The FRONTLINE Dispatch
FRONTLINE Editor-in-Chief and Executive Producer Raney Aronson-Rath sits down with journalists and filmmakers for probing conversations about the investigative journalism that drives each FRONTLINE documentary and the stories that shape our time. Produced at FRONTLINE’s headquarters at GBH and powered by PRX. The FRONTLINE Dispatch is made possible by the Abrams Foundation Journalism Initiative.
Episodes
RFK Jr. ascends to the top ranks of government. Raney Aronson-Rath and filmmaker Michael Kirk examine his alliance with President Donald Trump, his rise to Secretary of Health and Human Services, and his efforts to turn his long-held beliefs into federal policy—concluding FRONTLINE’s serialized adaptation of The Rise of RFK Jr.
As COVID-19 upends daily life, RFK Jr. emerges as a leading voice of dissent. Continuing FRONTLINE’s serialized audio adaptation of The Rise of RFK Jr., Raney Aronson-Rath and filmmaker Michael Kirk examine how the pandemic unified his beliefs, expanded his audience, and propelled him from the fringes into the national spotlight.
RFK Jr. emerges from a turbulent adolescence determined to reclaim his legacy. Raney Aronson-Rath and filmmaker Michael Kirk trace his rise as an environmental advocate—and the private contradictions that complicated his public mission—continuing FRONTLINE’s serialized audio adaptation of The Rise of RFK Jr.
How did Robert F. Kennedy Jr. evolve from Democratic political heir to MAGA-aligned power player? Host Raney Aronson-Rath and filmmaker Michael Kirk trace his path from Hickory Hill to the Trump administration and introduce FRONTLINE’s serialized audio adaptation of The Rise of RFK Jr.
In this episode of The FRONTLINE Dispatch, host Raney Aronson-Rath speaks with longtime FRONTLINE correspondent Evan Williams, director of The Rise of Germany’s New Right. Together, they unpack how the hardline Alternative for Germany (AfD) party has surged in popularity, drawing young voters on TikTok, capitalizing on economic anxiety, and reframing nationalism for a new generation.
What happens when you grow up poor in America—and stay in touch with the same filmmaker for more than a decade? FRONTLINE filmmaker Jezza Neumann and documentary participant Kaylie Hegwood reflect on “Born Poor,” a film following three children, including Kaylie, from their lives as “Poor Kids” into young adulthood. Fourteen years after filming began, Neumann and Hegwood discuss poverty, perseverance, and what it really ta...
From The Sunday Story on NPR’s Up First, hosted by Ayesha Rascoe.
As North Carolina struggles to build back after Hurricane Helene, NPR correspondent Laura Sullivan travels to New York and New Jersey years after Superstorm Sandy to find how recovery efforts fell short. And we learn special interests are shaping how we put communities back together.
This episode was produced by Graham Smith and Andrew Mambo. It was edited b...
From The Sunday Story on NPR’s Up First, hosted by Ayesha Rascoe.
NPR correspondent Laura Sullivan examines how the nation is failing to rebuild after major storms in a way that will protect them from the next one.
As climate-related storms become more frequent and severe, NPR and FRONTLINE investigate the forces keeping communities from building resiliently, and the special interests that profit when communities don’t. De...
Last fall, Hurricane Helene tore through multiple states, leaving millions without power, billions of dollars in damage, and more than 200 people dead.
In the days that followed, NPR correspondent Laura Sullivan and a team from FRONTLINE began reporting on the ground in Western North Carolina, one of the hardest-hit areas — despite being inland and elevated far above sea level. Over the course of several months, the team d...
For more than a year, FRONTLINE and ProPublica have been investigating a global network of far-right extremists known as the Terrorgram Collective.
The recent documentary The Rise and Fall of Terrorgram explores how this white supremacist network grew on anonymous, loosely-moderated platforms — and the violent consequences.
Reporters A.C. Thompson and James Bandler join The FRONTLINE Dispatch to talk about the ideas and rhe...
After 75 years of Chinese Communist Party rule in Tibet, and as Tibet’s spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama, approaches his 90th birthday, Tibet is at a critical juncture. FRONTLINE’s documentary Battle For Tibet goes inside the long-running struggle over the future of the mountainous region.
Award-winning producer and director Gesbeen Mohammad joins The FRONTLINE Dispatch to discuss what the film reveals about life in Tibet n...
Longtime FRONTLINE correspondent and director Martin Smith returns to talk about his latest documentary, China, the U.S. &the Rise of Xi Jinping.
With President Trump vowing larger tariffs in his second term, the documentary examines China’s rise to economic prominence, the life and vision of its longstanding leader, and rising tensions with the United States over issues such as trade and the future of Taiwan.
Smith sa...
The FRONTLINE Dispatch presents: Breakdown (from Maine Public Radio, The Portland Press Herald, and FRONTLINE).
In the aftermath of Lewiston, healing and recovery is taking many forms. One shooting location was renovated and reopened. Another has become a nonprofit that serves some of the area’s most vulnerable residents. One victim’s father now advocates for increased gun control while dozens of others have joined a lawsui...
The FRONTLINE Dispatch presents: Breakdown (from Maine Public Radio, The Portland Press Herald, and FRONTLINE).
Four members of Maine's deaf community died in Lewiston in October 2023 in what is believed to be the deadliest mass shooting of deaf people in the U.S. The pain of that loss was magnified by the barriers to communication and information deaf survivors and loved ones faced in the immediate aftermath.
Episode 5 exam...
The FRONTLINE Dispatch presents: Breakdown (from Maine Public Radio, The Portland Press Herald, and FRONTLINE).
When a gunman opened fire in a bowling alley and a bar in Lewiston, Maine, last October, he used an autoloading rifle to fire 54 rounds in less than two minutes. Eighteen were killed and 13 wounded.
Although nearly half of Maine households owns a firearm, the state is considered one of the safest in the country. Ep...
American Experience is television's most watched history series. We're bringing you an episode of their new podcast, American Experience Presents: The Birth of McCarthyism.
Joseph McCarthy grows up on a Wisconsin farm where he learns the value of hard work. After serving in World War II, he capitalizes on his military service to launch a successful Senate campaign. As the Cold War intensifies, McCarthy seizes the opportuni...
On December 8, 2024, Syrian rebels stunned the world when they seized Damascus and toppled the government of Bashar al-Assad, more than 13 years into the country’s brutal war.
Spearheading the rebel offensive was Abu Muhammad al-Jolani, the leader of the Syrian militant group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) — and a man who has been designated a terrorist by the U.S. since 2013.
In 2021, FRONTLINE correspondent Martin Smith bec...
The FRONTLINE Dispatch presents: Breakdown (from Maine Public Radio, The Portland Press Herald, and FRONTLINE).
How did leaders of the Army Reserve respond to the many, clear warning signs about the Lewiston shooter, a part-time soldier who was in a dangerous, downward spiral? And why didn’t they take further action?
The Army has acknowledged some failures but also cast blame elsewhere. In Episode 3, we look at questionable ...
The FRONTLINE Dispatch presents: Breakdown (from Maine Public Radio, The Portland Press Herald, and FRONTLINE).
Months before the mass shooting in Lewiston that claimed 18 lives, the gunman’s family and friends were desperately trying to get him help.
His mental health was deteriorating. He was experiencing auditory delusions. And there were multiple warnings about his potential for violence, his access to guns and his threa...
In this audio-only version of FRONTLINE's documentary The VP Choice: Vance vs. Walz, FRONTLINE investigates the lives and views of Sen. JD Vance and Gov. Tim Walz as they run for vice president. In a historic election, those who know the candidates best reveal the influences and ideas they would bring to the White House.
Stream the documentary on FRONTLINE's website, FRONTLINE's YouTube channel, or the PBS app.
Plus, read a...
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