Behind The Lens

Latest Episodes
Behind The Lens episode 270: ‘The wrong schools’
Education reporter Marta Jewson on the state's request that the courts free them from a special education consent decree, the city council seeks to send $10m to schools and NOLA Public Schools has a n
Behind the Lens episode 269: ‘They are not forgotten’
This week, two St. James Parish residents who recently wrote a piece for the Lens on their families deep roots in the region and how local histories like their own are threatened by the oil, gas, and
Behind the Lens episode 266 Carnival Part II: ‘The best spot on Fat Tuesday’
Mizani Ball on family and friends settling in to their traditional parade watching spots on the route. Katy Reckdahl on a Black Masking Indian continuing his father's tradition.
Behind The Lens episode 268: ‘Cruel and unusual’
Special guest Ned Randolph on Entergy's proposal to build a massive AI data center in an impoverished section of north Louisiana that Meta is eyeing. Nick Chrastil on the state's push to use nitrogen
Behind the Lens episode 266 Carnival Part I: ‘Throw less, throw better’
Nick Chrastil on how gun laws clash during Carnival, including on the parade route. Delaney Dryfoos on krewes' efforts to make parades greener. And Marta Jewson on high school marching bands and the
Behind The Lens episode 265: ‘That’s just a payday loan’
Nick Chrastil on records that show plans for Gov. Jeff Landry's "transitional center" were well underway before the terrorist attack. Marta Jewson on the ongoing dispute over a supposed $90 million se
Behind The Lens episode 264 Part II: ‘Our Katrina narrative’
The Lens spent January talking to Lower 9th Ward residents to tell their stories, narratives a Super Bowl committee wanted to control.
Behind The Lens episode 264 Part I: ‘Our Katrina narrative’
The Lens spent January talking to Lower 9th Ward residents to tell their stories, narratives a Super Bowl committee wanted to control.
Behind The Lens episode 263: ‘They never paid’
Nick Chrastil and Katy Reckdahl on a temporary shelter Gov. Jeff Landry opened in the weeks leading up to the Super Bowl and local concerns about the process. Delaney Dryfoos on The Descendants Projec
Behind The Lens episode 262: ‘A new generation’s fight’
Delaney Dryfoos on the sale of Entergy New Orleans' natural gas arm to a new entity and La'Shance Perry on the legal challenge to Act 246, the nation's strongest law blocking certain reproductive heal