This investigative podcast series takes listeners across Latin America to the scenes of some of the region’s most devastating, revolutionary, and historic moments. In Season 1, independent journalist Michael Fox dives deep into the past of Central America, uncovering the history of US intervention and its lingering effects in the region today. Under the Shadow is produced in partnership with TRNN and the North American Congress on Latin America (NACLA).
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Season 2
Trump’s piracy in the Caribbean won’t end with Venezuela | Under the Shadow S2E1
How Trump is redefining US foreign policy in Latin America with Monroe 2.0. This is Season 2, Episode 1 of Under the Shadow.
The Americas will never be the same | Under the Shadow S2E2
“Suddenly the power went out and I had a feeling something was going on. Then there was a huge boom, like you know something I’d never felt before,” says journalist Ricardo Vaz. This is Season 2, Episode 2 of Under the Shadow.
Hands Off Latin America | Under the Shadow S2E3
During his press conference after the US invasion, Trump said: “We’re ready to go again if we have to.” That warning is not just for Venezuela. Trump and his administration have also threatened many of Venezuela’s neighbors. This is episode 3 of Under the Shadow, Season 2.
Debunking the US narrative on Venezuela | Under the Shadow S2E4
The US war on Venezuela has been waged not just with weapons and sanctions, but also with words and ideas. Host Michael Fox looks at the misconceptions, myths, and misinformation that have been spread about Venezuela in the wake of the US invasion. This is episode 4 of Under the Shadow, Season 2.
When the bombs fell on Caracas | Under the Shadow S2E5
The United States has painted its January 3 invasion of Venezuela as a surgical operation. But for those on the ground it was a disaster. The US killed more than 100 people. It hit civilian targets and left terror and destruction in its wake. This is episode 5 of Under the Shadow, Season 2.
Homeland Empire | Under the Shadow S2E6
We are seeing an unprecedented reorganization of domestic and foreign policy in the United States. Both of them deployed to achieve the same goal — punish the opposition to Trump. Punish his political opponents. This is episode 6 of Under the Shadow, Season 2.
Season 1
The Beginning: Monroe and migration | Under the Shadow S1E1
Coups, sanctions, and all other forms of US military and economic intervention are responsible for the conditions driving millions of Central Americans to flee their homes.
Guatemala and the United Fruit coup | Under the Shadow S1E2
The dreams of a democratic Guatemala were dashed in 1954 when the CIA manufactured a coup against President Jacobo Arbenz to defend the interests of the United Fruit Company.
Guatemala’s ‘silent holocaust’ | Under the Shadow S1E3
In the 1980s, US-trained and sponsored state forces perpetrated a genocide, killing 200,000 mostly Indigenous Guatemalans. Forty years later, justice remains elusive, and the ghosts still linger.
El Salvador’s civil war | Under the Shadow S1E4
As in Guatemala, the Reagan administration poured funding into El Salvador’s military to crush the left-wing FMLN—and in the process littered the country in mass graves.
‘Radio Venceremos’ and El Salvador’s civil war | Under the Shadow S1E5
The guerrilla radio station Venceremos broadcast news of the Salvadoran government’s atrocities throughout the civil war.
U.S.S. Honduras | Under the Shadow S1E6
Often overlooked in the story of US imperialism in Central America, Honduras has served as a training base and launchpad for interventions throughout the region. How did this happen?
Honduras, 2009. La Resistencia. | Under the Shadow S1E7 Part 1
The 2009 US-backed coup in Honduras crushed its most progressive government in decades—but in the end, the steadfast resistance of the Honduran people couldn’t be defeated.
Honduras, 2009. Legacy of a coup. | Under the Shadow S1E7 Part 2
Honduras’s return to democracy after the 2009 U.S.-backed coup is a heroic story of popular resistance.
The Gringo who tried to rule Central America | Under the Shadow S1E8
This episode looks back at the 19th century roots of US imperialism in Central America, when solo ‘filibuster’ adventurers tried to conquer whole nations singlehandedly.
Nicaragua. Sandino. | Under the Shadow S1E9
The US occupation of Nicaragua (1912-1933) birthed a brutal dictatorship, and the revolutionary hero who would drive out the US Marines: Augusto Sandino
Nicaragua, 1980s. Revolution. | Under the Shadow S1E10 Part 1
When the anti-imperialist Sandinista Revolution took power in Nicaragua from the Somoza family, the Reagan administration responded by funding the Contras.
Nicaragua, 1980s. Contra War. | Under the Shadow S1E10 Part 1
In the 1980s, the Reagan administration’s drive to crush Nicaragua’s Sandinista Revolution would lead to one of its greatest scandals: the Iran-Contra Affair.
The US hand in Costa Rica | Under the Shadow S1E11
Despite its reputation for pacifism and prosperity, Costa Rica is one of the region’s most unequal nations—and the story of how it got there runs through its ties to Washington during the Contra War.
The Panama Canal | Under the Shadow S1E12
In its pursuit of global empire, the US aided a separatist movement in Colombia to create the nation known as Panama—once home to 100 US military bases.
Panama. US Invasion. | Under the Shadow S1E13
In 1989, the US invaded Panama under the banner of ‘Operation Just Cause,’ slaughtering hundreds of civilians. When will the US face accountability for its war crimes?
Season 1 Bonus Episodes and Updates
The return of the Guatemalan Spring | Under the Shadow S1 Update 1
Despite numerous legal challenges from the entrenched right-wing, Guatemala’s Bernardo Arévalo has assumed the presidency. Can his administration fulfill the hopes of the mass movement that put him in power?
El Salvador. Bukele, Presidente. | Under the Shadow S1 Update 2
Critics of the recently reelected Salvadoran president say he’s jailed tens of thousands without proper trial, yet leaders across Latin America are looking to emulate his model.
Honduran narcodictator convicted, but ‘no accountability for the US role’ | Under the Shadow S1 Update 3
Former President Juan Orlando Hernandez has been convicted of drug trafficking charges by a US court—but Washington’s role in propping him up has yet to be accounted for.
Hollywood. Empire. | Under the Shadow S1 Bonus Episode 1
British director Alex Cox’s 1987 film ‘Walker,’ starring Ed Harris, laid an uncompromising critique of US imperialism in Nicaragua. For his solidarity, Cox was blacklisted from the industry.
Chomsky on US Intervention in Central America | Under the Shadow S1 Bonus Episode 2
‘Under the Shadow’ looks back on Chomsky’s University of Colorado lecture given in 1983, as some of the worst aspects of the Reagan administration’s role in Central America were being realized.
Venezuela. Media War. | Under the Shadow S1 Bonus Episode 3
Unrest in Venezuela following recent elections has captured the international spotlight, but there’s an actor in the shadows escaping scrutiny—the US media.
The legacy of Monroe | Under the Shadow S1 Bonus Episode 4
Historian Greg Grandin examines the long shadow of the Monroe Doctrine, which continues to shape US imperialism in Latin America.
More from Michael FOx
200 years later, the Monroe Doctrine still haunts Central America
From CIA-backed coups and genocidal civil wars in Guatemala and El Salvador to the US invasion of Panama, Central America is still living with the legacy and ongoing violence of US imperialism.
