Simon Winchester’s Atlantic World

British author and journalist Simon Winchester is currently researching a new book, which he calls a “biography of the Atlantic Ocean.” And as his research takes him to weird and wonderful parts of the globe, he’s been checking in with us. From the Purple Islands off the coast city of Essaouira in Morocco, to the Sub-Antarctic island of South Georgia, you can revisit Simon’s Atlantic ports of call right here.

The Lost Voices of Tiananmen Square

Revisit the events of 20 years ago with James Miles. He was the BBC’s China correspondent back then. He’s put together a documentary that weaves archival tape with present-day interviews. The audio brings back the intensity of the protests and the shock of the subsequent crackdown, and the contemporary reporting puts it in historical perspective. Listen

Wind Power in the Antarctic, OR318, Sherlock Holmes Lives!, and The Photographer

This week, putting wind power to work in the Antarctic. Also, an online movement is created after an Iranian blogger dies in prison. Then, take a break from tech with Sherlock Holmes, and a new graphic novel about a French photographer’s journey into war-torn Afghanistan. Listen

Videos and audio slideshow for immigration series

Videos and an audio slideshow for the four-part series ‘Immigration in times of recession’ reported by Jason Margolis

California journal

by Jason Margolis
It’s always tough to be an immigrant: new culture, new language, new rules. But what’s it like to be an immigrant during a severe recession? And what’s it like to be here without documents? There’s no better place to explore this than California: it’s estimated that a quarter of the nation’s roughly 12 million undocumented immigrants live there….. (read more)

Mexico’s drug war continues

It was out of the headlines while Mexico struggled with the swine flu virus. But the war between the government and Mexico’s drug cartels continued without interruption during the outbreak. The World’s Lorne Matalon reports.

More voices from California

As a reporter, I always set up too many interviews. There’s only so much we can cram into a few minutes for our radio pieces. Herein is the beauty of the Web. This is a bit more from some interesting people I met in California.
-Jason Margolis

Immigration in times of recession

It’s always hard to be an immigrant. But it’s gotten harder during the recession. This four-part series looks at working conditions for immigrants in America’s stalled economy. The World’s Jason Margolis traveled to Southern California to speak with immigrant workers from the Philippines, Mexico and Central America.

• Watch the FRONTLINE/World video: “California: The Immigration Dilemma”

50 years of Island Records

The record label that brought Bob Marley, Roxy Music and U2 to the world’s attention has turned 50 – and as part of the celebrations a month-long exhibition, Island Life, opened in London on May 22nd. With the help of archive interviews with Island Records’ founder Chris Blackwell, and artists including Bryan Ferry, Jimmy Cliff [...]

Chris Merrill recommends these books from the Middle East

President Obama met this week with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and will soon meet with Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas. Seems like a good opportunity to check in with our book critic, Christopher Merrill and ask him to select books about the region to highlight for us.

Cannes on a budget (6:00)

Anchor Marco Werman speaks with film critic Lisa Nesselson about the line-up at this year’s Cannes Film Festival and how the film industry’s most lavish event is keeping its shine amidst the global economic downturn.

The Photographer

The World’s Clark Boyd introduces us to a graphic novel about a Doctors Without Borders mission into the war-torn Afghanistan of the 1980′s. Listen

EU Puts Hurt on Intel, Persian Bloggers on Saberi’s Release, Google Oceans Goes Deep, and SixthSense at MIT

This week, MIT’s SixthSense human-computer interface aims to the web, well, wherever you want it. Also, the European Union puts some financial hurt on chip-maker Intel. Persian bloggers weigh in on the release of journalist Roxana Saberi. And Google Oceans goes deep. Listen

The Photographer

Turn back the clock to 1986. The Cold War is in full swing. The Soviet Union is seven years into its occupation of Afghanistan. And Afghan resistance fighters — the mujahedeen — are making life very difficult for Soviet troops. Afghanistan was as dangerous in 1986 as it is today. That didn’t stop the humanitarian group “Doctors without Borders” from going in. A new book portrays the journey one photographer took with the group into war-torn Afghanistan. Here’s The World’s Clark Boyd.

Vodafone Wireless Winners, UK DNA Database, Swine Flu Questions Answered, and Airplanes!

On this week’s Technology Podcast, we hear about some wireless technologies that could improve lives across the globe. Check out the cell phone that’s been modded into a microscope! We also take an in-depth look at Britain’s DNA database, and the political ruckus that it’s causing. You sent your swine flu questions in, so we take 15 minutes and try to answer some of them. And we finish with another competition — Airbus wants to fly more efficiently, and is asking for help. The finalists include one team that wants to fly gaggles of planes in an inverted “V” formation…like geese. Listen