Vanguard (TV series)

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Vanguard
Vanguard TV.jpg
Title Card
Genre Journalism
Starring Christof Putzel
Mariana van Zeller
Adam Yamaguchi
Narrated byCorrespondent of episode
Country of originUnited States
Original languageEnglish
No. of seasons6
No. of episodes62 (including a special interview with Laura Ling)
Production
Executive producersAdam Yamaguchi
Jim Fraenkel
Running timeapprox. 44 minutes (without commercials)
Original release
Network Current TV
Release2008 (2008) 
2013 (2013)
Related

Vanguard is a television documentary series that was broadcast on the now defunct Current TV television network. Vanguard reported on such issues as the environment, drugs, and the effects of globalization and conflict.

Contents

The focus of most Vanguard episodes is to explore and immerse viewers in global issues that have a large social significance. Unlike sound-bite driven reporting, the show's correspondents conduct interviews with affected people, and the regions involved are usually led by a guide and translator who facilitate access. Since Vanguard's subject matter often involves exposés about organized crime, drug trafficking, and armed revolts, the correspondents can face significant danger because of their reporting due to unstable political or security situations.

Vanguard has received some of the media industry's highest honors for journalism, including the 69th Annual Peabody Award, given for excellence in electronic media, [1] and the 2010 Television Academy Honor, which recognizes "achievements in programming that present issues of concern to our society in a compelling, and emotional and insightful way." [2] Vanguard has also been awarded the 2009 Alfred I. duPont-Columbia Award and the 2009 Livingston Award, and has been nominated four times for a News and Documentary Emmy Award and also for a Sports Emmy Award. [3]

Vice president of the Vanguard journalism unit Laura Ling and her colleague Euna Lee were detained in North Korea after they allegedly crossed into North Korea from the People's Republic of China without a visa. They were subsequently pardoned after former U.S. President Bill Clinton flew to North Korea to meet with Kim Jong-il. They were producing a piece for Vanguard at the time of their detainment, as shown in a Vanguard episode titled "Captive in North Korea."

In April 2012, Current announced that it would produce six new episodes of Vanguard. [4] However, according to their own Facebook page, apparently only two episodes were created in season 6 before the Vanguard series was ended, falling 4 episodes short of their originally announced plan. [5] The Vanguard homepage and blog, a section of Current TV's website, were also ended when the Current TV website was shut down.

In 2013 Al Jazeera Media Network bought Current TV and, after several months, created Al Jazeera America. The new channel took what remained of Vanguard's team and merged them into Al Jazeera's investigative unit and the America Tonight team. Christof Putzel continues on at Al Jazeera America as a correspondent on the investigative reporting series America Tonight . [6]

Episodes

Season 1

Episode NumberEpisode TitleCorrespondentDescription
1 A Day With the Tribe Laura Ling Brazilian tribe
2 The Meth Trail Christof Putzel Methamphetamine in the gay community
3 Diving Too Deep Mariana van ZellerDepletion of lobsters in Nicaragua
4 Death Train Mariana van ZellerIllegal immigrants from Central America
5 Rebels in the Pipeline Mariana van ZellerNigeria's oil-rich Niger Delta
6 From Russia With Hate Christof PutzelGrowing Neo-Nazi movement in Russia
7 Elixir of the Toxic Frog Mariana van ZellerThe Kambo frog could hold secrets for modern medicine
8 Prison Power Play Laura LingPrison gang politics
9 Saving Madagascar Adam YamaguchiEnvironmental issues in Madagascar
10 Blood Roses and Deadly Diamonds Mariana van ZellerUnromantic truth behind two symbols of love
11 Scarf Wars Laura LingExtremes of enforcing separation of church and state in Turkey
12Lost in DemocracyChristof PutzelBhutan
13 City on Steroids Adam YamaguchiChongqing
14 End of the Road Jael de Pardo Pan-American Highway
15 Lagos la Vida Loca Mariana van ZellerLagos, Nigeria
16 Destination Anywhere Tracey ChangEmigration from Philippines
17 World's Sugar Daddy Mariana van ZellerEthanol in Brazil
18 Pollution to Protest Laura LingElectronic waste
19 World Without Water Adam YamaguchiDroughts in China, Florida, and Lake Mead

Season 2

Episode NumberEpisode TitleCorrespondentDescription
1 America's Secret War with Iran Mariana van ZellerAlleged secret war
2 The Great American Detour Lauren CerreAmerican youth
3 Modern Day Pirates Kaj Larsen Malacca
4 I Heart Global Warming Adam Yamaguchi Greenland
5 Maxed Out NoneEconomic crisis
6 Chinatown, Africa Mariana van ZellerChinese in Africa
7 Getting Out of Prison Laura LingParolees
8 Japan: Robot Nation Adam YamaguchiLoss of employment to robots
9 Fully Automatic America Kaj Larsen Guns in the US
10 The Most Controversial Jail in the World Adrian BaschukGuantanamo
11 Hot SexXxy Young Cerissa TannerUnderage prostitution
12 Battle of Saipan Adam YamaguchiEconomy
13 Narco War Next Door Laura LingMexican drug gangs
14 Beach of Death Christof Putzel & Kaj LarsenSomalia conflict
15 Lost Vegas Laura LingRecession in Las Vegas
16 Outsourcing Unemployment Adam YamaguchiRecession in China
17 Thank You, Recession Tracey Chang & Lauren Cerre Argentine Recession

Season 3

Episode NumberEpisode TitleCorrespondentDescription
1 The Oxycontin Express Mariana van ZellerPain killer trade in Florida (won 2009 Peabody Award)
2 Cuba: Waiting for a Revolution Adrian BaschukCommunism in Cuba
3 Forest of Ecstasy Adam YamaguchiCambodian rainforest
4 Sri Lanka: Notes from a War on Terror Mariana van Zeller Tamil Tigers
5 Porn 2.0 Christof PutzelNew media and adult entertainment
6 Prison Contraband Janet ChoiSmuggling contraband into prison
7 Remote Control War Kaj LarsenTechnology and war
8 Cocaine Mafia Christof PutzelCocaine in southern Italy

Season 4

Special - Captive in North Korea (Interview with former Vanguard VP Laura Ling)

Episode NumberEpisode TitleCorrespondentDescription
1 Missionaries of Hate Mariana van ZellerAnti-gay bill in Uganda
2Rape on the ReservationMariana van ZellerSexual assaults on Native American reservations
3The World's Toilet CrisisAdam YamaguchiOpen defecation in Southeast Asia
4Soccer's Lost BoysMariana van Zeller Football trafficking
5 War Crimes Kaj LarsenRise of PTSD among war veterans
6American JihadiChristof PutzelAmerican-born Somali terrorist Omar Hammami
7Life and Death on the BorderChristof PutzelIllegal crossing of the US/Mexico border
8Marijuana Wars Part 1Adam YamaguchiMexican drug trafficking organizations growing marijuana in the US
9Marijuana Wars Part 2Adam YamaguchiTaking down low-level planters and high-level financiers

Season 5

Episode NumberEpisode TitleCorrespondentDescription
1Gateway to HeroinMariana van ZellerOxyContin and heroin in Boston
2Sex, Lies, & CigarettesChristof Putzel"Smoking Baby" and Big Tobacco in Indonesia
3Sushi to the SlaughterAdam YamaguchiThe cost of sushi to bluefin tuna
4City of God, Guns, & GangsMariana van ZellerTransforming Rio de Janeiro's slums for the 2014 World Cup and 2016 Olympics
5Tiger FarmsAdam YamaguchiBlack market tiger trading
6This (Illegal) American LifeMariana van ZellerPersonal stories of illegal immigrants living in America
7Recovery HighNoneA New England high school which helps students struggling with addiction [7]
8Arming the Mexican CartelsChristof PutzelThe gun-fueled drug war in Juarez, Mexico
9IslamophobiaAdam YamaguchiIslamophobia's rise in the US and the UK
10Under the Knife AbroadAdam YamaguchiMedical tourism in India, Mexico, and Barbados
11The War on WeedChristof PutzelThe enforcement of marijuana laws across the United States
12Two AmericasNoneA month in the lives of two American families at different ends of the economic spectrum
13The 99 PercentChristof PutzelThe Occupy Wall Street movement
14Cage Fighting in the USAMariana van ZellerMixed Martial Arts' growth as a sport in America

Season 6

Episode NumberEpisode TitleCorrespondentDescription
1Arming the Mexican CartelsChristof PutzelInvestigating the trafficking of guns into Mexico from the United States.
2The 99 PercentChristof PutzelCamp out with the crowd of Occupy Wall Street.
3Showdown in Klan TownChristof PutzelExplore the modern-day Klan in the city of Harrison, Arkansas.
4The Right to Kill: Stand Your Ground USAChristof PutzelGo behind the headlines of "Stand Your Ground Laws" in the USA.

See also

References

  1. 69th Annual Peabody Awards, May 2010.
  2. "Emmy Website" . Retrieved December 19, 2013.
  3. "DRG" . Retrieved December 19, 2013.
  4. "Vanguard Blog". Archived from the original on April 26, 2012. Retrieved May 2, 2012.
  5. "Vanguard Facebook Page". Facebook . Retrieved December 19, 2013.
  6. "Home".
  7. "Vanguard References". Archived from the original on August 9, 2011. Retrieved August 8, 2011.