Underreported from WNYC's The Leonard Lopate Show

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Underreported: Baghdad's Underground Railroad Jul 30, 2009

Show notes

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 Jul 23, 2009

Show notes

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 Jul 16, 2009

Show notes

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 Jul 16, 2009

Show notes

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 Jul 09, 2009

Show notes

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 Jul 09, 2009

Show notes

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 Jul 02, 2009

Show notes

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 Jul 02, 2009

Show notes

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 Jul 02, 2009

Show notes

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 Jun 25, 2009

Show notes

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.