Latest news with #ZachAbramowitz
Associated Press
4 hours ago
- Business
- Associated Press
Targeted Podcast Launches to Spotlight Stories of Ordinary People Caught in the Crosshairs of Powerful Institutions
United States, June 8, 2025 -- Targeted, a new investigative podcast hosted by former M&A attorney Zach Abramowitz, officially launches today at Through in-depth interviews, expert analysis, and meticulously sourced reporting, Targeted shines a light on individuals whose lives have been upended by governments, corporations, and other powerful entities wielding legal, financial, or media influence. Targeted unravels the chilling modern phenomenon of weaponized information and institutional power, spotlighting stories of those who've faced coordinated smear campaigns, Interpol red notices and sanctions meant to destroy. Developed by a team of seasoned journalists and legal analysts, Targeted explores the human consequences of reputational attacks, wrongful sanctions, and politically motivated campaigns. Each episode delves into real-world cases where vulnerable figures—activists, entrepreneurs, lawyers, and whistleblowers—stand up against allegations that threaten their careers, finances, and personal freedom. Targeted is produced by Next Chapter Podcasts, a top tier agency specialising in creating impactful media that challenges perspectives and elevates meaningful conversations. Next Chapter Podcasts is known for producing a diverse portfolio of award winning podcasts, which often feature collaborations with renowned creatives and organizations. Targeted is hosted by Zach Abramowitz, a former practicing lawyer, entrepreneur, startup investor and storyteller. From 2015-2020, Zach wrote a regular column for Above the Law and has contributed to TechCrunch, The American Lawyer and Over the years and across multiple formats, Zach has interviewed hundreds of industry leaders and cultural icons, including Sam Altman, Mark Cuban, and John Grisham. 'Too often, we hear headlines about 'enforcement actions' or 'legal inquiries' without understanding the individuals caught in the fallout,' said Zach Abramowitz. 'With Targeted, we aim to give voice to those whose stories would otherwise go untold, and to reveal the mechanisms—both subtle and overt—that powerful institutions use to silence dissent or protect vested interests.' Episodes are available at and on all major podcast platforms, including Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and Stitcher. Transcripts and additional resources accompany each show on the website. Contact Info: Name: AS Email: Send Email Organization: Targeted podcast Website: Release ID: 89161810 Should you identify any discrepancies, concerns, or inaccuracies in the content provided in this press release or require assistance with a press release takedown, we strongly urge you to notify us promptly by contacting [email protected] (it is important to note that this email is the authorized channel for such matters, sending multiple emails to multiple addresses does not necessarily help expedite your request). Our responsive team is committed to addressing your concerns within 8 hours by taking necessary actions to resolve identified issues diligently or guiding you through the necessary steps for removal. Our dedication lies in providing accurate and reliable information.
Sustainability Times
16 hours ago
- Politics
- Sustainability Times
Nathan Law and the High Cost of Dissent: A Review of Targeted, Episode 3
The conversation between Nathan Law and host Zach Abramowitz is intimate, revealing, and—like Law himself—layered with unresolved tension. You get the sense that Law has lived through more than he says, and says more than he's allowed. Back in 2014, as the Umbrella Revolution surged into global headlines, Law was a university student with an extraordinary capacity to channel collective frustration into purpose. He became a legislative council member in Hong Kong at 23—the youngest in the city's history—and was quickly sentenced to prison for organizing protests. That moment, and the broader crackdown that followed, fractured the illusion of Hong Kong's democratic exceptionalism. But Law's story was just beginning. 'Activists are still human,' Law tells Abramowitz early in the episode. It's a theme that pulses throughout their conversation—the romantic notion of fearless dissidents erodes when you hear Law talk about midnight fears, his mother watching him arrested on live television, and the torment of leaving friends behind in a place that now considers him a national security threat. 'My goal is not for a cozy life,' Law admits. 'My goal is for a meaningful one.' After fleeing to the UK in 2020 under threat of the new National Security Law, Law was granted asylum—but not relief. He details the suffocating sense of survivor's guilt, the isolation of COVID-era exile, and the surveillance campaigns orchestrated from Beijing's outposts in London. At one point, he was placed on a wanted list with a bounty on his head. Authorities raided his family home, interrogated his mother and brother, and fabricated stories to paint him as a foreign agent. It's collective punishment dressed in the language of law enforcement. This episode doesn't just document a man hunted by a government; it exposes how narratives are weaponized. Law has been labeled a CIA puppet by Beijing loyalists, dismissed as a 'useful idiot of the Americans' by Western skeptics, and dragged through the mud without a shred of evidence. The campaign to discredit him operates on the logic that if you can't jail someone, you can try to break their credibility—or at least their will. The Richness Of This Episode Lies In The Tonal Depth Of Law's Reflection. He remains haunted by what he's lost: not just a home, but a future that might have included ordinary joys—staying close to family, building a stable career, living anonymously. 'There are things I can't talk about,' he says of his last contact with family, his tone brushing the edge of heartbreak. For Law, silence is not safety—it's sacrifice. Yet for all its grief, the episode is not grim. Law's clarity is breathtaking. He speaks of friends still imprisoned in Hong Kong—Joshua Wong, Gwyneth Ho—with reverence, not pity. He describes their courtroom bravery as a source of hope. 'Activism,' he says, 'is about people versus power.' This line is the heart of the episode. While authoritarian regimes tighten their grip, this podcast episode insists on the power of memory, voice, and witness. It reminds us that repression may be global, but so is resistance. In keeping with a reflective and narrative-driven style, the episode is also a subtle meditation on legacy. Law brushes off his nomination for the Nobel Peace Prize and TIME's '100 Most Influential People' with charming understatement. Those accolades, he says, are retrospective flourishes, not motivations. He's more concerned with whether he can still be useful to Hong Kong—whether, when the city is free, he'll have something left to give. That Targeted allows space for such emotional granularity is a credit to its producers. It is not advocacy posing as journalism, nor is it voyeuristic tragedy porn. It is, rather, a reminder that to be targeted is not just to be attacked—but to be misunderstood, misrepresented, and sometimes mythologized. The podcast strips away the myth and leaves us with the man. About The Podcast Targeted is an investigative podcast exploring how powerful states and corporations abuse legal, diplomatic, and media mechanisms to silence whistleblowers, dissidents, and journalists. Hosted by Zach Abramowitz, the series blends intimate interviews with legal and political context, giving listeners a front-row seat to the new age of transnational repression. Future episodes will continue to probe the global dimensions of political targeting: Pavel Ivlev: A former Russian lawyer who blew the whistle on Kremlin corruption and fled to the United States. His story echoes the dangers faced by defectors under Putin's shadow. Gaurav Srivastava: An entrepreneur and philanthropist who found himself the subject of a global smear campaign. With each episode, Targeted peels back another layer of how systems meant to protect justice are being twisted to enforce silence. If the rest of the season is anything like Nathan Law's haunting, hopeful story, we're in for a revelation. Did you like it? 4.5/5 (22)
