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About This Podcast
In recent years, there has been a surge of interest in projects that attempt to address the harm done by urban highways – covering them up, transforming them into boulevards, or removing them entirely. But even as the problems with these structures are easy to see, the right solution for any given city is usually not obvious. Often, it’s contentious.
Two years ago, GBH News released the acclaimed podcast The Big Dig, about Boston's messy attempt to reckon with its own highways. Now host Ian Coss is taking the show on the road to do live tapings in different cities facing the same issue – in Seattle, Portland, Austin, Syracuse, Baltimore and more — looking at stories from the past, present and future. It’s called The Highway Teardown Tour.
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“This is a town where there are three pastimes: politics, sports and revenge.” The town is Boston.
Seemingly dry topics become gripping political dramas in this Peabody Award winning show from creator Ian Coss and GBH News. Each season of “The Big Dig” uncovers a different facet of society – infrastructure, gambling, food, healthcare – together the pieces connect to tell the story of modern America.
Season One: "The Big Dig"
The highway project known as “The Big Dig” is infamous – a shorthand for government failure – but it all started as one engineer’s dream to correct the wrongs of the past, and its legacy is far from simple.
Season Two: "Scratch & Win"
America’s most successful state lottery – and its greatest innovation, the scratch ticket – all starts with mafia bookmakers and state bureaucrats going toe to toe in a battle to own the future of gambling.
Season Three: "Catching The Codfather"
A fishing tycoon is arrested in an elaborate sting operation, but claims he’s the real hero fighting back against the state.
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CREDITS:
Host & Creator: Ian Coss
Executive Producer: Devin Maverick Robins
Producer: Isabel Hibbard
Story Editor: Lacy Roberts
Contact us as [email protected]
Podcasting 2.0 Features
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Recent Episodes
S1E14 Highway Teardown Tour | 4. Austin, TX
How did the Austin City Council find themselves locked in a ‘death match’ over what to do about Interstate 35? Two councilors and two journalists talk through the fraught politics of so-called…
S1E13 Highway Teardown Tour | 3. Rochester, NY
Once the highway is gone, can the divisions these structures created actually be healed? Can the people on either side become neighbors again? Rochester, NY is trying to answer that question.Guests:…
S1E12 Highway Teardown Tour | 2. Syracuse, NY
Is it possible to re-write the Interstate map and send highways around cities instead of through them? Syracuse, NY is doing just that. Guests: Marie Therese Dominguez, Lanessa Owens-Chaplin, Joe…
S1E11 Highway Teardown Tour | 1. New York, NY
What to do with the BQE? It’s a one of a kind highway in desperate need of repair, but no one can agree how to fix it. Guests: Polly Trottenberg, Lara Birnback, Stephen NessenRecorded live at WNYC’s…
S1E10 Highway Teardown Tour | Enter Here
Every American city is divided by crumbling old highways. Every city is trying to figure out what to do with them. But even if the problems with these structures are obvious, the solutions are not –…
Introducing: The Cult Queen of Canada from CBC’s Uncover
In The Cult Queen of Canada from CBC’s Uncover, a tiny Saskatchewan town faces a surreal crisis when a cult leader calling herself “The Queen of Canada” occupies an abandoned school. As neighbours…
In search of the perfect lobster roll
In the 1980s, six women on an island off the coast of Massachusetts began selling lobster rolls as a church fundraiser. Today, people travel by car, boat, and plane just to taste these hallowed…
S3 What you need to know when buying fish, with Roger Berkowitz
Buying fish can be a puzzling process. It comes frozen and fresh, wild and farmed, from many different countries, and with all kinds of ratings and labels. So what does it all mean?For this bonus…
S3 Have we entered a new era for government regulation?
John Vecchione represented a group of fishermen who challenged government regulations all the way to the Supreme Court. Together, they helped overturn the decades-old “Chevron Doctrine,” which has…
S3E6 Catching The Codfather | 6. It’s Your Job to Catch Me
A new revelation forces federal investigators to close down the case, fast. But what will taking down The Codfather mean for the port of New Bedford?Major sponsorship for "Catching The Codfather" is…
S3E5 Catching The Codfather | 5. Painting Fish
When federal agents first meet with Carlos Rafael, the fishing mogul offers up a tantalizing clue: a special system for ‘painting fish.’ It’s the key to understanding the entire fraud, and why Carlos…
S3E4 Catching The Codfather | 4. Mosquitos on the Balls of an Elephant
A new regulatory system is meant to end overfishing, but Carlos Rafael exploits it to accumulate even more boats and power – drawing resentment from other fishermen, and attention from the…
S3E3 Catching The Codfather | 3. Punch in the Kisser
The west has cowboys, the east has fishermen – it's a job defined by freedom and self-reliance. But in 1991 a contentious lawsuit forces the government to step in, setting Carlos Rafael and the…
S3E2 Catching The Codfather | 2. I Hope Those People Sink
How did Carlos Rafael become “The Codfather”? It starts in the 1980s, when a bitter strike divides the city of New Bedford and its famed fishing fleet. But Carlos manages to turn the strike to his…
S3 The Big Dig is ON TOUR
Every American city is divided by crumbling old highways. Every city is trying to figure out what to do with them. Join us live in 10 American cities for The Big Dig “Highway Teardown Tour.” Details…
S3E1 Catching The Codfather | 1. Red Lobster
Carlos “The Codfather” Rafael dominates the most valuable fishing port in the United States, and no one is quite sure how he did it. But in 2015, when undercover federal agents offer to buy his…
S3 Introducing Season Three: Catching The Codfather
A fishing tycoon is arrested in an elaborate sting operation, but claims he’s the real hero fighting back against an overbearing state. So who is Carlos “The Codfather” Rafael really – a folk hero, a…
S3 HOV Lane Ahead
Your official invitation to join The Big Dig membership program. Listen on for details, sign up at wgbh.org/hovlane
The Big Dig Returns
NEW name. NEW art. NEW season. NEW events. NEW mailing list. Listen for all the updates and a preview of what's to come. ---A few links to share:Sign up for our mailing list at:…
S2E12 BONUS: How to sue the government, and win
Last week, we heard about a movement to challenge the authority of government agencies and push power down to the people. This week, the story of a central figure in that movement: Ralph Nader. This…
Frequently Asked Questions
The Big Dig has published 43 episodes since September 2023, covering topics in History.
The Big Dig is currently highly active with new episodes weekly. Average episode length is 48m.
Sign up on Grep.FM to access contact details for The Big Dig, including email and social media links.
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