13 episodes
THE WAR WITHIN: THE ROBERT BALES STORY iHeartPodcasts
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- Society & Culture
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4.4 • 46 Ratings
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It’s March 2012 in a region of Afghanistan known as the birthplace of the Taliban. Staff Sergeant Robert Bales leaves his base–in the dead of the night–and lays siege to two villages, killing a reported sixteen innocent Afghan civilians. The reaction from the American government is swift and severe; provoking universal condemnation and a life sentence in Fort Leavenworth military prison.
Over a decade later, the lingering question about what became known as the Kandahar Massacre remains. Why did it happen? Anchored by 18 hours of exclusive interviews from America's most notorious war criminal and complemented by a chorus of people central to this polarizing case, THE WAR WITHIN: THE ROBERT BALES STORY is a 12-episode investigative podcast that will shed new light on the inner sanctum of the military. Throughout, the series will contain explosive revelations that run the gamut, from brain injuries, to potentially toxic drugs, to possible cover-ups by the nation Robert Bales swore to protect.
Episodes drop every Thursday, starting on June 29th.
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Does That Make Sense?
The final episode of THE WAR WITHIN considers the impact of the Kandahar Massacre on the withdrawal of American troops from Kabul in 2021, while gathering final thoughts from many of the people affected by this tragedy – including, of course, Staff Sergeant Robert Bales himself.
THE WAR WITHIN was produced Bungalow Media + Entertainment, Check Point Productions, and Mosquito Park Pictures, in association with iHeart Podcasts.
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. -
The Redirect
Episode 11 of THE WAR WITHIN unveils an explosive final interview with Robert Bales, recorded from Fort Leavenworth Prison in December of 2022, where the convicted war criminal responds to some of the accusations made by others throughout the podcast series.
THE WAR WITHIN was produced Bungalow Media + Entertainment, Check Point Productions, and Mosquito Park Pictures, in association with iHeart Podcasts.
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. -
Help
Episode 10 of THE WAR WITHIN gathers and organizes details gleaned from Robert Bales' many hours of interviews to question whether an astonishing theory from one of the Staff Sergeant's former Privates might completely re-contextualize our collective understanding of what happened in Afghanistan on March 11th, 2012.
THE WAR WITHIN was produced Bungalow Media + Entertainment, Check Point Productions, and Mosquito Park Pictures, in association with iHeart Podcasts.
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. -
Command Climate
Episode 9 of THE WAR WITHIN tracks Robert Bales' various appeals efforts over the years – both in the courts and the press. Then, the story travels back to VSP Belambai in Afghanistan, where the claim that the Staff Sergeant was an elite warrior is put under the microscope.
THE WAR WITHIN was produced Bungalow Media + Entertainment, Check Point Productions, and Mosquito Park Pictures, in association with iHeart Podcasts.
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. -
Discontinued
Episode 8 of THE WAR WITHIN investigates the checkered history of the antimalarial drug Mefloquine, which has been theorized to cause major side effects – such as hallucinations and homicidal ideation – in American soldiers throughout the 21st century.
THE WAR WITHIN was produced Bungalow Media + Entertainment, Check Point Productions, and Mosquito Park Pictures, in association with iHeart Podcasts.
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. -
Poison Pills
Episode 7 of THE WAR WITHIN concerns the numerous substances that might have altered Robert Bales’ state of mind in 2012 Afghanistan – particularly, a controversial and potentially defective antimalarial drug.
THE WAR WITHIN was produced Bungalow Media + Entertainment, Check Point Productions, and Mosquito Park Pictures, in association with iHeart Podcasts.
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Customer Reviews
Worthy material, with an eye roll
The style is good. It’s cleanly edited with some music that spoon feeds you emotion but doesn’t mess with sound leveling. The presentation of material works like a proper journalistic presentation (pyramid, establish basics, add context, add nuance, describe details and spin off topics). Awesome. Too many unanchored podcasts with full funding these days.
But.
The podcast perhaps shows a little too much grace to the convict. For the malaria thing…too much for two episodes. I let it slide when someone who stomped an old lady to death said that being dead is lucky compared to him being locked up as consequence. And when him wife said that “this happens” to someone else and not once extended any grace to the families. She meant that they have to visit papa in jail. It’s America, there’s lots of jail for much less. So they lay out that the survivors may have been Taliban affiliates. And they might have. But honestly the way they spoke about pretty much anybody registering pretty much anybody they interact with as a known agent if some kind just means you were unlucky to meet the soldiers twice. Of course some will also be Taliban. Then they really drove home which flight the witnesses came on in hopes someone joins their cause in rage. Let’s not forget this era closed with Trump signing a deal to give the Taliban rule over Afghanistan, no strings attached.
Maybe the malaria drug causes psychosis, but most psychosis is acute, and the kind that isn’t has some very noticeable depersonalization. “He did it because we just haven’t been able to do studies to say this causes psychosis!….but definitely not because he chose to take steroids and continuously obsess over honor and being a super soldier. Also…he said he regrets so many things, but all of them were boohoo woe is me. He said himself he was in a mental state before last departure that he hid for expectation it would disqualify deployment. Then abused multiple drugs. But someone it’s not that, it’s this malaria drug. Totally. Let’s give it two episodes.
Pass
This podcast series is nothing but an attempt at sympathy to have a mass murder released early. Robert Bales is exactly where he needs to be and should serve the remainder of his sentence.
Stopped halfway
The podcast itself is great. Retell the story without hearing from Bales and I will listen. I am sympathetic to what our soldiers go through during deployment and service and my heart and prayers to them and their families.
Bales is a different story .. I wish you wouldn’t have included his storytelling in the story. He is full of excuses and he had so many options besides what he chose to do that night. He put his fellow soldiers in a very dangerous and unforgivable position as well. I cannot listen to him another minute.