Stephen Kinzer

Polyethylene bags are used to protect bananas from pests and blight on a plantation in Costa Rica.

The shadow of the United Fruit Company still reaches across the globe today

About a hundred years ago, the Boston-based banana company, United Fruit, reigned supreme in Central America. It didn’t just own banana plantations, but also railroads and telephone lines. The company even dictated national policies and overthrew governments. For his podcast “Under the Shadow,” about US involvement in Central America, Michael Fox traveled to Guatemala, where he looked at the legacy of United Fruit and its impact on the global fruit industry today.

The World

Iran pursues nuclear ambitions, produces yellowcake uranium

Environment
Tanks in the streets of Tehran, 1953.

The US and Iran part I – the 1953 coup

Global Politics

Nicaraguans mourn death of Sandinista founder Tomás Borge

John Kerry Begins Work as Secretary of State, Facing Iran, Drone War

The Twisted Legacy of Sandinista Founder Tomás Borge

Global Politics

Nicaraguans are mourning the death of Tomás Borge, the last surviving founder of the guerrilla movement that overthrew Nicaragua’s Somoza dictatorship in 1979.

Syrian Violence Continues After Peace Plan Deadline

Violence continues in Syria, a day after the UN-backed ceasefire deadline. Kofi Annan voiced his hopes that both sides would come to follow the six-point peace plan which required the Syrian government to pull back its troops from towns and cities by April 10  and enforce a full ceasefire within the next 48 hours. At a […]

Iran: Hope for Diplomacy?

On Wednesday, Iran claimed to have made advances in the master production of nuclear fuel despite increasingly tough sanctions by the West over its controversial nuclear program. This week Iran has also been in the headlines for a series of attacks in Thailand, India and Georgia. Furthermore, relations between Israel and Iran are increasingly strained […]

The World

Foiled plot reveals an unstable Iran

Conflict & Justice

To unpack this complicated plot are Stephen Kinzer, author of “Reset: Iran, Turkey and America’s Future,” and Mohsen Asgari, correspondent for the BBC in Iran.

The World

Kagame expects resounding victory in Rwanda’s presidential election

Global Politics

For a better understanding of the political climate in Rwanda, we talk with Stephen Kinzer, author of ‘A Thousand Hills: Rwanda’s Rebirth and the Man Who Dreamed It.’ Will Ross of the BBC reports from a polling station in Rwanda.