the Institute for Women’s Policy Research
Music:
Soundtrack to Erin Brockovich, music by Thomas Newman: "Useless" / "On the Plume"

Mental Health and Human Rights

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 28 Apr 2005 15:34:56 +0000

In this week's Underreported feature, Eric Rosenthal, the founder and executive director of Mental Disability Rights International, talks about international approaches to mental health. In many places, the mentally ill endure horrible treatment and live in subhuman conditions, yet some feel that this is being overlooked by human rights organizations.
» More on Mental Disability Rights International
» More on Mental Disability Rights in Paraguay
Music: "Tomorrow" by Amp
"Resolution" by Thievery Corporation

Water Rights

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 21 Apr 2005 15:34:44 +0000

The Hopi tribe in Arizona sits on top of an aquifer, with water so pure that it needs no treatment. The Hopi way of life depends on that water, but an energy company is currently draining the aquifer. On today’s Underreported feature, Vernon Masayesva, head of the Black Mesa Trust and former chairman of the Hopi tribe, and David Beckman, lawyer for the Natural Resources Defense Council, fill us in on the situation.
» More on Black Mesa Trust
» More on the NRDC
» The official website of the Hopi tribe
» More on the Peabody Energy Company
» More on the Hopi tribe's "Hopi to Mexico Run," a long-distance running project to educate Native and non-Native peoples about the importance of water
Music:
Axis and Alignment, Chicago Underground Duo: "Rotation"

Gay Rights in the Middle East

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 14 Apr 2005 15:34:35 +0000

Scott Long, the LGBT director of Human Rights Watch, and Ramzi Zakharia, the webmaster and outreach director for GLAS (the Gay and Lesbian Arab Society), give us an update on the state of gay rights in the Middle East. In the past year, activists in Lebanon have launched a campaign to overturn a statute that makes homosexuality illegal, while Saudi Arabia recently raided a private party and arrested 100 men for allegedly engaging in homosexual conduct.
» More on LGBT issues and Human Rights Watch
» More on GLAS NYC
More resources on Gay Rights in the Middle East:
» More on Ahbab
» More on gaymiddleeast.com
» Nore on AIDS and repression of homosexuality in Egypt
Music:
"Tomorrow" by Amp / "Royksopp’s Night Out"

Child Soldiers

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 31 Mar 2005 16:34:14 +0000

Leonard talks to Bukeni Tete Waruzi from Enfants Soldats, Jo Becker Children's Rights Advocacy Director for Human Rights Watch; and Hakima Abbas of Witness, an organization that trains human rights defenders to use video to document abuses.

» More about Witness
» More about the Coalition To Stop The Use of Child Soldiers
» More on Human Rights Watch
» More on the Underreported series
Music:
Track #5, "Meta, Beta, Tarabeta" by Pangeia Instrumentos and Track #4, "Royksopp's Night Out" by Royksopp

An Update on Haiti

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 10 Mar 2005 16:33:48 +0000

On our latest edition of Underreported, Jocelyn McCalla, Executive Director of the National Coalition for Haitian Rights, joins us for an update on the political situation in Haiti one year after President Jean Bertrand-Aristide was ousted.

» More on the National Coalition for Haitian Rights

» More on our Underreported series
Music:
"Pole Tricks," Japancakeks

Generational Conflict

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 3 Mar 2005 16:33:38 +0000

As conflict in Nepal continues, we'll look at how it’s affecting women and children there. Many children are being abducted and forced to fight in the war. Today on our Underreported feature, we find out how the conflict may be damaging an entire generation of Nepalis.

» Read Watch List's new report "Caught in the Middle: Mounting Violations Against Children in Nepal’s Armed Conflict"

» More on the Underreported series
Music:
"Tomorrow" by Amp

Cuban-Venezuelan Relations

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 24 Feb 2005 16:33:27 +0000

In this week’s Underreported series we look into the recent economic and security agreements that have benn signed by Cuba and Venezuela. Cuban historian Jane Franklin explains how this changing relationship might affect Latin America and relations with the U.S.

» More on the Underreported series
Music:
"Tomorrow" by Amp

Edit of "Salpica" by Mambotur

Underreported: Beyond the Headlines

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 3 Feb 2005 16:33:01 +0000

Nicolas de Torrente, executive director of Doctors Without Borders, discusses his organization’s report on the year's top ten underreported humanitarian stories. These top ten stories received one minute of news coverage from the nightly newscasts of the three major US tv networks.

» More on Doctors Without Borders and the 2004 Top Ten Underreported Humanitarian Stories
» More on the Underreported series
Music:
"Tomorrow" by Amp
"Limbe" by S Tone

Underreported: Rainforest Vitals

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 30 Dec 2004 16:32:22 +0000

Atossa Soltani, the Founder and Director of Amazon Watch, updates us on environmental preservation efforts and natural resources development in the Amazon.

» More on Amazon Watch
» More on the Underreported series
Music: Soundtrack to The Guys, music by Mychael Danna: "Where Were You That Morning?" / "Jimmy"

Raising Cane

wnycdigital@gmail.com (WNYC, New York Public Radio) — Thu, 23 Dec 2004 16:32:13 +0000

David Bowman, Director for the ARC Key Centre for Tropical Wildlife Management in Darwin, Australia and Keith Saalfeld, Wildlife Management Officer with Parks and Wildlife in Australia, discuss the ecological fallout of Australia's ubiquitous pest, the canetoad, on our Underreported feature.

» More on the Underreported series

Underreported: Media in Afghanistan

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 16 Dec 2004 16:32:05 +0000

Jon Newstrom, Afghanistan Director for the Internews Network, and Pakistani journalist Ahmed Rashid, join us for an update on Afghanistan’s evolving broadcast media culture. And we’ll discuss how a free, independent media affects Afghanistan’s transition to democracy.

» More on Internews
» More on Ahmed Rashid

» More on the Underreported series
Music: "Royksopp’s Night Out," by Royksopp
"Resolution" by Thievery Corportation

Underreported: Angelina and Atyam

wnycdigital@gmail.com (New York Public Radio, WNYC) — Thu, 28 Oct 2004 15:31:06 +0000

This week’s Underreported feature looks at the kidnappings perpetrated by the Lord’s Resistance Army in Northern Uganda. Angelina Atyam, an activist for the kidnapped children discusses the separation and reunion with her kidnapped daughter.

» Listen to an archived interview with Leonard Lopate and Angelina Atyam from October 31, 2002
» More on the Underreported series
Music: "Knuddelmaus" by Ulrich Schnauss

        "Pole Tricks" by Japancakes