Jon Wolfsthal, Director of the Nuclear Crisis Group and Former Special Assistant to President Obama, in conversation with Joe Cirincione.
Release Date: 07/02/2019
Atomic Assembly: Amarillo, Texas
NukeTalk
The Pantex Plant sits just 17 miles northeast of Amarillo, Texas. It's the only remaining assembly and disassembly plant for nuclear weapons in the United States. Guests include Barbara Kent (downwinder and advocate), Kaysie Kent (downwinder and advocate), and Lucie Genay (author of Under the Cap of Invisibility: The Pantex Nuclear Weapons Plant and the Texas Panhandle).
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Atomic Assembly: Rocky Flats, Colorado
NukeTalk
In 1989, a team of FBI agents raided and shut down the Rocky Flats Nuclear Weapons Plant after nearly 3 years of investigation into its environmental and waste practices. It was the first-ever raid of one government agency by another. Featured guests include Kristen Iversen (Author of Full Body Burden: Growing Up in the Nuclear Shadow of Rocky Flats), Jon Lipsky (Former FBI Special Agent who led the Rocky Flats raid), and Dr. Deborah Segaloff (Colorado Physicians for Social Responsibility).
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Atomic Assembly: Hanford, Washington
NukeTalk
Over 80 years ago, Hanford was miles and miles of open farmland. Now, it’s known as the most contaminated site in the Western Hemisphere. This episode features Steve Olson, author of the book Apocalypse Factory: Plutonium and the Making of the Atomic Age, and Britany Lindley, staff attorney at Hanford Challenge.
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The Holiday Episode: Nuclear Weapons and Human Rights
NukeTalk
The holiday season here! So is Human Rights Day. Listen to this special holiday episode about the intersections between justice, human rights, and nuclear weapons. Guests include Mary Dickson (Downwinder and Activist) and Lilly Adams (Union of Concerned Scientists).
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In Conversation with Charles Oppenheimer
NukeTalk
We're not quite done with Oppenheimer yet! In this bonus episode, Ploughshares Fund President Dr. Emma Belcher sits down with Charles Oppenheimer, grandson of J. Robert Oppenheimer. The two discuss how growing up in New Mexico, the site of the Trinity Test, and being an Oppenheimer shaped his views on nuclear weapons. They also discussed how the film helped organize and raise awareness of those working on nuclear elimination, as well as bringing nuclear issues back into the public eye.
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Pop Culture in the Atomic Age
NukeTalk
In the years between Oppenheimer the man and Oppenheimer the movie, nuclear weapons have carved out a lasting place for themselves in popular culture. These depictions are not just plot points—they’re opportunities to educate and call for action. Guests include Alex Wellerstein (Nuclear Weapons Historian and Professor at the Stevens Institute of Technology) and John Pope (Chief Audience Officer of the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists).
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Nagasaki: On the Other Side of Grief
NukeTalk
It was only three days after the atomic bombing of Hiroshima that another atomic bomb was dropped on Nagasaki. In the years since, those impacted have been able to transform grief into a lasting legacy through their stories and art. Guests include Dr. Masao Tomonaga (Nagasaki Hibakusha and former Director of the Japanese Red Cross Nagasaki Atomic Hospital) and Ravi Garla (Strategic Communications Consultant at the Nuclear Threat Initiative.
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Hiroshima: The Story that Almost Wasn't
NukeTalk
The Bomb. The Aftermath. The Cover-up. And everything after. Guests include Dr. Yuki Miyamoto (DePaul University and second generation Hiroshima Hibakusha) and Lesley M.M. Blume (journalist, historian, and author of Fallout: The Hiroshima Cover-up and the Reporter Who Revealed it to the World).
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The Trinity Test: Sunny With a 100% Chance of Radiation
NukeTalk
The US dropped the first atomic bomb on itself. And then they called it the Trinity Test. Guests include Tina Cordova (Tularosa Basin Downwinders Consortium), Mary Martinez White (Tularosa Basin Downwinders Consortium), and Dr. Joseph Shonka (Senior health physicist and nuclear engineer).
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Fact, Fiction, Film
NukeTalk
Does Oppenheimer have a post-credit scene? Yes, and you’re living it. Hosts Angela Kellett and Jacqueline Hsing review Christopher Nolan’s film Oppenheimer and discuss what’s fact, what’s fiction, and what’s missing from the narrative.
info_outlineJon Wolfsthal, director of the Nuclear Crisis Group and former special assistant to President Barack Obama, joins Joe Cirincione for a special in-depth interview. Jon discusses his experiences working on US nuclear policy as Senior Director for Arms Control and Nonproliferation at the National Security Council during the Obama administration, and what lessons the next US president should learn from both Obama and President Donald Trump's approaches to nuclear policy. Also: Early Warning nuclear news analysis with Ploughshares Fund Deputy Director of Policy Mary Kaszynski and Roger L. Hale Fellow Catherine Killough.