Worldview - Chicago Public Radio

Indonesia’s President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono

Tue, 07 Feb 2012 10:45:00 -0600

A few weeks ago, President Obama did some surprisingly good crooning of Al Green’s “Let’s Stay Together.” But when it comes to smooth-singing heads of state, Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, the former general who leads Indonesia, has taken it to another level. President Yudhoyono already has three pop music albums to his name. And he's even appeared on Indonesia's version of American Idol.

Writer...

Making sense out of a strange winter

Tue, 07 Feb 2012 10:41:00 -0600

Chicago is having its warmest winter in 80 years, according to The Sun-Times. Meanwhile, Mexico is mired in drought. Europe is experiencing bone-chilling cold in places where snow doesn't usually even fall. In Ukraine alone, an estimated 122 people are reported dead from hypthermia and frostbite.

Today, Worldview tries to make some sense out of this year's anomalous weather around the world with...

Behind African ‘land grabs’ by U.S. institutions and universities

Mon, 06 Feb 2012 10:00:00 -0600

A new report from Human Rights Watch says that Ethiopia is forcibly relocating 70,000 indigenous people from the city of Gambella. The reason? To free up land for foreign investment. The report goes on to argue that actions like this, which move people to areas where they can’t feed themselves, are a sure-fire recipe for large-scale famine.

Today, Worldview delves into land grabs. Entities such as USAID, the World Bank, and major U.S. universities are often the architects...

A look at how Japan’s food industry is recovering a year after deadly tsunami and nuclear disaster

Mon, 06 Feb 2012 09:57:00 -0600

It's been about a year since a devastating tsunami -- and an ensuing nuclear disaster -- hit Japan. Since then, the country's food supply has been under intense scrutiny, with radiation levels in some foods spiking far beyond government safety limits.

Today, on our occasional Food Mondays segment, Worldview talks to WBEZ food blogger Louisa Chu...

Milos Stehlik and Nari Safavi talk the Oscar-nominated Iranian film ‘A Separation’

Fri, 03 Feb 2012 11:38:00 -0600

Written and directed by Iranian director Asghar Farhadi, the film A Separation is the early front-runner for the Best Foreign Language Film at the Oscars.

The film has already won big at the Berlin International Film Festival, snagging the Golden Bear for Best Film -- a first for an Iranian film. It also won the Golden Globe for Best Foreign Language Film. The movie comes at a time when other Iranian filmmakers, like Jafar Panahi, are forbidden to work or have been...

Items left at U.S.-Mexican border reveal hidden history of migration

Fri, 03 Feb 2012 11:36:00 -0600

Millions have crossed the dangerous, high-security border between Mexico and the U.S. But we rarely hear about the actual, visceral experience of crossing. What do migrants bring? What do they eat and drink? How do they survive in the middle of the desert?

This curiosity is what led Jason De Leon to the border. Jason’s a professor at the University of Michigan and a trained...

Libya post-Qaddafi

Fri, 03 Feb 2012 11:19:00 -0600

It’s been five months since Libya’s long-time dictator Muammar Qaddafi was killed. His death marked an end to nearly 42 years of dictatorship. It also opened a political vacuum that Libya’s interim government has tried to fill, at least temporarily.

But since coming to power, the Transitional National Council has faced a series of crises. It’s struggled to assert its authority in some areas. Rival militias are still armed. And it's had a hard time doing basic things like paying...

Spacetoon Kids TV addresses challenges teens face from conflict in Iraq

Thu, 02 Feb 2012 12:45:00 -0600

Fifty percent of Iraq’s population is under 19 years old. The younger generation is in a distinct position, having lived under the shadow of sanctions and wars for two full decades. Today, Worldview talks to a man who's focusing on helping to heal Iraq's youth.

Hussam Hadi is regional director of the Arabic cartoon channel Spacetoon Kids TV. Operating in the Middle East and North Africa, the channel...

Suicides in China-controlled Tibet continue to rise

Thu, 02 Feb 2012 11:55:00 -0600

In recent months, a number of Tibetans have set themselves on fire in public to protest Chinese rule. Photos and videos circulated online show a startling scene: onlookers cheer as another life is sacrificed in a show of resistance against China.

Though the self-immolations aren’t new, they are rising steadily and spreading to more areas. Meanwhile, China is scrambling to tighten its grip on the parts of Tibet where these self immolations have occurred.

Worldview talks...

In Syrian crackdown, doctors who treat protesters become targets themselves

Thu, 02 Feb 2012 11:17:00 -0600

In Syria, a surprising constituency has gotten caught up in the conflict between the government and dissidents: ordinary doctors. As President Assad’s regime becomes more militarized and protesters take up arms, doctors are resorting to underground clinics to treat those hurt in the violence.

But the struggle to provide care is wrought with complications. With independent medical organizations like Doctors Without Borders barred from the country, individual doctors must deal with...