Sentient: The Podcast – Details, episodes & analysis

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Sentient: The Podcast

Sentient Media

Society & Culture

News

Frequency: 1 episode/51d. Total Eps: 25

Sentient is a nonprofit, nonpartisan news organization that publishes stories and solutions to explain factory farms and their effect on climate, animals, public health, politics and more. Join us as we meet the people who are changing the way we think about and interact with animals and our world.

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🇫🇷 France - personalJournals
26/08/2026
#75

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https://sentientmedia.org/newsletter
12 shares
https://www.theoutlawocean.com/
4 shares
https://sentientmedia.org/exposing-the-secretive-world-of-animal-exploitation-with-pete-paxton/
4 shares

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Score global : 58%

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036 What Science Can Tell us About Animal Intelligence with Brandon Keim

Episode 36

Tuesday, July 16, 2024 • Duration 54:36

What can science tell us about how animals see the world? Independent journalist Brandon Keim meets Sentient’s Ana Bradley and Jenny Splitter to discuss his new book, “Meet the Neighbors,” and how our understanding of animals is evolving in episode no. 36 of Sentient: The Podcast.

Brandon Keim is an independent journalist specializing in science, nature and animals.

Watch on YouTube: https://youtu.be/8bzBPKHaTCQ

Buy Meet the Neighbors here: https://wwnorton.com/books/9781324007081

Follow Brandon here:

Substack: https://brandonkeim.substack.com/
X: http://twitter.com/9brandon
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/9brandon/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/brandonkeimauthor

Links for further reading:

https://brandonkeim.net/
https://ig.ft.com/ai-animals/
https://psycnet.apa.org/record/2020-25935-010 Hobaiter, Catherine
https://www.theatlantic.com/science/archive/2024/06/new-anthropomorphism/678611/

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035 Sarah DeWeerdt: The Truth Behind the Orca "Uprising"

Episode 35

Wednesday, August 30, 2023 • Duration 41:51

Since May 2020, the instance of orcas ramming boats, biting off bits of vessels, sinking yachts, has off the coast of Portugal and Spain in the Gibraltar Strait has gone from a handful of encounters to 100s. In this episode, Sarah DeWeerdt explains what might be happening and reflects on the tragic death of the captive orca known many as Lolita.

Sarah DeWeerdt is a freelance science journalist in Seattle covering biology, medicine and the environment. She is working on a book of essays about the family history of the southern resident orcas of the Salish Sea.

Watch on Youtube: https://youtu.be/E21BOxagB2k

The conversation:

Overview.
- The number of orcas in the gibraltar strait in Portugal and Spain has gone from a handful of incidents to getting into the hundreds.
- About 20% of these orca boat interactions have resulted in enough damage to the boats that they couldn't get back to port on their own.
- A total of five boats have sunk as the results of these interactions, but there have been no human fatalities.
The media’s perception of orcas as rebels.
- There has been an increase in interactions between orcas and boats over the years. The media attention is making people aware of the phenomenon.
- The role that orcas play in society.
- Scientists are calling orcas gladiators. The idea that orcas are doing this to punish and target the rich is often tongue in cheek.
- The southern resident killer whale population of orcas in the waters around Seattle and British Columbia is the most talked about.
- Scientists have identified three threats to the iberian orcas at the moment, lack of food, toxins and vessel noise.
- Females are thought to be able to live for potentially as long as 100 years, while males tend to live shorter than 50 to 60 years.
How did the orcas react to the quieter ocean?
- It is feasible that there are workers who remember when the ocean was quieter and there was less human activity.
- In the north sea, there hasn't been a healthy calf in over a decade.
- Is there any evidence to back up the idea that the COVID-19 lockdown was a good thing for the orcas?
- There was an increase in boats around the southern residents during lockdown.
Are the orcas playing with the boats?
- There is no evidence that their interactions could just be them playing with the boats, but scientists suspect that it might be play.
- One of the orcas, gladys nigra, has been injured.
- There has been a lot of whale news this summer and throughout the year. Here are a few examples of whale stories that have been in the media.
- There has also been a sea otter in Santa Cruz who was labelled as a menace.
How do we frame the orca uprising?
- The idea of an orca uprising is often couched in positive terms. It is a different culture, especially as a positive thing, is a really different narrative for western culture.
- Orca scientists are becoming increasingly concerned about the media framing of the narrative and the way that it has been presented.
- The boat was recorded to have been shooting something at the orcas, which is evidence that they are sentient.
- Orcas are highly social creatures. They are also very tactile, constantly in touch with members of their families, and they have very sensitive skin.
The story of the orca known as Lolita
- Toki, the southern resident killer whale, passed away recently in her tank in Miami, after 53 years in captivity.

Further Reading:

Sentient Media Coverage:

Inside the Fight to Release the Orca Some Called Lolita. By Grace Hussain.

Are Orcas Smart Enough to Plot Against Humans? Their Intelligence, Explained. By Björn Ólafsson

Are Orcas Endangered? Some Are, and the Species Appears to Be Fighting Back. By Björn Ólafsson

Discussed:

orcaiberica.org -- info about the Iberian orcas, their boat interaction behavior, and efforts to reduce human-orca conflict in this area.

Essays by Emily Gambone: https://www.nonhumanrights.org/blog/lolita-orca-part-1/

https://friendsoftoki.org/

https://www.orcanetwork.org/

https://sacredsea.org/

Snake River dams work: https://damsense.org/

Open letter to media: https://awionline.org/sites/default/files/uploads/documents/Open-Letter-Iberian-Orcas.pdf

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026 Pete Paxton: No one wants to work in a slaughterhouse

Episode 26

Tuesday, July 26, 2022 • Duration 53:36

Pete Paxton is an active undercover investigator who has been involved in animal cruelty investigations since 2001. He has worked all over the world including the US in Canada and Mexico, Brazil, India, and the Philippines where his investigations have led to changes in legislation, convictions, and the rescue of countless victims of animal cruelty. He has also been awarded a coin of excellence from the US Attorney's Office in Arkansas for his role in shutting down an operation selling dogs and cats to research labs.

Watch the conversation on Youtube here: https://youtu.be/3TLwOHmApD8

You can read more here: https://sentientmedia.org

Rescue Dogs by Pete Paxton and Gene Stone: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/599676/rescue-dogs-by-pete-paxton-with-gene-stone/

Dealing Dogs: @HBO documentary via Alliance for Animals and the Environment:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=11oB85ncFuo

Where Pete works at time of filming:

https://www.seedundercoverinvestigations.com

https://www.caps-web.org

https://www.humanesociety.org

Interviews with Pete:

025 Kenny Torrella: The Need for A More Humane Food System

Episode 25

Tuesday, July 12, 2022 • Duration 52:35

Watch the conversation here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=41sUr1CAxhw

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021 Dr Aysha Akhtar: The Future Without Animal Testing

Episode 21

Wednesday, December 15, 2021 • Duration 58:02

In this episode of the Sentient Media Podcast, we meet Dr. Aysha Akhtar and hear about her work building a world where animal testing is no longer the default. Join our conversation and find out the facts about animal testing and what the future looks like without it.

Aysha's work:

https://ayshaakhtar.com

https://contemporarysciences.org

Aysha's articles on Sentient Media:

https://sentientmedia.org/this-new-bill-could-phase-out-animal-testing-for-good/

https://sentientmedia.org/to-avoid-the-next-pandemic-we-need-to-stop-factory-farming/

https://sentientmedia.org/to-love-and-mourn-an-animal/

Hit subscribe and find us here:

Newsletter: https://sentientmedia.org/newsletter

Facebook: https://facebook.com/sentientmediaorg

Twitter: https://twitter.com/sentient_media

020 Christopher "Soul" Eubanks: The Role of Social Media and the Media in Shifting Outdated Narratives

Episode 20

Tuesday, October 5, 2021 • Duration 59:21

In this episode of the Sentient Media Podcast, we meet Christopher "Soul" Eubanks and hear about his work in animal advocacy, the intersections between human, environmental, and animal rights, and his new nonprofit: Apex Advocacy.

Read Christopher's essay:

'As a Black Man, I Felt Uncomfortable Becoming an Animal Activist' https://sentientmedia.org/as-a-black-man-i-felt-uncomfortable-becoming-an-animal-activist/

Apex Advocacy: https://www.apexadvocacy.org

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCySbtj5v8K2AOyBMuJBW2xg

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SoulEubanks/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/soul_eubanks/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/soul_eubanks

Website: https://www.souleubanks.com

Hit subscribe and find us here:

Newsletter: https://sentientmedia.org/newsletter

Facebook: https://facebook.com/sentientmediaorg

019 Cheryl Leahy: The Hidden Truth About Pet Food, "Crush Videos", and The Power[lessness] of the Law

Episode 19

Wednesday, September 22, 2021 • Duration 01:25:54

Cheryl Leahy, Executive Director of Animal Outlook, has been shedding light on the exploitation of animals in our food system since 2006. In this deep dive interview, Sentient Media’s Executive Director Ana Bradley explores the role of investigations and the law in building a better future for all and uncovers hidden suffering in the pet food industry as the pair discuss the role of animals in society, from "crush videos" to food.

Find Cheryl and Animal Outlook here:

https://animaloutlook.org

https://www.instagram.com/animal.outlook/

https://www.facebook.com/AnimalOutlook/

https://www.youtube.com/c/animaloutlook

https://twitter.com/animaloutlook/

Hit subscribe and find us here:

Newsletter: https://sentientmedia.org/newsletter

Facebook: https://facebook.com/sentientmediaorg