The Hidden Third

Episodes

• He Was a Violent Neo-Nazi Leader. Then He Found Out He Is Jewish. 27.05.2026 2h 25m

  Join The Hidden Third Patreon today! patreon.com/thehiddenthird Frank Meeink's life runs parallel in many ways to one of the most powerful films ever made about hate in America — American History X. Except his story is real. By 16 he was one of the most notorious skinhead gang leaders on the East Coast. By 17 he had his own cable TV show preaching white supremacy. By 18 he was doing hard time in an Illinois prison for kidnapping and beating a teenager. In prison, a friendship with a Black inmate put the first cracks in his beliefs. After his release, a Jewish furniture dealer hired him — swastika tattoo and all — and treated him with more dignity than anyone ever had. Then the Oklahoma City bombing pushed him the rest of the way. He walked into the FBI and told them everything. But the biggest twist came later. A DNA test revealed he had Jewish ancestry. The man who once believed Jews were the root of all evil now keeps kosher and studies Torah. In this episode, Mariana sits down with Frank to talk about his time in the neo-Nazi movement, his deradicalization work, his memoir Autobiography of a Recovering Skinhead, and his life today — including his marriage to Allison Mack, the Smallville actress who served time for her role in the NXIVM sex cult. Limited Time Offer – You Need Fiber. Yes you! Boost your fiber with Huel today using my exclusive offer of 15% OFF online with my code MARIANA at https://www.huel.com/MARIANA. New Customers Only. Thank you to Huel for partnering and supporting our show! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
• Prophet or Predator: How He Tricked Her and Trafficked Her Mother 20.05.2026 1h 6m

  Join The Hidden Third Patreon today! patreon.com/thehiddenthirdLola Blanc was 12 when a man at an LDS (Mormon) singles dance told her mother he was a prophet receiving direct revelation from God. No compound, no mass following — just a one-on-one system of control that separated Lola from her mom and escalated into coercion and trafficking, all framed as God's will. Lola's mother, Christine Marie, just starred in Netflix's Trust Me: The False Prophet — but this story never made the headlines, and the man was never fully stopped. Today Lola is a cult survivor, musician, filmmaker, actor (American Horror Story, Under the Silver Lake), and co-host of the Trust Me podcast, where she and Meagan Elizabeth dismantle the mechanics of coercion. In this episode, she tells Mariana van Zeller the full story. Limited Time Offer – You Need Fiber. Yes you! Boost your fiber with Huel today using my exclusive offer of 15% OFF online with my code MARIANA at https://www.huel.com/MARIANA. New Customers Only. Thank you to Huel for partnering and supporting our show! Timeline’s clinically proven formula, Mitopure, now starts at $79, when you subscribe at⁠ http://timeline.com/MARIANA⁠ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
• Mariana's Interview on The Jordan Harbinger Show 15.05.2026 1h 42m

  Special episode drop! We're excited to share an interview with Mariana on The Jordan Harbinger Show. Mariana talks about her long-running show, Trafficked with Mariana van Zeller, her experiences in the field, and what she's taking on now. We hope you enjoy! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
• “The Hangover” Producer Who Walked Away From Hollywood to Fix America's Prison System 13.05.2026 50m

  Join The Hidden Third Patreon today! patreon.com/thehiddenthird Scott Budnick produced some of the biggest films in Hollywood — Old School, The Hangover, War Dogs. Then he visited a juvenile detention center in Los Angeles, and it changed the trajectory of his life. He walked away from Hollywood and started going into juvenile detention centers every week — teaching, listening, showing up for kids the system had written off. That was 22 years ago. He still goes every week. Along the way, he built the Anti-Recidivism Coalition (ARC) — a name suggested by Robert Downey Jr. — fought for sentences to be overturned, and watched people walk out of prison and build lives nobody thought were possible. And then he came back to Hollywood — this time to make films with real social impact, including Just Mercy, starring Michael B. Jordan. In this conversation, Mariana and Scott talk (a little bit) about Hollywood, but mostly about America's broken criminal justice system, why it fails the people it was supposed to correct, and what real change actually requires. Plus: the story of a man in solitary confinement for decades — Scott slipped his pinky through the cell bars to reach him, the first human contact this man had had in over 30 years. Today, because of policy reform Scott fought for, he is free and working with the homeless population. CODES: Limited Time Offer – You Need Fiber. Yes you! Boost your fiber with Huel today using my exclusive offer of 15% OFF online with my code MARIANA at https://www.huel.com/MARIANA. New Customers Only. Thank you to Huel for partnering and supporting our show!Get 15% off OneSkin with the code MARIANA at https://www.oneskin.co/MARIANA #oneskinpod Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
• Meagan Elizabeth: Raised in a Cult Hiding 900 Abusers 06.05.2026 1h 30m

  Join The Hidden Third Patreon today! patreon.com/thehiddenthird Watch on Spotify. If you’re subscribed to Spotify Premium, you don’t get any Spotify ads on my video. With a limited-time offer, get Huel today with an exclusive offer of 15% off online with the code MARIANA at https://www.huel.com/mariana. New customers only.  Meagan Elizabeth was born into the Two-by-Twos — one of the most secretive cults in the world. No name, no building, no written doctrine. Just families meeting in homes across 30 countries, convinced they were the only people on earth going to heaven. Fourth generation. She didn't choose it. For over a century the group sheltered at least 900 documented abusers before survivors spoke out and the FBI opened a global investigation in 2024. In this episode, Mariana sits down with Meagan to talk about what life inside really looked like, how she escaped, and what it takes to rebuild an identity after leaving a cult. Meagan is a cult survivor, comedian, and co-host of the cult podcast Trust Me. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
• Amanda Knox Imprisoned In Italy: The Real Story 29.04.2026 2h 8m

  Join The Hidden Third Patreon today! patreon.com/thehiddenthird Get 15% off OneSkin with the code MARIANA at http://www.oneskin.co/MARIANA #oneskinpod Amanda Knox was 20 years old when she went to Italy for a study abroad year. Weeks later, her roommate Meredith Kercher was murdered — and Amanda became the story. She was wrongfully convicted, sentenced to 26 years, and imprisoned for four years while the global media treated her guilt as a foregone conclusion. After one of the most high-profile exonerations in modern legal history, Amanda Knox is now a New York Times bestselling author, journalist, criminal justice reform advocate, and host of the wrongful conviction podcast Hard Knox. In this episode of The Hidden Third, Mariana van Zeller gets the real story — false confessions, media trials, the psychology of innocence, and what it actually takes to reclaim your life when the whole world got it wrong. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
• The American Captive Inside Venezuela's Deadliest Prison 22.04.2026 2h 3m

  Join The Hidden Third Patreon today! patreon.com/thehiddenthird Watch on Spotify. Spotify subscribers get fewer ads on my video. Get up to $200 off Square hardware when you sign up at http://square.com/go/hiddenthird! #squarepod James Luckey-Lange had one country left to visit in the continental Americas: Venezuela. He'd survived Haiti, Nicaragua, a husky he buried in Patagonia, and the loss of both his parents — including his mother, the late Q Lazzarus, the singer behind "Goodbye Horses" from The Silence of the Lambs. He crossed into Venezuela on the back of a motorcycle taxi from Brazil on December 7th. He was detained the next day. What followed was more than a month of beatings, starvation, a sham trial, and solitary confinement in Rodeo I — one of the most notorious prisons in the world — where he scraped the alphabet onto a wall to teach his cellmate to read, and carved the names of fellow prisoners into a bar of soap he smuggled out in his underwear. His release came only after the U.S. military captured Maduro — news he learned six days late, through prison whispers and an unexpected serving of chocolate cake. In this episode of The Hidden Third, Mariana van Zeller sits down with James to hear the full story — and find out what he's doing with that soap. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
• Shaka Senghor: 19 Years for Murder 15.04.2026 2h 8m

  Join The Hidden Third Patreon! https://patreon.com/TheHiddenThird Shaka Senghor went to prison for murder at 19 and spent seven of his 19 years in solitary confinement. But his imprisonment started long before that. Today, Mariana sits down with Shaka and has an intimate conversation about life’s hidden prisons, the moment in solitary confinement that changed his life, and the work he is passionate about now - speaking to young kids who grew up like him. Oprah Winfrey called her conversation with him one of the best conversations of her life. I understand why. Judge for yourself. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
• Chosen by Aliens: The Kidnapping of Jan Broberg 08.04.2026 2h 8m

  Jan Broberg was kidnapped at 12 by a family friend who convinced her it was an alien mission. Then kidnapped again at 14. Her story — the basis for Netflix's Abducted in Plain Sight — is one of the most shocking grooming cases ever documented. Today she tells it in her own words, and breaks down the predator tactics that are still happening — from family friends to online platforms like Roblox. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
• NYC Drug Kingpin Turned Weed CEO 01.04.2026 1h 44m

  This week on The Hidden Third, Mariana sits down with Coss Marte — a former drug dealer who, at 17, was running what he claims was New York City's first 24/7 drug delivery business, pulling in over $2 million. A betrayal within his own team brought it all crashing down, and he was suddenly facing up to 25 years in prison. Behind bars, a doctor told him he wouldn't survive to 30. What happened next changed everything. Coss lost 70 pounds, built a workout program with fellow inmates, and wrote the business plan for ConBody — a gym empire built on second chances. Then came the ultimate full-circle moment: he's back to selling drugs — this time legally. His cannabis dispensary ConBud now operates multiple locations across NYC, including one on the very corner of the Lower East Side where he once dealt illegally. From drug kingpin to CEO, this is one of the most remarkable reinvention stories you'll ever hear. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
• From Prison Cell to Rocket Scientist 25.03.2026 1h 25m

  Marta Barreto survived years of sexual abuse, addiction, exploitation, and prison. She became a mother, got sober, went back to school, and eventually landed her childhood dream — working on rocket propulsion at Virgin Orbit. In this episode, Marta talks about the psychological grip of trauma and exploitation, the barriers that keep so many victims trapped, and what it really takes to rebuild a life from zero. One of the most powerful survival stories we've ever told on The Hidden Third. Head to http://factormeals.com/hiddenthird50off and use code hiddenthird50off to get 50% off and free breakfast for a year! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
• Undercover Cop 18.03.2026 1h 44m

  Britt Elmore, former undercover narcotics detective, spent years embedded inside the operations most people only see in crime dramas — building cases against dealers, managing informants, and navigating the moral gray zones that define modern drug enforcement. In this episode, he pulls back the curtain on how undercover operations really work: the mechanics of infiltrating criminal networks, the fragile trust between officers and informants, and how drugs move from international suppliers all the way down to local street corners. He traces the full supply chain of the underground drug economy — and explains why it continues to evolve faster than law enforcement can keep up. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
• Felon at 7, Reborn in Solitary 11.03.2026 1h 43m

  Sonny Von Cleveland survived years of childhood sexual abuse, 18 years in prison, and 19 months in solitary confinement. But it was in that isolation cell where everything changed — through daily conversations with a Muslim mentor in the cell across from his, Sonny found accountability, forgiveness, and a reason to live differently. Today he mentors at-risk youth in juvenile detention centers across Southern California, serves on Riverside County's Juvenile Justice Coordinating Council, advocates with the Anti-Recidivism Coalition in Los Angeles, and leads The Von Cleveland Foundation. He was named Palm Springs Person of the Year in 2023 and has received Congressional Recognition for his work. His memoir Hey White Boy: Conversations of Redemption is the raw, unfiltered story of how a child failed by the world around him found his way back — and decided to make sure others don't walk the same road. 🔔 Subscribe for new episodes every week THE HIDDEN THIRD: YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCoCiI8nJacn8gDiHxr6aQGA Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thehiddenthirdpodcast Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-hidden-third/id1845989117 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/3n1BBoj3BgVuEYaiZ6SotF MARIANA: TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@mariana_vanzeller Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/marianavz Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
• Game Warden vs The Cartel 04.03.2026 2h 2m

  Between 4,000 and 6,000 cartel trespass growers take to the woods of California every year. They arrive armed, they stay for months, and they are ready to defend their cash crop at any cost. They divert waterways, deploy pesticides and fertilizers so toxic they were banned by the EPA over a decade ago, and leave behind environmental disasters that may take generations to repair. And they do all of this not in some remote foreign country — but in America's own backyard, sometimes within miles of population centers. In this episode of The Hidden Third, Mariana sits down with Nores to pull back the curtain on this largely invisible conflict — one that sits squarely at the intersection of drug trafficking, environmental destruction, cartel violence, and wilderness law enforcement. Nores walks Mariana through the dangerous operations his team ran deep in the backcountry, the shootouts they survived, and the environmental toll of an illegal industry that generates billions in black market revenue every year. He also explains why marijuana legalization did nothing to stop the cartels — and why the black market is still booming. If you've ever hiked a California trail, camped in a national forest, or followed the war on drugs, this conversation will change the way you see both. 🎙️ From Emmy and Peabody Award–winning journalist Mariana van Zeller comes THE HIDDEN THIRD, a weekly dive into the underground markets that quietly power a third of the global economy. Every episode, Mariana sits down with people who know these worlds firsthand - the hustlers, smugglers, scammers, kingpins, and those trying to shut them down. The series reveals how they function, why they endure, and the profound ways they impact us all. 🔔 Subscribe for new episodes every Wednesday. THE HIDDEN THIRD: YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCoCiI8nJacn8gDiHxr6aQGA Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thehiddenthirdpodcast Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-hidden-third/id1845989117 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/3n1BBoj3BgVuEYaiZ6SotF MARIANA: TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@mariana_vanzellerInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/marianavz Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
• The Woman Who Took On Amazon 25.02.2026 1h 42m

  Go to http://factormeals.com/hiddenthird50off and use code hiddenthird50off to get 50% off and free breakfast for a year. What happens when one of the most powerful corporations in the world –  Amazon – decides your family is a threat? Amy Nelson, attorney, mother of four, and founder of The Riveter,  found out the hard way: frozen bank accounts, FBI raids, federal subpoenas, and the full weight of the Department of Justice deployed against her family without a single charge being filed. In this episode of The Hidden Third, Amy sits down with Mariana to break down exactly how a company so powerful that it could weaponize the federal government against a single family used civil asset forfeiture and its relationship with federal law enforcement to try to force a guilty plea from an innocent man — and how her family refused to break. This is a David vs Goliath story that reveals who actually controls the machinery of American justice. It's about what it costs — financially, emotionally, and personally — to stand up to a trillion-dollar company. And it's about what it means to win when the system is stacked against you. If you've ever wondered whether ordinary people can fight back against extraordinary power, Amy Nelson is your answer. ABOUT THE HIDDEN THIRD: From Emmy and Peabody Award–winning journalist Mariana van Zeller comes THE HIDDEN THIRD, a weekly dive into the underground markets that quietly power a third of the global economy. Every episode, Mariana sits down with people who know these worlds firsthand - the hustlers, smugglers, scammers, kingpins, and those trying to shut them down. The series reveals how they function, why they endure, and the profound ways they impact us all. THE HIDDEN THIRD: YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCoCiI8nJacn8gDiHxr6aQGA Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thehiddenthirdpodcast Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-hidden-third/id1845989117 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/3n1BBoj3BgVuEYaiZ6SotF MARIANA: TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@mariana_vanzeller Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/marianavz Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
• Ex Neo-Nazi | The Hidden Third with Mariana van Zeller 18.02.2026 1h 28m

  Go to http://expressvpn.com/hiddenthird to secure your online data and get up to four extra months. At 14, Christian Picciolini was a lonely kid from an Italian immigrant family in Chicago when he was recruited into the Chicago Area Skinheads — one of America's first neo-Nazi skinhead groups. By 16, he was leading it. He fronted white power punk bands, helped merge his group with the violent Hammerskin Nation, opened a record store selling hate music, and toured Europe playing to thousands. For years, he recruited young men into a movement built on violence and fear. Then something broke. In 1996, he walked away. Today, Christian is one of the most important voices in the fight against extremism. He's the author of “White American Youth” and “Breaking Hate”, and has spent decades helping people leave hate groups — doing the painstaking, one-on-one work of deradicalization. In this episode of THE HIDDEN THIRD, Christian joins me to unpack how radicalization actually works: the loneliness, the emotional hooks, the sense of belonging, the slow normalization of hate — and the personal unraveling that comes when your entire identity is built around an ideology designed to destroy. We talk about what pulled him in, what finally pushed him out, what extremism looks like today — and why, in the right conditions, almost anyone can be recruited into something they never imagined. Subscribe for more conversations from the underworld. ABOUT THE HIDDEN THIRD: From Emmy and Peabody Award–winning journalist Mariana van Zeller comes THE HIDDEN THIRD, a weekly dive into the underground markets that quietly power a third of the global economy. Every episode, Mariana sits down with people who know these worlds firsthand - the hustlers, smugglers, scammers, kingpins, and those trying to shut them down. The series reveals how they function, why they endure, and the profound ways they impact us all. THE HIDDEN THIRD: YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCoCiI8nJacn8gDiHxr6aQGA Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thehiddenthirdpodcast Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-hidden-third/id1845989117 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/3n1BBoj3BgVuEYaiZ6SotF MARIANA: TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@mariana_vanzellerInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/marianavz Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
• From The Kink Machine: The Secret Power Behind Porn 13.02.2026 33m

  On The Hidden Third, we explore the underground worlds and shadowy figures that drive much of the global economy—so today I’m excited to share an excerpt from a new audiobook about one of our culture’s most taboo, most-watched, and least-understood industries: porn. It’s the most watched business in the world. And the least understood. Streamed by millions every day, porn is everywhere. It shapes our culture, our relationships, and even technology. Yet, nobody seems to know who really controls the business. The power brokers tend to lurk in the shadows, while their performers remain quite literally exposed. In the new audiobook The Kink Machine: The Hidden Business of Adult Entertainment, from Pushkin Industries and the Financial Times, Financial Times journalists Patricia Nilsson and Alex Barker start digging into the porn industry and following where the money flows. Their reporting uncovers a shadowy power structure that includes billionaires, tech geniuses, and the most powerful finance companies in the world. A gripping exposé of how power operates behind the most taboo corner of the internet, Nilsson and Barker unravel a story about control, influence, and an industry with staggering cultural reach that no one really wants to talk about—until now. Here’s a preview of The Kink Machine. If you like what you hear, get The Kink Machine on Audible, Spotify, Pushkin.fm, or wherever you get audiobooks.  https://bio.to/KMHidden Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
• The Hipster Grifter | The Hidden Third with Mariana van Zeller 11.02.2026 2h 9m

  Go to http://selectquote.com/mariana to save more than 50% on term life insurance. Kari Ferrell became known as “The Hipster Grifter” after her cons went viral. In this episode of The Hidden Third, Kari joins me to talk about how her scams worked — from bad checks to stealing from friends and lying about being a cancer survivor — and how things escalated after she moved from Salt Lake City to New York City, where she landed a job at VICE. We dig into what was driving her at the time, how easy it can be to manipulate trust, and what it’s like to become a public villain on the early internet. Kari walks us through the consequences, the fallout, and what accountability and rebuilding look like when your name becomes synonymous with a grift. Subscribe for more conversations from the underworld. ABOUT THE HIDDEN THIRD: From Emmy and Peabody Award–winning journalist Mariana van Zeller comes THE HIDDEN THIRD, a weekly dive into the underground markets that quietly power a third of the global economy. Every episode, Mariana sits down with people who know these worlds firsthand - the hustlers, smugglers, scammers, kingpins, and those trying to shut them down. The series reveals how they function, why they endure, and the profound ways they impact us all. THE HIDDEN THIRD: YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCoCiI8nJacn8gDiHxr6aQGA Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thehiddenthirdpodcast Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-hidden-third/id1845989117 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/3n1BBoj3BgVuEYaiZ6SotF MARIANA: TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@mariana_vanzeller Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/marianavz Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
• Retired ICE Agent | The Hidden Third with Mariana van Zeller 04.02.2026 2h 15m

  Eric Balliet spent 25 years with the Department of Homeland Security - first with the CBP and then with ICE - arresting dozens of human traffickers, smugglers, and child predators. He led the wiretap strategy that resulted in the arrest of Joaquin "El Chapo" Guzmán—not once, but twice—and was named Federal Law Enforcement Association's Agent of the Year. In this episode, we dive deep into: - His time as a border patrol agent  - His investigation into violent militia groups operating on the U.S.- Mexico border - The wiretap operations targeting the Sinaloa Cartel that led to El Chapo's arrest – twice - What it's really like hunting the world's most dangerous criminals - His warnings about Trump's immigration raids and excessive use of force by ICE - Why a massive ICE hiring surge has put untrained and unqualified agents on America's streets - How resources are being diverted from real homeland security threats  - Why he decided to speak out and how that has impacted his life This is a rare inside look at federal law enforcement from someone who isn't afraid to tell the truth about what's gone wrong. ABOUT THE HIDDEN THIRD: From Emmy and Peabody Award–winning journalist Mariana van Zeller comes THE HIDDEN THIRD, a weekly dive into the underground markets that quietly power a third of the global economy. Every episode, Mariana sits down with people who know these worlds firsthand - the hustlers, smugglers, scammers, kingpins, and those trying to shut them down. The series reveals how they function, why they endure, and the profound ways they impact us all. THE HIDDEN THIRD: YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCoCiI8nJacn8gDiHxr6aQGA Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thehiddenthirdpodcast Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-hidden-third/id1845989117 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/3n1BBoj3BgVuEYaiZ6SotF MARIANA: TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@mariana_vanzeller Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/marianavz Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
• Journalist Jacob Soboroff on Family Separation, ICE Raids, and the LA Fires | The Hidden Third with Mariana van Zeller 28.01.2026 1h 35m

  Go to http://selectquote.com/mariana to save more than 50% on term life insurance. Go to http://rocketmoney.com/hiddenthird to reach your financial goals faster. In this episode, I sit down with MS NOW correspondent and bestselling author Jacob Soboroff for a candid conversation about what it takes to report on the stories that shape our country, and the personal cost that comes with it. Jacob shares why he became a journalist, the biggest lessons he's learned in the field, the toll his work has had on his family, and even some secrets he's never divulged publicly. We talk about his groundbreaking reporting on the Trump administration's family separation policy – what he saw firsthand inside migrant child detention facilities and what went into writing his book Separated. Jacob reveals what has stayed with him long after the headlines moved on, and warns that families are being separated at an even bigger scale during the current immigration raids. Then we dive into his latest bestseller Firestorm, his firsthand account of the devastating January 2025 Los Angeles wildfires. Jacob reported live as his childhood home in the Pacific Palisades burned to the ground. He describes these fires as "the fire of the future" – not an isolated tragedy but a harbinger of America's new age of disaster driven by climate change, failing infrastructure, and political dysfunction. If you care about journalism, immigration, climate disasters, and the human stories behind the headlines, this conversation goes deep. ABOUT THE HIDDEN THIRD: From Emmy and Peabody Award–winning journalist Mariana van Zeller comes THE HIDDEN THIRD, a weekly dive into the underground markets that quietly power a third of the global economy. Every episode, Mariana sits down with people who know these worlds firsthand - the hustlers, smugglers, scammers, kingpins, and those trying to shut them down. The series reveals how they function, why they endure, and the profound ways they impact us all. THE HIDDEN THIRD: ⁠⁠YouTube⁠⁠ ⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠ ⁠⁠Apple Podcasts⁠⁠ ⁠⁠Spotify⁠⁠ MARIANA: ⁠⁠TikTok⁠⁠ ⁠⁠Instagram Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices