Ripple
The largest oil spill in American history captivated the public's attention for the entire summer of 2010. Authorities told a story of a herculean response effort that made shorelines safe and avoided a worst case scenario. Was that really the whole picture?
From Western Sound and APM Studios, Ripple is a new series investigating the stories we were told were over.
In Season One, we travel hundreds of miles across the Gulf Coast to learn the ongoing effects of the 2010 Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill - which are still impacting many coastal residents more than a decade later.
From Western Sound and APM Studios, Ripple is a new series investigating the stories we were told were over.
In Season One, we travel hundreds of miles across the Gulf Coast to learn the ongoing effects of the 2010 Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill - which are still impacting many coastal residents more than a decade later.
Our Editor's Take
Ripple is an investigative reporting podcast. Each season focuses on a major catastrophe that still affects people's lives today. Dan Leone, the Production Director for Western Sound, hosts the program.
When a disaster like an earthquake first happens, there's usually a lot of media attention. A constant stream of news captivates audiences worldwide. But a few weeks, months, or years later, people move on. They think about plant explosions or floods as something that happened in the past. Yet, for many others, these events impact how they live daily. That is what the podcast wishes to explore. It follows the forgotten disasters and exposes false information about them.
Season one of Ripple concerns a 2010 oil rig explosion off the coast of Louisiana. The resulting Deepwater Horizon oil spill was the leading story across US media for over two months. Experts said that the size of this leak tested the boundaries of human technology. No one believed it would ever end. But it did.
The government announced that it had plugged the leak and that the beaches were clean. It declared the coast safe and promised severe consequences for those responsible. Not soon after, BP pleaded guilty to all fourteen criminal charges. The company also agreed to pay over $4.5 billion in penalties. For most Americans, that was the end of this story. This was also what Leone remembered.
But several years passed, and the podcast host wondered whether this narrative was correct. So, he traveled to the Gulf Coast to talk to those who lived through the oil spill. The accounts they provided told a completely different story. Some locals shared their experiences of mystery illnesses that began with the leak. Others gave accounts of dead animals covering the beaches. They talked about government officials testing the water. No one gave or received a straight answer.
The Ripple podcast presents an impressive investigation that contradicts public knowledge. Leone also shares a human story that is as thoughtful as it is heartbreaking. Over the course of eight episodes, the listeners can expect masterful storytelling.
Episodes