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Artwork for Bad Watchdog
Department Of Homeland Security
Far-Right Extremism
ICE Detention Centers
Government Accountability
Human Rights Violations
Mental Health Care
Immigration
Mental Health
POGO
Transgender Rights
Sexual Assault
Domestic Violent Extremism
Incarceration
Civil Rights
Freedom Of Information Act
Solitary Confinement
Human Smuggling
September 11th Terrorist Attacks
Oklahoma City Bombing
ICE Detention

In this award-winning investigative podcast, host Maren Machles explores how accountability failures in Washington D.C. impact the lives of people all over the country, and she showcases the investigators, experts, and activists who work to keep our government working for the people. In the second season, Maren and POGO’s investigative reporters take a look at the Department of Homeland Security. ... more

PublishesWeeklyEpisodes17Founded3 years ago
Categories
DocumentaryPoliticsNewsSociety & Culture

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Artwork for Bad Watchdog

Latest Episodes

We want to share a show with you! Democracy Works comes from the McCourtney Institute for Democracy at Penn State and explores how our democracy impacts and is impacted by issues ranging from climate change to criminal justice to party politics. In t... more

For the past few episodes, Maren has explored the reality of immigration detention, uplifting the conditions in Department of Homeland Security (DHS) centers where thousands are held under the presumption that they may be threats to national security... more

Content note: This episode discusses suicide and sexual violence.

After a years-long legal fight from the Department of Homeland Security, a court order finally gave Nick and other investigators access to 33 reports detailing conditions in Immigrati... more

The Department of Homeland Security is a very large, very powerful federal agency. It’s also extremely secretive. Who monitors the agency and holds it accountable the actions it takes as part of its mission to protect the homeland? In this episode, M... more

Key Facts

Accepts Guests
Contact Information
Podcast Host

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Recent Guests

Jason De León
Anthropologist at UCLA and author of *Soldiers and Kings, Survival and Hope in the World of Human Smuggling*
UCLA
Episode: Democracy Works: The immigration stories that aren't told
Sarah Jones
Volunteer with Louisiana Advocates for Immigrants in Detention
Louisiana Advocates for Immigrants in Detention (LA Aid)
Episode: Behind the Curtain (S2 E5)
Arely Westley
Activist advocating for trans immigrants in Louisiana
Episode: Behind the Curtain (S2 E5)
Katherine Hawkins
Senior legal analyst at POGO focusing on national security, immigration, and human rights
Project on Government Oversight
Episode: Behind the Curtain (S2 E5)
Spencer Reynolds
Senior counsel at the Brennan Center for Justice
Brennan Center for Justice
Episode: Behind the Curtain (S2 E5)
Daryl Johnson
Former lead analyst for domestic terrorism at the Department of Homeland Security
Episode: The Red Herring (S2 E1)

Host

Maren Machles
Host and producer who investigates accountability failures in government, with a focus on the Department of Homeland Security and the systemic issues affecting migrants and civil rights.

Reviews

4.7 out of 5 stars from 118 ratings
  • Review of Bad Watchdog podcast

    The podcast was well done…but still IG Cuffari, who lied during his Senate confirmation in 2019, still sits in power- 6 years later. Your podcast, unfortunately, has not been considered by any official in DC who can do anything to rectify this terrible IG.

    Apple Podcasts
    5
    Yorba Barbell
    United States6 months ago
  • Fantastic show, even better host.

    Very interesting and well researched host has a super hot voice sorry 😬

    Apple Podcasts
    5
    AVERYMN
    United Statesa year ago
  • Whole lotta hemmin n hawin

    All this manufactured outrage making mountains outta molehills telling us what we already know or focusing on details too small to matter.

    Yawn 🥱

    I wonder how many resources were flushed down the toilet making this waste of time. Ew. Please focus on something helpful, do better.

    Apple Podcasts
    1
    oldjohnhall
    United Statesa year ago
  • Excellent Podcast

    Host Maren does a wonderful job diving into an infuriating topic that I was ignorant to prior to listening. Well researched and sourced, great pace, you should definitely listen to this!! Can’t wait to see what these folks do next!

    Apple Podcasts
    5
    HattieC🖤
    United States2 years ago
  • Shout it from the rooftops!!

    DHS is broken and rotten to the core. It oversees the largest and most troubled law enforcement agency in the land -- the very one that was harnessed by an authoritarian-leaning president to attack peaceful protesters; the very one that intersects, daily, with the most vulnerable of the most vulnerable people: the migrant population, which it abuses with impunity. "There's enough smoke here that there's a fire burning somewhere." And, yet, the #1 watchdog meant to protect the US public from thes... more

    Apple Podcasts
    5
    Nanjing94
    United States3 years ago

Listeners Say

Key themes from listener reviews, highlighting what works and what could be improved about the show.

Some criticisms focus on the podcast's need for a more inclusive range of perspectives in discussions around immigration and national security.
Listeners praise the engaging and well-researched narrative style, highlighting the host's insightful interviews and deep exploration of complex issues.
Many commend the podcast for raising awareness on critical topics like immigration and government misconduct that are often overlooked.

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Talking Points

Recent interactions between the hosts and their guests.

Behind the Curtain (S2 E5)
Q: What did the reports reveal about conditions in ICE detention centers?
The reports confirmed widespread abuse, inadequate medical care, discrimination against marginalized groups, and the improper use of solitary confinement.
Obscured: County Jails, Mental Health & Accountability Barriers with Brett Sholtis
Q: How did you start to think about civil rights violations? Is it a civil rights violation? Is it maltreatment? Are they both?
There is a community of lawyers who have to some degree successfully litigated prisoners' rights on a few issues of the law, including violations of rights under the Americans with Disabilities Act when reasonable accommodations are not made for mental health conditions.
Obscured: County Jails, Mental Health & Accountability Barriers with Brett Sholtis
Q: Can you tell us a little bit about some of your top line findings?
We found that in about a third of all uses of force, a corrections officer was responding to a person who either was having some kind of acute psychiatric crisis or somebody who had a known mental health condition.

Audience Metrics

Listeners, social reach, demographics and more for this podcast.

Gender Skew
Location
Interests
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Age Range
Household Income
Social Media Reach

Frequently Asked Questions About Bad Watchdog

What is Bad Watchdog about and what kind of topics does it cover?

This investigative podcast focuses on the impact of accountability failures in Washington D.C., particularly examining the operations and failures of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). Through in-depth discussions with investigators, experts, and activists, it sheds light on critical issues such as the treatment of migrants in detention and the rise of far-right extremism that often goes unaddressed. The second season reveals the disturbing realities of how DHS has prioritized detaining migrants over managing actual security threats, while the first season highlights a troubling pattern of misconduct within the department's Office of Inspector General. Unique for its rigorous research and compelling storytelling, the podcast not on... more

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1. Strict Scrutiny
2. Today, Explained
3. The Vanishing Point
4. The Rest Is Classified
5. History of the Second World War

How many episodes of Bad Watchdog are there?

Bad Watchdog launched 3 years ago and published 17 episodes to date. You can find more information about this podcast including rankings, audience demographics and engagement in our podcast database.

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What guests have appeared on Bad Watchdog?

Recent guests on Bad Watchdog include:

1. Jason De León
2. Sarah Jones
3. Arely Westley
4. Katherine Hawkins
5. Spencer Reynolds
6. Daryl Johnson

To view more recent guests and their details, simply upgrade your Rephonic account. You'll also get access to a typical guest profile to help you decide if the show is worth pitching.

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