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The best long-form audio series from WBUR, Boston's NPR, all in one feed. read less

Our Editor's Take

Investigative reporter Alain Stephens hosts The Gun Machine. The eight-part podcast series is part of a long-form audio series from WBUR called Short Run. WBUR is Boston's NPR station. It produces The Gun Machine in partnership with a website called The Trace. It's "the only newsroom dedicated to covering gun violence."

In The Gun Machine, Alain Stephens tells the story of America's gun business. He is a military veteran and a gun owner. Many episodes of the podcast focus on the consequences of gun violence. Episodes include interviews and archive audio footage. In "The Machine We Make," the podcast's debut episode, Alain considers what the US would be like without guns. Another episode of The Gun Machine is about Springfield, Massachusetts. This city has the moniker of "the birthplace" of the gun industry.

The podcast explores the topic of the gun business in America from a variety of other angles. In one episode, Alain talks to Black gun owners about their decision to carry arms. In another, he explains how the NRA has made filing a lawsuit against a gun manufacturer almost impossible.

Alain examines the lasting impact of gun violence in "The Leftovers." He reveals that in America, there are 2.3 times as many people who survive shootings as those who lose their lives. The medical bills of survivors increase by around 400 percent as a result of their altered needs. In this emotional episode, Alain also reflects on what life is like for families who lose loved ones to guns. He shares his own experience of his father's suicide in 2008. Some listeners might find this episode upsetting.

The Gun Machine may appeal to fans of investigative podcasts. People who are curious about the gun industry in the US might also appreciate it. All eight episodes are available for listening.

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Society & CultureSociety & Culture

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Introducing ‘The Gun Machine’

Introducing ‘The Gun Machine’

Every time there is a mass shooting in America, the first question is why. When we look for answers, we tend to focus on the incident itself - who the shooter was, why they did it, and who parachutes in to debate the state of regulation — or lack thereof — that allowed it to happen. What we forget is the centuries of history that got us to this long emergency of gun violence in America. Produced by WBUR, Boston’s NPR, in partnership with The Trace, The Gun Machine looks into the past to bring you a story that most Americans never learned in history class: how early partnerships between mad scientist gunsmiths and a fledgling U.S. government created the gun industry in the Northeast, and how that industry has been partners with the government ever since. Host Alain Stephens examines how this 250-year relationship underpins all Americans’ interactions with guns — including our failures in dealing with the fallout of gun violence. The Gun Machine debuts on Oct. 4, 2023. Listen and follow on Apple, Spotify, Amazon Music and wherever you get your podcasts.

Season 6

Introducing ‘The Gun Machine’

Introducing ‘The Gun Machine’

Every time there is a mass shooting in America, the first question is why. When we look for answers, we tend to focus on the incident itself - who the shooter was, why they did it, and who parachutes in to debate the state of regulation — or lack thereof — that allowed it to happen. What we forget is the centuries of history that got us to this long emergency of gun violence in America. Produced by WBUR, Boston’s NPR, in partnership with The Trace, The Gun Machine looks into the past to bring you a story that most Americans never learned in history class: how early partnerships between mad scientist gunsmiths and a fledgling U.S. government created the gun industry in the Northeast, and how that industry has been partners with the government ever since. Host Alain Stephens examines how this 250-year relationship underpins all Americans’ interactions with guns — including our failures in dealing with the fallout of gun violence. The Gun Machine debuts on Oct. 4, 2023. Listen and follow on Apple, Spotify, Amazon Music and wherever you get your podcasts.

The Gun Machine Ep 1: "The Machine We Make"

The Gun Machine Ep 1: "The Machine We Make"

Our country would look very different without the gun industry. And without the federal government? The gun industry might not exist at all. The premier episode of The Gun Machine introduces the story of how the U.S. has shaped, and been shaped by, the gun industry — and how we all play a role.

The Gun Machine Ep 2: "Why We Carry"

The Gun Machine Ep 2: "Why We Carry"

In episode two of The Gun Machine, host Alain Stephens travels down to Florida to attend the Pew Party, where he talks to Black gun owners about why they carry and examines the link between our nation’s fraught history and why it’s so easy to sell us guns today.

The Gun Machine Ep 3: "Go West"

The Gun Machine Ep 3: "Go West"

The Gun Machine host Alain Stephens and producer Grace Tatter dig into the scandal-ridden biography of the man who cracked the mass civilian market for guns, and who helped create an iconic genre defined by falsehoods that are misremembered as facts today.

The Gun Machine Ep 4: "Triggermen"

The Gun Machine Ep 4: "Triggermen"

The byproduct of producing the world's most lethal guns is that criminals have them, too. We go back to the birthplace of the industry, Springfield, Mass., where nearly every young person we speak with has a story about big guns and the terror they cause in their community.

The Gun Machine Ep 5: "The Client"

The Gun Machine Ep 5: "The Client"

When criminals have access to some of the most powerful weapons in the world, how will police match or outgun them? What role does the gun industry play?

The Gun Machine Ep 6: "The Church"

The Gun Machine Ep 6: "The Church"

In 1999, at the end of a decade in which Gary, Indiana, had endured being labeled as the “murder capital of the nation,” then-Mayor Scott King filed a suit against gun manufacturers he believed were knowingly flooding his city with illegal guns. But soon, the NRA would help ensure that such lawsuits were nearly impossible.

The Gun Machine Ep 7: "What the ATF"

The Gun Machine Ep 7: "What the ATF"

The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives is supposed to regulate the gun industry and protect the American public from gun crime. But the ATF often falls short of that mandate. This is no accident. This episode of The Gun Machine draws on host Alain Stephens’ seven years of reporting on the ATF to chronicle how the gun lobby and its Congressional allies worked to limit the agency’s enforcement powers and resources. Stephens speaks to Steve Dettelbach — the ATF’s first permanent director in seven years — about the challenges agents face trying to do their jobs. Stephens also talks to retired ATF agent David Chipman about how controversial episodes like the Ruby Ridge standoff and the Waco siege turned public opinion against the agency, paving the way for budget cuts and legislative restrictions.

The Gun Machine Ep 8: "The Leftovers"

The Gun Machine Ep 8: "The Leftovers"

Growing up, host Alain Stephens bonded with his dad over guns — an interest Alain still holds today. But more than a decade ago, his family experienced a terrible loss. In this episode, Alain examines how that loss has shaped his career — and what it means for the gun industry to be inextricable from the American government, and for many, American identity. With more than 100 Americans dying from shootings every day, how do we begin to calculate the cost of our country's current relationship with guns?

Season 5

Short Run: 'The power of populism' | Episode 1

Short Run: 'The power of populism' | Episode 1

Populism is a defining force in American politics, and around the world. But what exactly is populism? Where does it come from, and where does it take us? In the first episode of On Point's five part series 'The power of populism', host Meghna Chakrabarti discusses the origins of the word and concept of populism, and exactly what makes a leader a populist.

Short Run: 'The power of populism' | Episode 2

Short Run: 'The power of populism' | Episode 2

Populism is on the rise across the globe, from Turkey to Hungary to Brazil. And in the world's largest democracy, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has ushered in a sweeping, economic modernization plan for all Indians. But he's also cracked down on the nation's civil society. India takes center stage in episode two of On Point's special series 'The power of populism'.

Short Run: 'The power of populism' | Episode 3

Short Run: 'The power of populism' | Episode 3

It felt for a while like Wisconsin was ground zero in American politics. How has populism flourished in the Badger state? In the third episode of On Point's special series 'The power of populism', hear all about Wisconsin and the politics of resentment.

Short Run: 'The power of populism' | Episode 4

Short Run: 'The power of populism' | Episode 4

America’s urban-rural divide. It’s easy to think of American populism as disempowered rural residents versus the urban elite. But when it comes to influencing national policy, who has the real power? Episode four of On Point's special series 'The power of populism' is all about flipping the script on the urban-rural divide.

Short Run: 'The power of populism' | Episode 5

Short Run: 'The power of populism' | Episode 5

Some experts say that while populism can metastasize into authoritarianism, it doesn't have to. They argue that the roots of American populism made this country's democracy better. And that it's time to resurrect progressive populism. But other observers strongly disagree. The fifth and final episode of On Point's special series 'The power of populism' explores whether populism can make better democracies.

Season 4

Short Run: 'The Great Wager'| Episode I

Short Run: 'The Great Wager'| Episode I

President Richard Nixon has a plan: He wants to go to China. The only problem? The U.S. and China have had zero contact since the Communist Party took over China two decades before. In the first part of Here & Now's "The Great Wager," host Jane Perlez digs into the beginning of Nixon’s improbable diplomatic mission.

Short Run: 'The Great Wager' | Episode II

Short Run: 'The Great Wager' | Episode II

Nixon and his national security adviser Henry Kissinger make contact with China. But in the midst of the Cold War, they don’t want anyone to know. How will Kissinger get to Beijing without alerting anyone — and what’s Frank Sinatra got to do with it? In the second part of Here & Now's "The Great Wager," host Jane Perlez digs into how Kissinger pulled off a secret trip to China.

Short Run: 'The Great Wager' | Episode III

Short Run: 'The Great Wager' | Episode III

The news of Nixon’s trip to China is public, and he’s getting credit for pulling off such a historic event. Now, he and his advisers have to work with the Chinese to forge a relationship between two very different countries. In the third part of Here & Now's "The Great Wager," host Jane Perlez revisits when Nixon met Mao.

Short Run: 'The Great Wager' | Episode IV

Short Run: 'The Great Wager' | Episode IV

The relationship between China and the U.S. is off and running — and now the two countries are collaborating on secret, sensitive intelligence. The fourth part of Here & Now's "The Great Wager" includes exclusive information about how Chinese and American intelligence officials agreed to work together against their common rival of many years.

Short Run: 'The Great Wager' | Episode V

Short Run: 'The Great Wager' | Episode V

All of a sudden, it’s less clear if Nixon’s wager is paying off. After years of collaboration and mutual economic benefit, relations between China and the U.S. are at a low point. What does the start of this important relationship reveal about its next chapter? In the fifth part of Here & Now's "The Great Wager," host Jane Perlez considers how Nixon's actions are reverberating today.

Season 3

'Good Bot, Bad Bot': Episode I

'Good Bot, Bad Bot': Episode I

In the first episode of Endless Thread's series "Good Bot, Bad Bot," co-hosts Ben Brock Johnson and Amory Sivertson delve into the history of ELIZA, the world's first chatbot therapist. Why did this computer's creator have a lot of complicated feelings about the development of AI? Can AI help us cope with mental health issues?