#95: Local Hero Phil Williams

Lindsey Smith of Michigan Radio was one of the first reporters to break the story of the water crisis in Flint, Michigan. She spoke to On Assignment about learning there were devastating lead levels in Flint's water and about covering the crisis, which has impacted her both professionally and personally. Her documentary, 'Not Safe to Drink,' won a duPont this past year for its outstanding storytelling and investigative work.

22 Juni 201731min

For our Summer Series, we’re catching up with this past year’s 75th Anniversary duPont winners. In this episode, Abi and Lisa speak to Daniel Zwerdling, NPR journalist extraordinaire, who has spent years reporting on veterans’ rights. We hear about how journalism is a lot like studying Psychology, his best interview techniques, and how he balances day-to-day stories with the longer investigations he builds over years.

8 Juni 201740min

Director Ezra Edelman had no desire to rehash the OJ Simpson story. Here's why he made an 8-hour film about it. A conversation with Edelman on his 2017 Oscar and duPont-Columbia Awards winning film OJ: Made in America. Edelman spoke with Professor Betsy West after a screening of part one of the film at Columbia Journalism School's Film Fridays.

25 Maj 201728min

An interview with independent filmmaker Nanfu Wang about her feature debut Hooligan Sparrow, which premiered at the Sundance Film Festival in 2016. The film follows Chinese dissident Ye Haiyan, more widely known as “Hooligan Sparrow." Marked as enemies of the state, the activists are under constant government surveillance and face interrogation, harassment and imprisonment during the course of film.

4 Maj 201740min

Correspondent (and Columbia Journalism School professor) Dr. Jelani Cobb embedded himself in the Newark Police Department’s gang unit in the Frontline documentary Policing the Police, to get a first-hand look at the issue, as the debate about race, policing and civil rights continues to unfold in the United States. In this episode, Dr. Cobb and producer James Jacoby take us behind the scenes. Also, our recommendations for what to watch: Gleason and Street Fight.

9 Mars 201738min

A conversation with Academy award-winning director Sharmeen Obaid-Chinoy about her documentary "A Girl in the River," which tells the story of Saba, a Pakistani woman who survives an attempted honor killing at the hands of her father and uncle. The story takes an unexpected turn when she chooses to forgive the perpetrators. “A Girl in the River” won a duPont-Columbia Award in 2017 and an Oscar for Best Documentary Short in 2016. You can watch “A Girl in the River” on HBO now, as well as Obaid-Chinoy's other work, “Pakistan: Children of the Taliban” and “Saving Face.”

23 Feb 201733min

This year’s duPont-Columbia Awards celebrated our 75th anniversary in a room packed with journalism greats like NBC News’ Lester Holt, CBS News’ Jane Pauley, This American Life’s Ira Glass, CNN’s Christiane Amanpour, Bill Moyers, Charlayne Hunter-Gault, and so many others. Holt kicked off the evening by addressing the current anti-media climate head-on. Throughout the ceremony, award winners and honorees echoed his sentiments, reaffirming just how critical journalism is, now more than ever. See the complete list of this year’s winners here. Watch the full ceremony and learn more about the duPont-Columbia Awards at duPont.org. #duPont2017

9 Feb 201740min

Go behind the scenes with two of the minds behind the remarkable documentary, Life, Animated. Pulitzer Prize winner and J-School grad Ron Suskind and Oscar-winning director Roger Ross Williams tell the real-life story of how Ron’s autistic son, Owen Suskind, reconnected with the world around him through classic Disney animated films, like The Lion King and The Little Mermaid. Life, Animated tells Owen’s story through a combination of home movies, Disney clips, and original animation. It's based on the 2014 book of the same name by Owen's father.

20 Jan 201731min