886: Blackout

886: Blackout

From This American Life by This American Life

May 3, 2026 · 1h 3m · Episode 886

About this episode

The episode explores the impact of the internet blackout in Iran amidst the ongoing war, featuring personal accounts from citizens trying to communicate their experiences.

Since the war began in Iran, we've heard very little from people inside the country — and there's a reason for that. The entire country has been under an internet blackout. We worked with reporters Roxana Saberi and Fatemeh Jamalpour to get voice memos out of the country. Even though it was dangerous and difficult, people wanted to be heard. Visit thisamericanlife.org/lifepartners to sign up for our premium subscription. Prologue: Shirin's parents suddenly disappear into the blackout. (5 minutes) Act One: It’s a war and a blackout. People want to talk about both. (17 minutes) Act Two: What happened before America and Israel went to war with Iran. (9 minutes) Act Three: Iranians have many opinions about the war, and about each other. (12 minutes) Act Four: What happened inside Iran the night President Trump threatened that "a whole civilization could die." And a clue about where the internet blackout is headed. (19 minutes) Transcripts are available at thisamericanlife.org This American Life privacy policy. Learn more about sponsor message choices.

People in this episode

Host: This American Life

Guests: Roxana Saberi, Fatemeh Jamalpour

Topics covered

  • internet blackout
  • Iran
  • war
  • communication
  • personal stories

Keywords

  • Iran
  • internet blackout
  • war
  • Roxana Saberi
  • Fatemeh Jamalpour
  • communication
  • personal stories

Mentioned in this episode

Places: Iran

More episodes of This American Life

Explore listener stats, chart rankings, contacts and more on the This American Life podcast page.