Amanpour

This week, the world bids farewell to President Jimmy Carter, who died on December 29. As a one-term President beset by crises, including high inflation and the Iranian hostage crisis, Carter's legacy for a long time seemed mixed at best. But throughout his long post-presidency, he devoted himself to peace-making, eradicating diseases, and public service in a way that gradually reframed his earlier accomplishments. Ambassador Stuart Eizenstat knew Carter well, having served as his chief domestic policy adviser, and argues he "was our most accomplished one-term modern President." He joins the show from Washington, DC. Also on today's show: "Sing Sing" Director Greg Kwedar and actor Colman Domingo; Bruce Hoffman, Senior Fellow, Council on Foreign Relations  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

On January 20, Donald Trump will be inaugurated at the US Capitol, where four years ago today his supporters attempted to overturn the results of the 2020 election. On the world stage, the new administration will confront a slew of challenges from the ongoing wars in Ukraine and Gaza to tense relations with China. David Petraeus is well known as a highly decorated four-star general and the former Director of the CIA. He recently joined Christiane to forecast the opportunities and pitfalls facing the new administration.Also on today's show: Former Canadian Environment Minister Catherine McKenna; former Capitol Police Officer Harry Dunn  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Siamak Namazi, an Iranian-American who endured eight years in Iran's Evin prison, shares his harrowing experiences and the challenges of re-entering life outside captivity. Tom Hanks, the Hollywood icon, along with co-writer Christopher Riley, dives into their documentary 'The Moonwalkers,' exploring humanity's fascination with space travel amid cultural reflections. They discuss the lessons learned from past explorations while highlighting resilience in the face of adversity, connecting deeply with ongoing global issues.

Christiane's world exclusive with Iran's notorious women's rights activist, Narges Mohammadi, who last year was awarded the Nobel peace prize, and who has spent much of the past 20 years in Evin prison. She is accused of “spreading propaganda" and acting against the country's national security. Mohammadi was recently released on a 3-week medical furlough to recover from surgery and made the courageous decision to speak out—on this program— knowing she is gong back to jail. Plus, press freedom at risk in the United States and around the democratic world, former Washington Post Executive Editor, Martin Baron tells Christiane what’s in the Trump toolbox to legally assault the press and how to protect our constitutional right to free speech. Then, as 51 verdicts came down against Gisele Pelicot's abusers in the mass rape trial that stunned France and caught the world's attention, Saskya's Vandoorne's special report, with exclusive access to police records, on how dozens of men in one town became complicit in this horrifying crime. From Christiane's archive this week, the taxi driver who put aside ethnic divisions and became a hero to the needy during under siege in Sarajevo. And finally, Christiane speaks with Edward Berger, director of the film "Conclave," which depicts the knives out battle to elect a new pop in the Catholic Church.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

America faces chaos in Washington, again, with the US government just hours away from shutting down. Barring an early Christmas miracle, the proverbial lights go off at midnight tonight. Norm Ornstein, veteran political observer, joins the show to discuss. Also on today's show: Mouaz Moustafa, Executive Director, Syrian Emergency Task Force; Charlie Warzel, Staff Writer, The Atlantic; Edward Berger, Director, "Conclave"  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

As Donald Trump’s second term rapidly approaches, one domestic policy seems particularly clear and predictable: mass deportations. Family separation, you'll recall, was a highly controversial policy adopted by Trump in his first term. Forcibly removing children from their families was purportedly intended to act as a deterrent, but it shocked the country and divided even Trump’s own cabinet. Oscar-winning filmmaker Errol Morris and journalist Jacob Soboroff join the show to discuss the powerful new documentary "Separated," adapted from Soboroff's book of the same name.  Also on today's show: Omer Bartov, Professor of Holocaust and Genocide Studies, Brown University; Nobel prize-winning economist Paul Krugman, the former longtime opinion columnist of The New York Times  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In Iran, there are still those bravely speaking out on issues of human rights, democracy and women's equality. One is Narges Mohammadi, the Nobel Peace Laureate, who has now been imprisoned for the better part of the last 20 years. In a world exclusive interview, Mohammadi has made the extraordinary decision to speak to Christiane Amanpour while out on a temporary release from prison on medical grounds.  Also on today's show: former US Defense Secretary Mark Esper; New Yorker staff writer Jia Tolentino  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Syria's new leaders are pushing for legitimacy on the world stage and have been meeting with United Nations and European officials this week. The United Nation’s Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs, Tom Fletcher, has been meeting Syria’s new authorities in Damascus. He joins the show from the Syrian capital. Also on today's show: former Washington Post Exec Editor Martin Baron; Brady United Against Gun Violence President Kris Brown  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The defense of Ukraine is top of the agenda for European foreign ministers meeting in Brussels today. With a new year ahead, and a new American administration too, the urgent question is how to end the war soon. Few know better what those negotiations would look like, and the cost of any deal, than former Ukrainian foreign minister Dmytro Kuleba, who joins Christiane from Kyiv. Also on today's show: Mediha Ibrahim Alhamad & Hasan Oswald discuss their new documentary, "Mediha"; US Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

This week on The Amanpour Hour, Chrisitane explores the aftermath of the stunning fall of Syria’s Assad regime, unpacking its geopolitical ripple effects with the view from Europe and what Trump 2.0 might do, featuring EU Foreign Policy Chief Kaja Kallas and former Pentagon official Elbridge Colby. Then on the ground in Syria, Jomana Karadsheh reports from Daraya, the birthplace of Syria's anti-regime Arab Spring movement that simply called for reforms, speaking to one woman whose loved ones disappeared into Syria’s notorious prison system. Also on the show, from her archives, Christiane revisits her 2017 interview with the defector known as “Caesar” who documented the Assad dynasty's atrocities. Then, as Netanyahu takes the stand in his corruption trial, Alex Gibney and Alexis Bloom discuss their explosive film, The Bibi Files, featuring banned interrogation footage inside Israel. Finally, Christiane speaks with Mediha and Hasan Oswald about their film, "Mediha," which documents her harrowing story of survival in ISIS captivity through her own video diaries, offering a poignant look at healing and hope. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices