Politics & Economy audiobooks

U.S. World Power in Decline?

By: PBS NewsHour

Narrated by: PBS NewsHour

Length: 7 minutes

Abridged: No

As part of his continuing series of reports examining the country's economic future, Paul Solman sits down with Yale historian Paul Kennedy to discuss the rise and fall of the U.S. and other great economic powers. Read more

Can technology and training strengthen policing?

By: PBS NewsHour

Narrated by: PBS NewsHour

Length: 8 minutes

Abridged: No

President Obama called for $260 million in response funds to build trust between police and minorities, including purchasing body cameras for officers. Judy Woodruff talks to former New York City Police commissioner Raymond Kelly and Malik Aziz of the National Black Police Association about whether more technology will help prevent another... Read more

Albuquerque holds police department accountable

By: PBS NewsHour

Narrated by: PBS NewsHour

Length: 7 minutes

Abridged: No

The Albuquerque Police Department has come under national scrutiny for shootings involving officers, including 28 fatal incidents in the last five years. In March, two policemen shot and killed a mentally ill homeless man, all captured on a body camera. Unlike other high-profile cases around the country, these officers were charged. Special... Read more

Medical volunteers risk their lives to save Mosul's injured

By: PBS NewsHour

Narrated by: PBS NewsHour

Length: 7 minutes

Abridged: No

On the front lines of Mosul, Iraq, two young American volunteers aid those injured in battle. Pete Reed and Derek Coleman treat Iraqi soldiers and civilians right in the path of fire, far closer than other medical providers. Without their proximity to the fighting, many more wounded would die. But their location also means they are at enormous... Read more

Outside Money Flow Into Campaigns

By: PBS NewsHour

Narrated by: PBS NewsHour

Length: 4 minutes

Abridged: No

Paul Solman tracks the outside money pouring into some campaigns and examines how big of an influence they have. This is all part of his regular reporting on Making Sense of Financial News. Read more

Ethiopia: A Battle for Land and Water

By: PBS NewsHour

Narrated by: PBS NewsHour

Length: 7 minutes

Abridged: No

A controversial resettlement program in Ethiopia is the latest battleground in the global race to secure prized farmland and water. Correspondent Cassandra Herrman reports as part of the Food for 9 Billion series, a NewsHour partnership with the Center for Investigative Reporting, Homelands Productions and Marketplace. Read more

Obama Tax Cuts and Hikes

By: PBS NewsHour

Narrated by: PBS NewsHour

Length: 10 minutes

Abridged: No

President Obama continued to make a case for his American Jobs Act on Tuesday, but GOP leaders remain skeptical. Judy Woodruff discusses the tax aspect of the president's plan to spur job creation with two former top economic advisers, Austan Goolsbee and Martin Feldstein. Read more

Ruby Bridges

By: PBS NewsHour

Narrated by: PBS NewsHour

Length: 8 minutes

Abridged: No

In 1960, 6-year-old Ruby Bridges became the first African American child to desegregate an elementary school. Thirty-seven years later, Ruby Bridges Hall discusses her memories of the first day she entered her new school in New Orleans, her first year when she was in a class of one, and her efforts to improve education. She spoke with Charlayne... Read more

To Russian-American community, Russia has become political scapegoat

By: PBS NewsHour

Narrated by: PBS NewsHour

Length: 3 minutes

Abridged: No

How have strains in U.S.-Russia relations affected Russian-Americans and recent immigrants? Special correspondent Ryan Chilcote reports from the Brighton Beach neighborhood of Brooklyn, the first stop for many of the 3 million Russian or former Soviet Union immigrants who come to the U.S., to get their take on the charges of election meddling. Read more

Patriot Act

By: PBS NewsHour

Narrated by: PBS NewsHour

Length: 12 minutes

Abridged: No

Congress is working to renew key provisions of the USA Patriot Act before they expire at the end of the year. Ray Suarez discusses Patriot Act renewal and the divisions that remain among lawmakers with Sens. Jeff Sessions, R-Ala., and Russ Feingold, D-WI. Read more

Were Snowden's Actions Justified?

By: PBS NewsHour

Narrated by: PBS NewsHour

Length: 9 minutes

Abridged: No

When Edward Snowden exposed the existence of some of the National Security Agency’s intelligence gathering operations, did he help or harm America? Jeffrey Brown gets debate from Daniel Ellsberg, co-author of the famous internal Defense Department study The Pentagon Papers, and former Attorney General Michael Mukasey. Read more

Flooding into Bangladesh, Rohingya refugees flee harrowing violence

By: PBS NewsHour

Narrated by: PBS NewsHour

Length: 8 minutes

Abridged: No

Hundreds of thousands of Muslim Rohingyas have fled to Bangladesh in the past three weeks after suffering violent attacks by Myanmar troops and Buddhist vigilantes. The sudden influx of Rohingyas is causing tensions with local Bengalis, who fear becoming the minority. Special correspondent Tania Rashid explains the origins of this mass exodus... Read more

Does a basic guaranteed income decrease the need for social services?

By: PBS NewsHour

Narrated by: PBS NewsHour

Length: 9 minutes

Abridged: No

The idea of a basic guaranteed income is getting a trial run in a Canadian province for three years. Four thousand randomly selected Ontario residents will get thousands of dollars a year, and in exchange, they give up some social supports, while the government gets back some money. Economics correspondent Paul Solman talks with some... Read more

Decades on, millions of unexploded U.S. bombs left in Laos

By: PBS NewsHour

Narrated by: PBS NewsHour

Length: 7 minutes

Abridged: No

The United States dropped 270 million bombs on Laos between 1964 and 1973. On Tuesday, President Obama became the first U.S. president to visit the country, promising to provide the Laotian people to remove the unexploded bombs that remain. Special correspondent Mike Cerre offers a glimpse of life in Laos today and the mission to end the deadly... Read more

Prosecuting drug crimes

By: PBS NewsHour

Narrated by: PBS NewsHour

Length: 7 minutes

Abridged: No

Nearly half of the nation’s prisoners are serving time for drug related crimes. Judy Woodruff gets debate from Mary Price of Families Against Mandatory Minimums and William Otis of Georgetown Law School on Attorney General Eric Holder’s push to scale back mandatory minimum sentences for low-level, non-violent drug offenders. Read more

Rand Paul, Cory Booker team up for REDEEM Act

By: PBS NewsHour

Narrated by: PBS NewsHour

Length: 8 minutes

Abridged: No

The political odd couple of Sen. Cory Booker, D-N.J., and Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., have introduced new legislation in hopes of reforming the nation’s criminal justice system. They join Judy Woodruff to discuss why former prisoners should be given more opportunity to re-enter the workforce, the chances of this bill becoming law and the benefits of... Read more

Eleanor Holmes Norton

By: PBS NewsHour

Narrated by: PBS NewsHour

Length: 11 minutes

Abridged: No

Decades before delegate Eleanor Holmes Norton would represent her district as a congresswoman on Capitol Hill, she worked as one of the original organizers for the March on Washington. Fifty years later, Holmes Norton reflects with Gwen Ifill on her efforts, part of a series of discussions on the legacy of August 28, 1963. Read more

Paul Krugman on Managing Financial Crisis

By: PBS NewsHour

Narrated by: PBS NewsHour

Length: 7 minutes

Abridged: No

Should we have let foundering financial firms fail in 2008? Economics correspondent Paul Solman sits down with economist Paul Krugman to discuss the provocative bestseller The Great Deformation by David Stockman and the government's role in mediating economic meltdowns. Read more

After son joins ISIS, mother fights radicalization at home

By: PBS NewsHour

Narrated by: PBS NewsHour

Length: 5 minutes

Abridged: No

It was as a big surprise to his family when Racheed Benyahia, born and raised in Britain, became a fighter for the Islamic State. In the wake of his death, Racheed’s mother Nicola launched a deradicalization project as part of her personal war against ISIS. That mission is more pertinent than ever, with Britain on high alert for a terrorist... Read more

MLK: A Dream Remembered

By: PBS NewsHour

Narrated by: PBS NewsHour

Length: 13 minutes

Abridged: No

A panel of historians and activists reflect on the historic 1963 March on Washington and the enduring significance of Martin Luther King Jr.'s rousing "I Have a Dream" speech. Read more

Najdłuższa podróż

By: Oksana Zabużko

Narrated by: Anna Maria Buczek

Length: 3 hours 52 minutes

Abridged: No

Część ukraińskich intelektualistów znalazła się w okopach, gdzie o europejskość swojego kraju walczą w dosłownym znaczeniu słowa. Pozostali wszystkim, którzy chcą słuchać, tłumaczą rzeczy dla Ukraińców oczywiste – że ta wojna nie zaczęła się ani w 2022, ani w 2014. Wśród nich jest Oksana Zabużko, która 23 lutego wpadła z krótką wizytą do... Read more

Selena Gomez: Mental Health Advocate

By: Elizabeth Neuenfeldt

Narrated by: Dana Fleming

Length: 5 minutes

Abridged: No

Selena Gomez is known for her acting and music career. But she also advocates for mental health! Through leveled text and crisp images, this low-level title introduces Selena’s life and accomplishments. A profile details basic facts about her life, a map shows off her hometown, and a timeline lays out important events. Quotes throughout the book... Read more

My First Deployment

By: Ronal Bethune

Narrated by: Lori Loomis

Length: 2 hours 21 minutes

Abridged: No

"My First Deployment: Chronicles of a Military Journey" reveals military veteran Ronald Bethune's heartfelt experiences of being deployed for the first time in the Middle East. The emotional narrative shares the ups and downs during deployment, uncovering the reality of a soldier's life beyond battle. Ronald’s book portrays the challenges,... Read more

Greta Thunberg: Climate Activist

By: Elizabeth Neuenfeldt

Narrated by: Dana Fleming

Length: TBA

Abridged: No

From a young age, Greta Thunberg has made it her mission to fight climate change! Through leveled text and crisp photos, this title for young readers introduces her life and work. A profile introduces basic facts about Greta, a map shows where she grew up, a timeline lays out some of the most important events in her life, and quotes let Greta... Read more