The Takeaway

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The Takeaway episodes

October 20, 2017 How Google Shapes the Opioid Crisis in America
October 20, 2017: Large drug treatment centers are using Google to game the system and target addicts and their families. The Takeaway brings you that investigation, plus the new push to regulate political ads online; the Trump Administration's push to stop a teen immigrant's abortion; the details on the Niger attack; Japan's snap election; new movie reviews; and a database to track police crime.
42 min
October 19, 2017 A Warning for Cities as Amazon Looks for a Second Home
October 19, 2017: As it searches for a location for its second headquarters, cities are scrambling to woo Amazon. But one place already knows the impact that Amazon can have — Seattle — and it’s not all good. Coming up, a look at how Amazon can shape a city; plus Trump's shifting stance on healthcare; the brutal campaign against the Rohingyas; what to expect from the 19th Congress of the Chinese Communist Party; lessons from the 1987 stock market crash and the future of the Federal Reserve; and a push to criminalize catcalling and street harassment.
35 min
October 18, 2017 Want to Fight Rape Culture? Start With Men.
October 18, 2017: When it comes to changing the culture around sexual violence and harassment, one man says that the fight should begin with men, not women. A look at how men can stand up and confront rape culture, plus the latest on the slow relief effort in Puerto Rico; the fight to liberate Raqqa; the NFL's annual meeting; parsing the pieces of the Las Vegas shooting; and a futuristic dreamscape from the year 2067.
43 min
October 17, 2017 After Harvey Weinstein, Women Everywhere Say #MeToo
October 17, 2018: The nation has learned that yet another man has used his position of power to intimidate and exploit women. Online, the social campaign #MeToo is being used to fight back. Today, women from around the country share their own stories, and we look back at the modern history of sexual harassment in the workplace, and how it's been handled by the public. Plus, the latest on the deadly attack in Somalia; the tension between Kurdish and Iraqi forces; a case wrapped in claims of judicial misconduct; and how the structural failings of capitalism relate to and exacerbate the racial wealth gap.
47 min
October 16, 2017 Horrors From Florida's Juvenile Detention System
October 16, 2017: An investigation by the Miami Herald has revealed a widespread culture of abuse, guard-incited violence, and administrative cover-ups in the Florida's Department of Juvenile Justice. Today, The Takeaway brings you that story, plus the latest on the deadly bombing in Somalia; a look at insurance issues after the California wildfires; how right-wing populists scored a victory in Europe; new threats from North Korea; the curious case of the $629 Band-Aid; and one of the founders of the Russian punk band Pussy Riot on political protest.
49 min
October 13, 2017 A Story of Escape
October 13, 2017: In Northern California, wildfires have been burning for nearly a week now, and in the process they’ve destroyed thousands of structures and claimed more than two dozen lives. Aruna and Vivek Jayaraman lost everything. They share their harrowing story today on The Takeaway. Plus, a look at President Trump's pick to lead the Department of Homeland Security; the latest on the American healthcare fight; new movie reviews; social media companies and the Russia investigation; pharmaceutical companies and the opioid crisis; how The Barr Brothers are redefining Americana music.
51 min
October 12, 2017 The Reality of Fighting Wildfires
October 12, 2017: Dozens of wildfires are burning in California, and entire neighborhoods have been reduced to piles of ash. Some 8,000 firefighters are battling the blazes on the ground and from the air. A look at what it takes to fight wildfires, plus the latest on the Puerto Rican recovery effort; the fate of the Iran nuclear deal; a felon's drive to graduate from college; women behind bars; and uniting in Mexico after two major earthquakes.
45 min
October 11, 2017 Who Will Live on the Islands of Trash?
October 11, 2017: In a special new series from The Takeaway, science fiction writers imagine what the world will look like in 2067. Today, we hear from author Kristen Simmons, who pictures an earth altered by climate change, with disappearing coastlines, droughts, and rampant disease. Plus, a look at the wildfires in California; how the Trump Administration is taking on science and environmental rules; the 1990s immigration fight that gave rise to the border wall; and the media self-censorship that protected Hollywood mogul Harvey Weinstein.
45 min
October 10, 2017 Northern California Transforms Into 'Hellscape' Amid Wildfires
October 10, 2017: Deadly wildfires ripped across northern California on Sunday. More than 20,000 people have been evacuated, and at least 13 people have died as a result of the blazes. The Takeaway looks west as the Golden State burns, plus an analysis of President Trump's latest feud; recovering from a mass shooting; the allegations facing Harvey Weinstein; Joseph Stalin's deadly secret in Ukraine; and the hidden female codebreakers of World War II.
47 min
October 09, 2017Addiction Nation: Understanding America's Opioid Crisis
Some 77 million Americans are personally affected in some way by the opioid epidemic, and at least 91 Americans die every day from an opioid overdose. During this special episode, The Takeaway dives deep into the crisis. Here’s what you’ll find:
An estimated 50 million people in the United States suffer from chronic pain, and as doctors struggle to figure out how to treat it, the opioid epidemic has grown in its wake. Keith Wailoo, an expert on pain and author of “Pain: A Political History,” explains.
Dr. Andrew Kolodny, co-director of opioid policy research at the Heller School for Social Policy and Management, says America is in the throes of an enormous crisis of addiction, and at the heart of this crisis lies the medical industry and pharmaceutical companies. He talks about the pressure he and other doctors felt in the ‘90s to turn to prescribing opioids, arguing that many medical professionals have been duped by marketing campaigns that actually drive addiction and death.
From the pain pills that someone is prescribed, to the heroin that can be bought on the street, where do these drugs come from and how are they made? Darren Foster, co-founder of Muck Media and a Peabody Award-winning documentary filmmaker who has focused on the opioid epidemic, answers.
Kimber is a 26-year-old woman from Lynn, Massachusetts. She first used opioids for pleasure at age 13 or 14 after undergoing dental surgery, but became addicted to percocet and then heroin in her early 20s. After many tries at beating her addiction, she’s now more than 80 days clean, and tells us about what being an addict feels like, what she had to do to support her habit, and the moment she says changed her perspective.
For some families with a loved one struggling with opioid addiction, involuntary commitment can seem like a drastic but necessary step. That’s court-mandated treatment, which forces an addict to get help. But this option doesn’t exist in some states, like New Hampshire, which is reeling from opioid overdose deaths. New Hampshire Public Radio’s Paige Sutherland, has the story of two families -- one in New Hampshire, and another nearby in Massachusetts -- who grappled with involuntary commitment to try to save an addicted child.
Beth Kane-Davidson is the director of the Johns Hopkins Suburban Hospital addiction treatment center. She’s been treating addicts for more than 30 years. She sits down with Jessica Jeffery, an addict in recovery, and Deborah Gafner, a mother of son who died of a heroin overdose. Together, they reflect on their experiences, and the importance of confronting this epidemic head on with treatment and prevention.
From September 26-28, 2017, The Takeaway and The Harris Poll surveyed 2,261 U.S. adults ages 18 and older to gain insight into the American opioid epidemic. Here’s what we found:
Nearly half of Americans report to have taken prescription-based opioids, and about 1 in 3 Americans (31 percent) has personally experienced opioid dependency or abuse, whether it be themselves, a friend or family member who has or is currently struggling.
About 77 million Americans are personally affected in some way by the opioid epidemic.
About 1 in 10 Americans (9 percent) knows someone who has died as a result of opioid addiction.
Nearly half of Americans (47 percent) feel the opioid epidemic can affect them personally and the majority (52 percent) of Americans feel that opioid overdoses and deaths are a far bigger crisis in America than reported on by the media. 62 percent agree that police are not doctors and that he opioid crisis cannot be solved in the streets of America.
Nearly half of Americans saying they feel prescription opioids are the same as heroin. Additionally, the majority (57 percent) of Americans feel that opioids are as big of a problem as heroin and (54 percent) feel that opioid abusers deserve to be treated the same as heroin users.
There is still a lack of knowledge regarding opioids and heroin -- 49 percent do not know if opioids and heroin are similar or different, and 11 percent believe the two to be different.
This episode is hosted by Todd Zwillich.
48 min

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