The Whistleblowers

Jun 15, 2024 05:33
Fighting for violent sexual assault survivors

Most sexual assaults go unreported for a variety of reasons: It’s his word versus hers; the victim feels embarrassed, ashamed, or humiliated; or the trauma is so severe that the victim can’t bring herself to report the crime, lest she be called to testify in court and relive the whole nightmare. On this episode of the Whistleblowers, John Kiriakou speaks with author, speaker, and licensed counselor Lisa Saruga about her own harrowing story and why some victims are brave enough to fight back, even when that fight takes decades.

Jun 8, 2024 05:36
The critical importance of whistleblowers

There have been so many important whistleblowers over the years—big names like Daniel Ellsberg, Edward Snowden, Bradley Birkenfeld, Annie Machon, and Katherine Gunn, just to name a few—that you wouldn’t be wrong to think that official opinion, the opinion of governments, had changed so that these truthtellers would be protected for their revelations. But that’s not necessarily the case. Certainly, many countries have moved forward on whistleblower protection. The European Union immediately comes to mind. But the US and UK are not among them. In most cases, at least involving government whistleblowers, the US and UK cite national security as the reason for not welcoming new disclosures. And indeed, they use the Espionage Act and the Official Secrets Act, respectively, to prosecute whistleblowers. But why hasn’t more been done to protect private sector whistleblowers? Why do people who blow the whistle on waste, fraud, abuse, illegality, or threats to the public health or public safety at Big Pharma, in international banking, inside international conglomerates, and elsewhere still face the untampered wrath of their companies? Where are protections for these whistleblowers? On this episode of The Whistleblowers, John Kiriakou discuss the critical importance of whistleblowers with former whistleblower and whistleblower advocate Jane Turner.

Jun 1, 2024 05:45
Gaza: A humanitarian catastrophe

More than 34,000 people have been killed in Gaza since the start of hostilities on October 7, 2023, and more than 90% of those deaths have been civilians. The Israeli military has been heavy handed, even by its own standards, destroying hospitals, churches, mosques, apartment blocks, and literally everything else in its path. On this episode of The Whistleblowers, John Kiriakou speaks with Mondoweiss Gaza correspondent Tareq Hajjaj and a member of the Palestinian Writers Union who had to be evacuated from Gaza.

May 25, 2024 05:39
Campus protests & The Real News Network with Chris Hedges

The United States has been swept by college and university protests and encampments in support of Palestine. The movement began at New York’s prestigious Columbia University and quickly spread all across the country, from major universities to small colleges. On this episode of Whistleblowers, John Kiriakou speaks with journalist Chris Hedges who was fired from The Real News Network for saying Biden was guilty of genocide in Gaza and siding with the protestors and the plight of the Palestinians. The two discuss the campus protests and Pro-Palestinian/Anti-Israel movement gaining steam across the United States.

May 18, 2024 13:39
The role of the CIA in international conflict

International affairs are at the top of the news all around the world. With hot conflicts in Ukraine, Gaza, and the Sahel, and would-be confrontations in the Taiwan Strait, the Red Sea, and elsewhere, there is a lot of reporting about various visits of the US secretaries of state and defense and of sensitive negotiations with this country or that. But what is the role of the CIA in all this? Is that role different now that the CIA is led by a professional diplomat? And how different is it now that the CIA is less an intelligence collection agency and more a para-military body? On this episode of the Whistleblowers, John Kiriakou speaks with whistleblower and former senior CIA officer Mel Goodman to answer all these questions.

May 11, 2024 10:27
Migration & immigration controls at the US border

On this episode of the Whistleblowers, John Kiriakou speaks with David Bacon, a photojournalist, fine art photographer, author, union organizer and activist, about the American Dream. Most importantly, they’ll discuss whether or not the American Dream is still available to immigrants, as the border crisis has those in charge on both sides of the aisle ready to shut the newcomers out due to skyrocketing violent crime rates in the US.

May 4, 2024 09:30
Epstein’s black book

Many questions remain unanswered since the death of Jeffrey Epstein. What was the actual source of his money? Was he an agent working for a foreign intelligence service? Who was it that ordered that Epstein be given a sweetheart deal after his first arrest? Why was he being protected and by whom? And perhaps most importantly, why is it, nearly five years after his death, that we still do not know who among the rich and powerful were connected to him? On this episode of The Whistleblowers, John Kiriakou speaks with independent investigative journalist Christopher Helali about how these questions could be answered by Epstein’s little black books.

May 1, 2024 05:49
A broken whistle: Conversation with a CIA whistleblower

Pedro Orta is a highly-decorated former CIA officer. In 18 years in the agency, he won eight Exceptional Performance awards for his work in the Middle East, in Afghanistan, and in the US Office of the Inspector General, working, ironically, on whistleblower issues. On this episode of The Whistleblowers, John Kiriakou speaks with Pedro Orta about how he took on a political issue from inside the CIA, and what he did when he saw evidence the CIA was seeking to undermine a sitting president.

Apr 27, 2024 06:25
A world on fire: Aaron Bushnell

On February 25, 2024, a young active duty airman by the name of Aaron Bushnell went to the Israeli Embassy in Washington, declared that as a member of the US Air Force he could not be party to a genocide against the Palestinian people, doused himself with kerosene, and set himself on fire. He shouted “Free Palestine” five times until finally collapsing. He died later at a hospital. He was only 25 years old. On this episode of the Whistleblowers, John Kiriakou asks journalist and podcaster Esha Krishnaswamy if Aaron Bushnell’s death was a bold political statement, or a simple suicide by someone suffering from mental illness.

Apr 24, 2024 08:08
The march towards nuclear war

Tensions between Russia and the US have risen as the relationship between the two superpowers has deteriorated to levels not seen since the Cold War. On this episode of The Whistleblowers, John Kiriakou speaks with peace activist, former State Department official, and Marine Corps veteran Matthew Hoh about the world’s march towards nuclear war. Plus, they discuss why war is pushed by the mainstream media and if it is the only way to stay profitable.