Need to Know Season 2010, Episode 5: The Gulf Oil Spill and renewable energy.

Episode 1

Afghanistan, Rewriting History in Texas, Preventing Cancer

Afghanistan, rewriting history in Texas, preventing cancer.

Mexico’s drug war, pot clinics

Money laundering and Sandra Day O’Connor

Episode 6

A closer look at BP’s safety record, the generosity of a Palestinian family after their son’s killing, and an interview with Sookie Stackhouse’s creator.

Episode 7

Our correspondents travel to the Gulf to look at the oil spill from multiple vantage points. We also examine America’s renewed fascination with gold, and talk to Somali-Canadian hip-hop artist K’naan.

Episode 8

We take a hard look at the consequences of America’s wars, from wounded vets to a fired general. We also go deep inside Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s Iran, and talk to the citizens who criticize or support him. Plus, Andy Borowitz wonders what Tony Hayward will do next to try and re-brand BP.

Episode 9

Russian spies? A gathering of big thinkers on the oil spill and our energy future. And the quest for female Viagra.

Episode 10

Women in the military’s elite bomb squad. Special courts for veterans. And BP’s “other” disaster in the Gulf. Plus: A special summer movie edition of Next Week’s News.

Episode 11

Where art thou, Obama? A look at how Avandia and other possibly dangerous drugs make it to market. And a photojournalist travels to Bangladesh to document one of the world’s most dramatic health crises: childhood malnutrition.

Episode 12

Putting the Shirley Sherrod saga in context. A report on the most dangerous highway in Georgia. And a rare dispute between conservationists and renewable energy advocates in Wyoming.

Episode 13

Could the WikiLeaks be dangerous? 100 days after the start of the oil spill in the Gulf, we check in on an ailing community in Grand Isle. Plus a look back at the life of prison reform advocate David Lewis.

Episode 14

Life in a war zone. An embattled outpost where the U.S. military trains Afghan soldiers. Steve Mumford’s paintings of the war in Iraq. And a special pledge week edition of Next Week’s News.

Episode 15

An epidemic of gun violence in Chicago. Is the Google-Verizon a deal a pact for good, or evil? And Andy Borowitz takes a cue from JetBlue flight attendant Steven Slater.

Episode 16

The religious history of lower Manhattan. The U.S. transition in Iraq. And best-selling author Gary Shteyngart, who absolutely loves “weiner dogs.”

Episode 17

Polluted water in Wyoming. The fifth anniversary of Katrina. And the connection between Glenn Beck and the Ground Zero mosque.

Episode 18

Record spending on political campaigns. An experimental jobs program in Mississippi. And the true cost of the federal bank bailout.

Episode 19

We examine where we are as a people on the ninth anniversary of 9/11, including a look at homegrown terrorism and a progress report on the rebuilding of Ground Zero.

Episode 20

Soldiers on the front lines in Afghanistan. Neglect and abuse in adult family homes. And Andy Borowitz looks back at his best prognostications.

Episode 21

Rape as a weapon of war in Congo. An experimental program to fight childhood obesity. And exploring what to do about nuclear waste.

Episode 22

The shadow campaign behind the midterm elections. The efficacy of mammograms. And the movement to disconnect from Facebook.

A special report on the jobs crisis

An hour-long special report on the jobs crisis, profiling the different faces of unemployment. And we talk to Robert Reich and Sara Horowitz about what can be done about joblessness.

Alaska native corporations, schools

Has a program intended by Congress to help native Alaskans delivered on its promise? In cooperation with the Washington Post, Need to Know examines whether a plan to promote the welfare of the disadvantaged and disenfranchised has instead enriched non-native executives and shortchanged taxpayers.

Benefits in doubt, the latest foreclosure scandal

The foreclosure crisis and Peter Sagal.

Election special edition

We bring you a special hour-long report on the midterm elections, including a look at faulty voting machines and investigation into redistricting.

Episode 27

A close look at Yemen, home to a prominent al-Qaida group. Plus: restoring marshes in Iraq, the dysfunctional U.S. Senate, and a Steve Brodner animated editorial.

Episode 28

A special international edition: the Burmese government’s nuclear ambitions, an abduction by Somali pirates, and a discussion with author David Grossman on the Middle East. Plus: Sage advice from Peter Sagal.

Episode 29

Why is the USDA promoting cheese? Plus: part two of our report on Somali pirates, a visit with the 71st Cavalry in Afghanistan, a conversation with religious scholar Reza Aslan, and a Steve Brodner animated editorial.

Episode 30

We bring you some of our best coverage on soldiers fighting in Afghanistan and the troubles they face after returning home. Plus: a holiday message from Peter Sagal.

Episode 31

We examine the recent flare-up between North and South Korea and what it means China and the U.S. Plus: Nuclear waste, the Fort Dix Five and author Gary Shteyngart.

Episode 32

John Larson investigates coal mine safety. A new series on social innovators. Meacham talks tax cuts. And director Julie Taymor discusses the new Spider-Man musical.

Episode 33

Jon Meacham reflects on the legacy of Richard Holbrooke, special envoy to Afghanistan and Pakistan, who died suddenly this week. And we sit down with former diplomat Frank Wisner to take a closer look at the state of President Obama’s foreign policy strategy, following a recent status report on the war in Afghanistan.

Episode 34

Jon Meacham talks with Stacy Schiff about Cleopatra and Robert Alter on the continued relevance of The Bible. Editorial cartoonist Steve Brodner revisits the major headlines of 2010. Plus: Resa Aslan, David Grossman and K’Naan.