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Sources & Methods

NPR 6 Episodes Aug 20, 2026

National security, unlocked. Each Thursday, host Mary Louise Kelly and a team of NPR correspondents discuss the biggest national security news of the week. With decades of reporting from battlefields and the halls of power, they bring you inside the Pentagon, State Department, and intelligence community to help you understand America's shifting role in the world, and how events in faraway places matter here at home. Additional episodes feature interviews with power players from the NatSec world -- current and former military officials, intelligence experts, diplomatic leaders, and more.

Episodes

South Korea military drills / Pivot to Asia? / USS Lincoln Aug 20, 2026 1685 This week, President Trump ordered that annual military drills between the U.S. and South Korea be scaled back. He also said he’d like to meet with North Korea’s Kim Jong Un.As Trump closes one door with a key U.S. ally, is he also trying to open one with its northern neighbor?Host Mary Louise Kelly speaks with NPR Pentagon Correspondent Tom Bowman and NPR White House Correspondent Emily Feng abou

Trump’s AF1 ruse / Military at the polls? / Civilian casualties abroad Aug 13, 2026 1814 A president is stashed away in a catering truck -- a ruse to escape a threat from Iran. The White House press corps was clueless. Who else remained in the dark and how did this happen? Host Mary Louise Kelly speaks with NPR Correspondents Kat Lonsdorf and Tom Bowman, who covers the Pentagon, about the threat against President Trump from Iran. They also discuss the future of National Guard deployme

Did Iran hack U.S. water systems? / Cyberwarfare abroad / Ukraine’s air defense gap Aug 6, 2026 1998 In the past week, seven U.S. states have reported cyberattacks on their water facilities.Some in the cybersecurity industry suspect Iran was responsible. Is this a new element of the war between the two countries? And how big is the risk?Host Mary Louise Kelly speaks with NPR Cybersecurity Correspondent Jenna McLaughlin and NPR National Security Correspondent Greg Myre about the role cyberwarfare

A trip to the world’s frayed edges with Hannah Lucinda Smith’s 'Hinterlands' Aug 4, 2026 1595 A new book makes the case that if we look closely at hidden conflicts unfolding around the globe, we can glimpse a new world order taking shape. The book is called Hinterlands: The New Cold War Brewing at the Peripheries of the West and its author is Hannah Lucinda Smith, a veteran correspondent who has spent years reporting from the Middle East and the Balkans for outlets such as The Times of Lo

Trump's options dwindle / Inside Iran / U.S. arsenal depleted? Jul 30, 2026 1690 A new round of strikes between Iran and the United States, an expansion that’s embroiled forces in Saudi Arabia and Jordan, plus concerns about missile shortages in the U.S. arsenal — is this a new phase of the war with Iran?Guest host Sacha Pfeiffer speaks with NPR Pentagon correspondent Tom Bowman and NPR reporter Arezou Rezvani about the status of the war, negotiations, concerns about a U.S. mi

Introducing Sources & Methods Aug 25, 2025 110 National security, unlocked. Each Thursday, host Mary Louise Kelly and a team of NPR correspondents discuss the biggest national security news of the week. With decades of reporting from battlefields and the halls of power, they bring you inside the Pentagon, State Department, and intelligence community to help you understand America's shifting role in the world, and how events in faraway places m

Sources & Methods

Episodes

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