The Documentary Podcast

The Los Angeles river has been a concrete channel since the 1930s, when the US Army Corps of Engineers decided to concrete over the original river for flood mitigation. Ever since then, the river has been regularly used as a symbol of dystopia and was the backdrop in a famous scene in The Terminator. However, landscape architect Mia Lehrer wants to transform its reputation and to revitalise the river, because it is still a waterway shared by millions. This will be not be an easy task, however, as the river itself is still the property of the US Army Corps, and the river course crosses numerous bureaucratic boundaries at both the local and state level. Presenter Alan Weedon meets Mia as she describes her vision to breathe new life into an American icon.

14/10/2024 • 26:29

Over the four decades since the pandemic took off, we have seen around 40 million people worldwide killed by HIV. Today, around the same number of people are living with the virus, and many of them are long-term survivors. In 2015, an end to the pandemic by 2030 was adopted as one of the ambitious UN Sustainable Development Goals and signed up to by all member states. Sue Armstrong and Noerine Kaleeba report on the impressive progress made in controlling the spread of HIV and ask whether the goal of an end to the Aids pandemic by 2030 is really possible.

13/10/2024 • 48:44

The Grey Wolves, a Turkish far-right political movement, is getting increasing attention worldwide. So is their hand gesture, depicting a wolf’s head. But what makes them so controversial? Selin Girit from BBC Turkish explains.Produced by Alice Gioia and Caroline Ferguson. (Photo: Faranak Amidi. Credit: Tricia Yourkevich.)

12/10/2024 • 12:43

Commemorations took place in Israel this week to mark 7 October, 2023, when 1,200 people were killed by Hamas gunmen and 251 were taken hostage into neighbouring Gaza. Twelve months later, the bloodshed in the region has also spread to Gaza and Lebanon and Iran has been drawn into the conflict. Host Luke Jones hears from Eylon in Tel Aviv and Adam in England who are frustrated that the plight of the hostages can sometimes appear to be forgotten, especially on the global stage. He also hears what life is like for three young Israelis in their 20s and the anxiety of daily rocket strikes, explosions and gunfire.

12/10/2024 • 22:59

With a global market worth more than $100 billion dollars a year, yoga is a massive industry. With its origins in India, Yoga is often considered to be part of the Hindu tradition, as well as being influenced by other religions including Buddhism and Islam. Yet with modern studios and teachers offering a plethora of styles from fitness to beer yoga, has it become disconnected from its spiritual roots? And is the surge in social media trends diluting its authenticity? Geeta Pendse meets the women on personal missions to ‘reclaim yoga’ whilst balancing the demands of business with the spiritual roots of this ancient practice.

11/10/2024 • 26:29

Female con artists are exploiting superstition and family love to swindle women with Chinese heritage living in the west. The blessing scam is an elaborate piece of criminal street theatre, which over the last few months has claimed victims across North America and the UK. It begins with an apparently random meeting with a stranger in the street, and very quickly escalates from there. Victims are tricked out of their money and possessions, after being terrified into believing that a relative’s life is threatened by evil spirits. Are the criminals just master manipulators, or could something even more sinister be involved? Now a social media activist is fighting back and trying to put the crooks out of business.

10/10/2024 • 17:51

Mishal Husain is joined by a panel of guests to discuss whether this is a path to peace in the Middle East.Joining Mishal are Jeremy Bowen, the BBC's international editor; Lord Ricketts, who served as a British diplomat for many years, including being on the Foreign Office Middle East desk during Israel’s invasion of Lebanon in 1982; Afif Safieh, former Palestinian head of mission in London, Washington, D.C. and Moscow; Ehud Olmert, who was Israeli prime minister from 2006 to 2009; Ambassador David Satterfield, who until earlier this year was US special envoy for Middle East humanitarian issues; and Dr Sanam Vakil, director of the Middle East and North Africa programme at Chatham House.Producers: Sinead Heekin and Louisa Lewis Editor: Owenna Griffiths Studio direction: Ben Andrews

09/10/2024 • 42:32

A bonus episode from the People Fixing the World podcast. Concerns are growing about the effects of smartphones on both adults and children, so we're looking at ways to reduce our dependence on these ubiquitous devices.Presenter Myra Anubi attempts to ditch her smartphone for a week, while she finds out about a fast-growing campaign in which local parents get together to agree to delay buying them for their children. But Myra and her own daughter don't quite see eye-to-eye on the topic.Plus Anna Holligan visits an innovative project called The Offline Club in Amsterdam, where people hand in their phones in exchange for a dose of good old real-life interaction.People Fixing the World is a weekly programme looking at common challenges around the world and the creative ways people are trying to tackle them. Discover more of the people and projects trying to make the world a better place at bbcworldservice.com/peoplefixingtheworld or, just search for People Fixing the World wherever you got this podcast. Presenter: Myra Anubi Producer: William Kremer Netherlands reporter: Anna Holligan Editor: Jon Bithrey Sound mix: Hal Haines

08/10/2024 • 23:17

Lyse Doucet reflects on some of the biggest moments from this conflict with BBC colleagues Jeremy Bowen, Anna Foster and Rushdi Abualouf, who have been reporting from around the region and they discuss what could happen next in the Middle East. for more search The Conflict wherever you get your BBC podcasts

07/10/2024 • 27:22

Gary O'Donoghue meets local newspaper editors in America to hear about the challenge of reporting during a divisive presidential election campaign. In Kansas, Gary visits Eric Meyer, the owner and editor of the Marion County Record. In August 2023 the paper’s offices, and the home of its 90-year-old owner, Eric’s mother Joan, were raided by the town's five person police department. A "good old fashioned newspaper war" has been playing out in Westcliffe, Colorado, where Gary meets Jordan Hedberg, editor of the Wet Mountain Tribune. In the same town, the Sangre de Cristo Sentinel, promises “a different view from the same mountains”. Gary also hears about how trust in local news, which has traditionally played a big part in local politics, is being eroded.

07/10/2024 • 26:30

Rampant abuse and 'mafia' style intimidations: these are the conditions thousands of women working in one of India's film industries allegedly faced for years. Following a damning report into Kerala’s Malayalam-language movie scene, BBC India reporter Sumedha Pal has been talking to actors, directors and producers to understand what's going on, and how the MeToo movement has changed the working environment for women in the wider Indian film industry. Produced by Alice Gioia and Caroline Ferguson. (Photo: Faranak Amidi. Credit: Tricia Yourkevich.)

05/10/2024 • 18:25

On 7 October 2023, Hamas gunmen attacked Israel, killing 1,200 people and taking 250 more hostage. Israel responded with airstrikes and by sending troops into Gaza. The aim was to destroy Hamas’s military and governing capabilities and to secure the release of the hostages. The impact in Gaza has been devastating. Thousands of people have been killed. The United Nations estimates that around 90% of Palestinians have had to leave their homes and are now living in temporary accommodation. We begin with the stories and words of three Palestinian women, whose lives we have been tracking through voice messages.

05/10/2024 • 23:10

Peter Adamski seemed to have it all. At 19, he had met Kathy, the love of his life and the woman he would marry. In his 20s, he landed a prestigious job with the pharmaceutical giant Johnson & Johnson, jetting around the world in first class for business meetings. He had a healthy baby boy, John, his wealth soared into the millions, and he owned three houses. He was living the American dream. But everything changed when he and Kathy received the news from a doctor: "Kathy, you have early-onset Alzheimer’s." The future they had envisioned together was abruptly replaced by the prospect of a long, painful farewell. After Kathy’s passing, Peter felt as though he had lost all sense of meaning - until one night, he felt a profound call from God. At 65, he became a Catholic priest, and he believes his life has never been more fulfilling.

04/10/2024 • 26:28

A bonus episode from the Lives Less Ordinary podcast. British-Iranian Anoosheh Ashoori spent years in one of Iran’s toughest prisons after being snatched off the street by security forces. He was falsely accused of espionage, but realised he'd become a pawn in a game of global politics. For more extraordinary personal stories from around the world, go to bbcworldservice.com/liveslessordinary or search for Live Less Ordinary wherever you get your BBC podcasts.Presenter: Mobeen Azhar Producer: Harry Graham

03/10/2024 • 41:16

In May, riots broke out in the French overseas territory of New Caledonia - a group of islands in the South Pacific. Protesters were calling for independence from the European nation that has ruled the archipelago for more than a century and a half. Amid the violence came an unusual claim - that Azerbaijan, a seemingly disconnected nation thousands of miles from both Paris and the Pacific Ocean - was stoking the violence online. BBC Trending asks if there is any truth to the claim. And if so, what might Azerbaijan be hoping to achieve?

02/10/2024 • 17:51

Jakarta is facing all sorts of problems - deadly floods, land subsidence, extreme pollution, notorious traffic and overcrowding. Indonesia’s outgoing president has come up with an extreme solution: moving the country’s capital a thousand kilometres away, to the middle of the rainforest. Will the new city be a futuristic utopia and a model for sustainable urbanisation - or an eye-wateringly expensive, ecologically disastrous ghost town? BBC Indonesia reporter Astudestra Ajengrastri travels to the island of Borneo to find out if the ambitious plans will live up to reality.

01/10/2024 • 26:29

Panama is one of the wettest countries in the world. It also has a world famous shipping canal which earns it billions of dollars a year. With big money and high rainfall combined, it should be straightforward to meet the water needs of its four million plus people.But hundreds of thousands of Panamanians don’t have access to piped water. With a growing population and a drought, last year the Canal Authority reduced the number of ships passing through by a third, losing it and the country hundreds of millions of dollars in revenue. The Authority says this was done to protect drinking water for the 2.5 million people who rely on the same water supply the Canal uses to work its massive locks. With uncertainty over the impact of climate change, Panamanians are asking whether there’ll be enough fresh water to satisfy the enormous demand from the canal’s locks with the basic need to have regular access to clean water. Jane Chambers travels to Panama to meet the people involved in the struggles for access to water.

01/10/2024 • 26:53

Ian Rankin is on a deadline to complete his next Inspector Rebus thriller. He is happy with the first draft: “at the moment, it is perfect!”. But what will others make of it? In the second of two episodes recorded across Scotland over several months, we follow the bestselling crime writer to the remote, coastal town of Cromarty. He comes here to escape reality, and to write without distraction. But on this occasion, there is a crime fiction festival taking place. Will he get any work done?

30/09/2024 • 26:29

Ian Rankin has been called “the king of crime fiction”. His Inspector Rebus books have sold more than 30 million copies worldwide, translated into 37 languages. And yet, as he embarks on writing the next in his series, he reveals that “sitting down and actually writing the books is hard… and it's not getting any easier.” Where does he begin and where might the series end? Recorded across Scotland over several months, we follow Ian Rankin as he gets his next novel into shape.

30/09/2024 • 26:28

On October 1st, Claudia Sheinbaum will take office and become Mexico's first female president. What will her presidency look like? With Laura García from BBC Mundo and Luis Fajardo from BBC Monitoring. Produced by Caroline Ferguson and Alice Gioia.(Photo: Faranak Amidi. Credit: Tricia Yourkevich.)

28/09/2024 • 26:30

The escalating conflict between Hezbollah in Lebanon and Israel is being described as one of the most intense in recent times. The current fighting has been taking place since October last year with the start of the conflict in Gaza. There have been hundreds of deaths in the past couple of weeks, thousands of injuries and tens of thousands of people have been forced to flee their homes. In our conversations, we talk with two doctors in Beirut who treated victims of the exploding pagers and walkie-talkies that targeted Hezbollah operatives. We also bring together people in southern Lebanon, including Zaahra who is reluctant to leave her home despite bombardment by Israeli forces. “It’s our land, it’s where we grew up,” she tells host Luke Jones.

28/09/2024 • 23:04

In Turkey's largest city, Istanbul, queues of people of all faiths visit a Greek Orthodox Church on the first day of each month to make a wish. Emily Wither spoke to devotees who shared their hopes and desires, as they stood patiently in long lines. No one knows exactly how the tradition started, but visitors take a gold key and descend the stairs to the underground Byzantine chapel to visit an ancient spring believed to have miraculous and spiritual powers. Once their wish comes true, they return the key to the church, who pass it on to others wishing for good luck.

27/09/2024 • 26:30

A bonus episode from The Inquiry. Just over three years ago the Taliban seized Kabul and stormed to power in Afghanistan. They soon declared a new government which is still not recognised by any other country. The Taliban claim they have made improvements to the country. War is over and, they say, there is more peace and security than before they came to power. But millions of people are struggling to survive in the country, there is a restrictive rule of law that is imposed by a very hierarchical government structure and half the population need aid. This week on The Inquiry we’re asking ‘How are the Taliban governing Afghanistan?’ The Inquiry gets beyond the headlines to explore the trends, forces and ideas shaping the world. For more episodes just search for The Inquiry wherever you get your BBC Podcasts. Presenter: Emily Wither Producers: Louise Clarke and Matt Toulson Editor: Tara McDermott T echnical Producers: Nicky Edwards and Cameron Ward Contributors: Dr Weeda Mehran, co-director for Advanced Internationalist studies at Exeter University Graeme Smith, senior analyst for the International Crisis Group Dr Orzala Nemet, research associate at ODI Overseas Development Institute Javid Ahmad, non-resident scholar at the Middle East Institute in Washington DC

26/09/2024 • 23:50

A bonus episode from The Climate Question podcast.BBC Climate Editor Justin Rowlatt travels to Somalia to investigate the links between global warming and the decades-long conflict there. He hears how Somalis are responding by launching businesses and their own renewables industry.For more episodes on the issues facing our planet and how we might combat them, just search for The Climate Question wherever you get your BBC podcasts. Presenter: Justin Rowlatt Producer in Somalia: Stuart Phillips Producers in London: Miho Tanaka, Sara Hegarty Sound Mix: Tom Brignell and David Crackles Editor: Simon Watts

25/09/2024 • 27:00

What do Hollywood legend Leo DiCaprio, Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg, and English zoologist Jane Goodall have in common? They have all taken to social media to call for the protection of the Masungi Georeserve, a popular ecotourism destination in the Philippines. This comes after the Philippine government proposed scrapping a contract with the reserve that handed it control over 2,700 hectares of land for reforestation purposes. As public debate rages on, BBC Trending has uncovered evidence of an online disinformation campaign targeting the nature reserve’s keepers. But who is the puppet master pulling the strings from the shadows?

25/09/2024 • 19:37

The US ‘pro-life’ movement has gained ground in recent years, with courts overturning women’s right to an abortion and questioning the legality of IVF fertility treatments. The question at the heart of the debate is when does life begin? ‘Pro-life’ has become synonymous with evangelical Christianity - often considered a powerful voting bloc in America. But how united are Christian preachers? And what does this tell us about the upcoming election? Ellie House reports from the divided churches in the swing state of Michigan.

24/09/2024 • 26:54

Erdem Moralıoğlu is one of the UK’s most admired and creative fashion designers. Born in Canada to a Turkish father and British mother, he studied fashion at the Royal College of Art and went on to found his eponymous label in 2005. He has dressed the Princess of Wales, Michelle Obama and Nicole Kidman. His Spring Summer 2024 collection was inspired by the the late Dowager Duchess of Devonshire, also known as Debo, one of the famous Mitford sisters - the ‘It’ girls of the 1930s and '40s. Working closely with Susie Stokoe, head of textiles at Chatsworth House, Erdem has drawn on his own designs and many of the Duchess’ clothes and created an exhibition called Imaginary Conversations. Belinda Naylor meets Erdem at his studio in east London to discuss his inspirations and visits Chatsworth House to observe the installation of the exhibition.

23/09/2024 • 26:29

Amid the 2015 migrant crisis, when millions of refugees were seeking safety in Europe, Germany’s then Chancellor, Angela Merkel, took an extraordinary step to take in more than a million asylum seekers, mostly from the Middle East. She famously declared, “Wir Schaffen Das” - We can do it. Now, almost 10 years on, many from this generation of refugees are living settled lives in Germany and a recent liberalisation in German citizenship law means they are now eligible for citizenship, giving them a vote in where Germany goes from here. But it is a fraught time to become German. The AfD, a far right party harshly opposed to immigration of all kinds, is rising in popularity, especially in the former East. Damien McGuinness meets former refugees now on a path to citizenship, and finds out what this piece of paper means to them.

22/09/2024 • 49:21

Pavel Kushnir was a classical pianist. But according to Russian authorities, he was also a dangerous dissident. In July 2024, he died on hunger strike in a remote prison in Far East Russia. Who was Pavel Kushnir, and why did he end up in jail? Liza Fokht from BBC Russian has been trying to piece together Pavel Kushnir’s story.Produced by Alice Gioia, Caroline Ferguson and Hannah Dean.(Photo: Faranak Amidi. Credit: Tricia Yourkevich.)

21/09/2024 • 18:32

The rock legend Jon Bon Jovi made headlines around the world and earned much praise after he was seen helping a distressed woman on the ledge of a bridge in Nashville, Tennessee. He approached her, talked to her, and gave her a warm hug after she climbed back to safety. “What I’ve noticed is the most potent medicine that I can give somebody is a caring heart and a hug in their times of trial,” says first responder Marc Maikoski who has been involved in many such incidents in his own area in California. Marc and our other guests discuss how “seeing” an individual can be the crucial moment for a person in a dark moment and how the intervention of a stranger, who takes the time and shows the courage to talk, can turn a situation around.

21/09/2024 • 23:01