Blowback
79 episodes — Page 1 of 2
S6 Episode 10 - "Zero-Sum"
The Cold War ends. Apartheid falls. But Savimbi's war continues. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
S6 Episode 9 - "Something Big and Bloody"
The fate of southern Africa is decided at Cuito Cuanavale. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
S6 Episode 8 - "Cut Off Their Hands"
The Reagan Doctrine puts Angola in the crosshairs as aid to UNITA is uncorked. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
S6 Episode 7 - "Constellation"
Reagan arrives, emboldening South Africa and Savimbi. The MPLA hangs on. Cuba recommits. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
S6 Episode 6 - "Total Onslaught"
Carter goes Cold Warrior. Savimbi visits Washington. Angola loses a founding father. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
S6 Episode 5 - "Kicking the Dog"
The MPLA and Jimmy Carter struggle to find their footing. Jonas Savimbi licks his wounds. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
S6 Episode 4 - "Zulu & Foxbat"
South Africa invades. Cuba intervenes. Angola becomes independent. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Coming Soon: No Daylight
trailerWhat lies ahead for Blowback in 2026? A mini-series on Israel and America, a comic book, our seventh season and more. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
S6 Episode 3 - "The Stand"
Angolan anti-colonial rebels challenge Portugal. Cuba brings its revolution to Africa. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
S6 Episode 2 - "Economy of Terror"
A look into the Portuguese empire in southern Africa and the stirrings of nationalism in Angola. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
S6 Episode 1 - "The Dead Myth"
An introduction to and overview of our sixth season: the story of Angola, Cuba, and apartheid South Africa's Cold War showdown. Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Coming Soon: Blowback Season 6
New episodes drop September 22. This season, Cuba sends an army to defend newly independent Angola from the combined forces of apartheid South Africa, the CIA, and one of the most infamous warlords of Africa. Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
S5 Episode 10 - "The Terrible But Unfinished Story"
Wounded but not destroyed, Cambodia staggers into the 21st century. Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
S5 Episode 9 - "Le Cercle Rouge"
Vietnam ends Democratic Kampuchea and the US backs the Khmer Rouge. Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
S5 Episode 8 - "Third World War"
Khmer Rouge horrors spiral toward conflict with an ex-comrade: Vietnam. Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
S5 Episode 7 - "Less Than Zero"
Cambodia slips into darkness, as the Khmer Rouge seize the country. Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
S5 Episode 6 - "Dream Warriors"
The short-lived reign of the Khmer Republic; the end of Nixon. Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
S5 Episode 5 - "Last Tango In Paris"
One Cambodian coup, two US invasions and an unlikely American friend: China. Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
S5 Episode 4 - "Mad Men"
Nixon and Kissinger put Cambodia on the menu. Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
S5 Episode 3 - "Listen to the Thunder"
Sihanouk struggles to keep Cambodia out of LBJ's war in Vietnam. Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
S5 Episode 2 - "The French Connection"
Indochina rises up, the French Empire ends, the Cold War begins. Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
S5 Episode 1 - "The Wolves Are Closing In"
A prelude and a primer to this season's story: the tragedy of Cambodia. Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
S4 Episode 10 - "The Phantom Pain"
Donald Trump cuts a deal with the Taliban — and America begins its withdrawal. Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
S4 Episode 9 - "Peace Walker"
The Obama administration promises victory in ‘The Good War.’ Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
S4 Episode 8 - "Sons of Liberty"
America runs its war in Afghanistan on the cheap — and subcontracts to crooks, kingpins, and gangsters. Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
S4 Episode 7 - "Guns of the Patriots"
The Bush administration unleashes the first war of the 21st century. Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
S4 Episode 6 - "Ground Zeroes"
The Afghan jihad spreads to Europe, Asia, Africa, and America. Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
S4 Episode 5 - "We Can Live With That"
The warlord years, and the rise of the Taliban. Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
S4 Episode 4 - "They're Yours Now"
Operation Cyclone whips through Afghanistan — until a deal is finally struck. Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
S4 Episode 3 - "The Trap"
The USSR invades, and the Safari Club kicks things up a notch. Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
S4 Episode 2 - "Bleeders and Dealers"
The build-up to the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan. Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
S4 Episode 1 - "Snake Eater"
Welcome to Season 4: Afghanistan. Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
S3 Episode 10 - "The Host"
The armistice in Korea is supposed to be temporary. But a peace treaty never comes. As decades roll on, the war becomes permanent. Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
S3 Episode 9 - "No More Targets"
Stalemate on the battlefield does not stop the United States from obliterating North Korea. Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
S3 Episode 8 - "American Caesar"
President Truman and his “Big General in the Far East” enter their final standoff over the war. Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
S3 Episode 7 - "Mao's Poem"
The US threatens to cross the Yalu. The Chinese leadership debates its options in Korea. Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
S3 Episode 6 - "National Smile Week"
Gen. MacArthur executes his revenge. Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
S3 Episode 5 - “Train to Busan”
With a rightwing, US-backed klepto-case to his South, Kim Il-Sung bets the house. Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
S3 Episode 4 - "Red Island"
The war before the war on a self-reliant island off South Korea. Soundtrack: https://open.spotify.com/album/4e9hkmGdDhycmgcGKe3bF0?si=d97_H1fvS5CV84ZvcEhZqQ Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
S3 Episode 3 - "The Blue House"
After a flash of hope post-WWII Korea is divided into North and South. Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
S3 Episode 2 - “The Uninvited”
A pocket-sized history of the Korean peninsula, the upstart US and Japanese empires, and World War II. Soundtrack: https://open.spotify.com/album/4e9hkmGdDhycmgcGKe3bF0?si=d97_H1fvS5CV84ZvcEhZqQ Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
S3 Episode 1 - “Stop Me Before I Kill Again”
A new season, a new story: The Korean War. To listen to the rest of season 3 right now, visit www.blowback.show Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Coming Soon: Blowback Season Three
The third season of Blowback — the story of the Korean War — arrives July 2022. Pre-order and listening details at https://blowback.supportingcast.fm Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
S2 Bonus 10 - "Havana (Derangement) Syndrome"
Guests Helen Yaffe, José Pertierra and Marta Núñez Sarmiento discuss the protests in Cuba during July 2021. Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
S2 Bonus 9 - "The Most Beautiful Cause"
A rundown of the Cuban revolution's foreign policy in Africa with guest, Cuban diplomat Oscar Oramas-Oliva. Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
S2 Bonus 8 - "The Capital of Terrorism"
Noah talks with José Pertierra, a Cuban-American immigration attorney who has long tangled with right-wing Miami Cubans in the media and in court. Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
S2 Bonus 7 - "Sweet Dirty Tony's Baadasssss Song"
Guest Bill Corbett (Mystery Science Theater 3000, Rifftrax) and Brendan hang out and talk about some bad Cuba movies. Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
S2 Bonus 6 - “Neverland”
A discussion of Operation Peter Pan with Prof. Nelson Valdes, with a detour into Hungary, 1956. Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
S2 Bonus 5 - "Massive Retaliation"
A brief overview of how American nuclear weapons strategy ran parallel to the story in our main narrative. Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
S2 Bonus 4 - "CIAin't Kiddin'"
Guest Luna Olavarria-Gallegos explains how the US government infiltrated and co-opted the hip-hop scene in Cuba. Advertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices