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- 3 days ago54 min
"Tracing Deportation Flights" with Gillian Brockell
This week we dove head first into the world of flight tracking. How can you identify an ICE flight? What can tracking tools actually tell us? And what kinds of conditions are those being deported facing? We discuss all this and more with independent journalist and former Washington Post staffer Gillian Brockell.Think of this one as a one stop intro to flight tracking workshop, and listen whilst you have the tools in front of you. The talk was hosted by Charlotte Maher on May 14th 2026. Music featured is courtesy of Artlist.Recorded live in our Discord Server: https://discord.com/invite/bellingcatLinks:Gillian's work: https://gillianbrockell.com/Flight tracking site: https://globe.adsbexchange.com/ Another flight tracking site mentioned: https://www.flightradar24.com/New ICE flight tracking tool designed for legal professionals for when clients touch their jurisdiction (includes ICE hubs/callsign prefixes): https://lexingtonalarm.org/hfw-dashboard/ Acars site: https://tbg.airframes.io/dashboard/ Aviation channel in Bellingcat Discord: https://discordapp.com/channels/709752884257882135/1319318313519812619 ICE discussion channel in Bellingcat Discord: https://discordapp.com/channels/709752884257882135/1371571764525535242Seattle airport livestream: https://kingcounty.gov/en/dept/executive-services/transit-transportation-roads/airport/about/ice-flightsLiveATC.net: https://liveatc.net/ATC.com: https://www.atc.com/ Advice on ADSB feeders: https://adsb.im/home Bellingcat's historical flight tracking data tool (Turnstone): https://www.bellingcat.com/resources/2026/03/05/turnstone-flight-tracking-tool/
- 2 weeks ago58 min
"Navigating Chinese Social Media For Research" with Chu Yang
This week’s episode features researcher Chu Yang, a specialist in Chinese audience insights. She joins us to break down the most popular social media platforms in China, offering a clear overview of how they work and why they matter. Chu also shares practical tips for accessing these platforms from outside the country, along with useful tools for analysing trends both within China and across global Chinese communities.The talk was hosted by Charlotte Maher on April 30th 2026. Music featured is courtesy of Artlist.Recorded live in our Discord Server: https://discord.com/invite/bellingcatLinks:The guide on Xiaohongshu written by Chu Yang: https://www.bellingcat.com/resources/2026/04/20/xiaohongshu-rednote-open-source-guide/Mentioned resources: weibo.com/hotnewrank.cnwhatsonweibo.comchinadigitaltimes.netcitizenlab.cahttps://zh.greatfire.org/analyzerChu's LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chu-yang-cn
- Apr 17, 20261h 1m
"Synthetic Propaganda - Tracing an AI-Driven Political Operation" with Effie Webb
This week we spoke with The Bureau of Investigative Journalism's AI reporter, Effie Webb about the use of AI in the political sphere and what researchers/journalists can effectively report on AI misuse. Effie uncovered what some experts are calling a first-of-its-kind case—where a registered political party paid for content from an AI-generated influencer pushing ideological messaging.The talk was hosted by Charlotte Maher on April 16th 2026. Music featured is courtesy of Artlist.Recorded live in our Discord Server: https://discord.com/invite/bellingcatLinks:Effie Webb's original reporting: https://www.thebureauinvestigates.com/stories/2026-03-12/danny-bones-meet-the-ai-rapper-funded-by-a-far-right-partyEffie's follow up investigation on the cash in following her reporting: https://www.thebureauinvestigates.com/stories/2026-03-26/the-hate-economy-in-action-how-an-ai-rapper-tried-to-cash-in-on-our-coverageAdvance UK: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Advance_UK Bellingcat coverage of Indian political parties using AI-generated images to spread hate: https://www.bellingcat.com/news/2026/03/31/india-bjp-hate-speech-ai/?utm_source=rss The Node Project website: https://www.thenodeproject.com/On AI lego videos from Iran conflict: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/apr/15/iran-beating-us-social-media-warsAI generated band finding success on Spotify: https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2025/jul/14/an-ai-generated-band-got-1m-plays-on-spotify-now-music-insiders-say-listeners-should-be-warnedOne of our previous talks on digital political influence campaigns: https://rss.com/podcasts/bellingcatstagetalk/2021916/On AI and the first amendment: https://www.freedomforum.org/artificial-intelligence-first-amendment/Bellingcat's Auto Archiver: https://www.bellingcat.com/resources/2025/08/13/the-open-source-tool-that-has-preserved-150000-pieces-of-online-evidence/Effie's contact: https://www.linkedin.com/in/effie-webb-ab29941938
- Apr 2, 202659 min
"Tracking The Traffickers" with Foeke Postma
This week we spoke with Foeke Postma of Bellingcat about the online trade of rare and protected species. He found traffickers not operating on the dark web, nor hidden forums but in plain sight- on social media platforms. Many of them used coded language to avoid detection. In this talk he discusses his investigative methods, what platforms could do more of to stop these networks and how you can help protect these vulnerable animals in small ways. The talk was hosted by Charlotte Maher on April 2nd 2026. Music featured is courtesy of Artlist.Recorded live in our Discord Server: https://discord.com/invite/bellingcatLinks:Foeke's investigations on this topic: Indonesian trafficker: https://www.bellingcat.com/news/2026/03/19/how-wildlife-traffickers-are-using-coded-language-to-sell-protected-animals-on-facebook/Mongabay's coverage: https://news.mongabay.com/2026/03/facebook-shuts-indonesia-groups-after-mongabay-and-bellingcat-report-illegal-wildlife-trade/Malaysian trafficker: https://www.bellingcat.com/news/2025/02/11/the-hunt-for-malaysias-elusive-wildlife-trafficker/Dubai trade: https://www.bellingcat.com/news/middle-east/2021/02/08/how-instagram-celebrities-promote-dubais-underground-animal-trade/Digital tips: Facebook bookmarklets: https://tools.myosint.training/Wildlife specific organisations: Cities: https://trade.cites.org/Pitch to Bellingcat: submissions@bellingcat.comMental hygiene guide: https://www.bellingcat.com/resources/2022/11/23/how-to-maintain-mental-hygiene-as-an-open-source-researcher/Link to Discord environment/wildlife topic channel: https://discord.gg/GQDsGvXJdf
- Mar 13, 202659 min
"Identifying Munitions In The War With Iran"- with Bellingcat Researcher Trevor Ball
This week we spoke with Trevor Ball of Bellingcat about how to identify weapons used in conflict, including the munitions appearing in the Iran conflict.The talk was hosted by Charlotte Maher on March 12th 2026. Music featured is courtesy of Artlist.Recorded live in our Discord Server: https://discord.com/invite/bellingcatLinks:The Weapons Being Deployed https://www.bellingcat.com/news/2026/03/03/bombs-will-fall-everywhere-the-american-israeli-and-iranian-weapons-being-deployed-in-middle-east/ The Incendiary Bomb Never Seen in Israel https://www.bellingcat.com/news/2026/03/07/the-incendiary-bomb-never-seen-in-israel-before/ Video Of US Tomahawk Missile Strike Next to Girls’ School https://www.bellingcat.com/news/2026/03/08/video-shows-us-tomahawk-missile-strike-next-to-girls-school-in-iran/ US Missiles Spotted Over Iraq https://www.bellingcat.com/news/middle-east/2026/03/11/iran-war-iraq-tomahawks-munitions-syria-located-kurdistan-missiles-fired/ OSMP The Iran War 2026 https://osmp.ngo/collection/the-iran-war-2026/ Iran-Israel conflict June 2025 https://osmp.ngo/collection/iran-israel-conflict-june-2025/ US munitions used in Yemen 2025 https://osmp.ngo/collection/us-munitions-in-yemen/ Bulletpicker - https://www.bulletpicker.com/index.html ODIN- https://odin.tradoc.army.mil/WEGImages shared by Iranian state media show remnants of a US Tomahawk missile https://bsky.app/profile/bellingcat.com/post/3mgnv5iscv226Talk with the OSMP team last year: https://rss.com/podcasts/bellingcatstagetalk/1945244/SIPRI https://www.sipri.org/Identifying possible crater in Gaza: https://www.bellingcat.com/?p=40534 CAGE: https://cage.dla.mil/Home/UsageAgreeConflict Armament Research field investigation on the Kh-101: https://storymaps.arcgis.com/stories/ea22b213d5414fefbcfe2f977ff07910
- Feb 27, 202658 min
"Real-Time Monitoring For Research" with Aram Shabanian
This week we spoke to Aram Shabanian, a Bellingcat contributor and experienced open source researcher. Aram is somewhat of an expert in monitoring live events. He's often the first to spot something on a livestream or hear an emergency call on a radio. In this talk he walks us through his preferred open source tools for watching things unfold and provides insight into how this type of research can save lives, prevent panic and create an important archive of historic incidents. The talk was hosted by Charlotte Maher on Thursday February 26th 2026. Music featured is courtesy of Artlist.Recorded live in the Bellingcat Discord Server: https://discord.com/invite/bellingcatLinks discussed:Broadcastify: https://www.broadcastify.com/ Compilation of resources including the aforementioned spreadsheet can be found on our Discord here: https://discord.com/channels/709752884257882135/1144296259805528256 Watch Duty: https://www.watchduty.org/careers Earth Null School: https://earth.nullschool.net/IQ Air: https://www.iqair.com/ Weather and Geological Phenomena channel in our Server: https://discord.com/channels/709752884257882135/1204206076493434930 US River gages: https://water.noaa.gov/rfc/mbrfc VidGrid: https://vidgrid.tk.gg/Sewage map (UK): https://www.sewagemap.co.uk/ This is for disease: https://www.wastewaterscan.org/en
- Feb 13, 202659 min
"Mapping the Anti-Rights Movement From the US to the UK" with Amnesty International UK
In this week's Stage Talk we were joined by Amnesty International UK’s Gender Justice Director Chiara Capraro. In a recent report, Chiara and her team mapped the structure and funding of 65 anti-rights groups operating across the UK. She shares the methodology behind the research, what it reveals about the current trajectory of rights-restriction campaigning, and what it could mean in the years ahead. We also explore the key similarities and differences between movements in the UK and the US.The talk was hosted by Charlotte Maher on Thursday February 12th 2026. Music featured is courtesy of Artlist. You can contact Chiara on chiara.capraro@amnesty.org.ukRecorded live in the Bellingcat Discord Server: https://discord.com/invite/bellingcatLinks discussed:The report: https://www.amnesty.org.uk/knowledge-hub/all-resources/the-anti-rights-movement/Alliance Defending Freedom Wikipedia page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alliance_Defending_FreedomNY Times report on the US anti-abortion influence on Britain: https://www.nytimes.com/2025/10/13/world/europe/uk-abortion-farage.htmlSex Matters Wikipedia page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sex_Matters_(advocacy_group)LGB Alliance Wikipedia page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LGB_AllianceCompanies House: https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/companies-houseBellingcat tool to dig into US corporate data: https://www.bellingcat.com/resources/2023/12/18/new-tools-dig-deeper-into-hard-to-aggregate-us-corporate-data/Hope Not Hate: https://hopenothate.org.uk/Telegraph article on ministers cutting down on foreign donations: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2026/02/12/ministers-crackdown-on-foreign-political-donations/Our previous Stage Talk on counter-disinformation strategies: https://rss.com/podcasts/bellingcatstagetalk/2507049/Democracy for Sale: https://democracyforsale.substack.com/Panorama investigation on Pregnancy Crisis Centres: https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-64751800EPF: https://www.epfweb.org/publications
- Jan 30, 20261h 3m
"How We Got Here: The Rise, Backlash and Future Of Counter-Disinformation" with Eliot Higgins and Dr Claire Wardle
In our first Stage Talk of 2026, we were joined by Bellingcat founder Eliot Higgins and Cornell University's Dr. Claire Wardle sharing their expertise on the formation of fact checking and verification strategies we see today. But how do we cope with the collapse of trust in media and academic institutions? Are corrections and AI fact checks enough? Listen in to find out what two seasoned open source verification experts think could be our next steps.The talk was hosted by Charlotte Maher on Thursday January 29rd 2026. Music featured is courtesy of Artlist.Recorded live in the Bellingcat Discord Server: https://discord.com/invite/bellingcatLinks discussed:Legacy site of First Draft News: https://firstdraftnews.org/Projecto Comprova: https://projetocomprova.com.br/Eliots framework: https://demos.co.uk/research/verification-deliberation-accountability-a-new-framework-for-tackling-epistemic-collapse-and-renewing-democracy/Eliot's article for Reuters Institute: https://reutersinstitute.politics.ox.ac.uk/news/how-protect-democracies-falsehoods-empowering-young-open-source-investigation-skills FullFact: https://fullfact.org/The video of Alex Pretti that faced claims of AI manipulation: https://bsky.app/profile/eliothiggins.bsky.social/post/3mdkcgmsvdk2y Claire's previous work on Information Disorder: https://firstdraftnews.org/long-form-article/understanding-information-disorder/Links shared by audience members relevant to the discussion: https://theconversation.com/when-critical-thinking-isnt-enough-to-beat-information-overload-we-need-to-learn-critical-ignoring-198549 https://blogs.lse.ac.uk/medialse/2018/05/08/media-literacy-everyones-favourite-solution-to-the-problems-of-regulation/https://www.disarm.foundation/frameworkhttps://www.brookings.edu/articles/adding-a-d-to-the-abc-disinformation-framework/https://issues.org/misunderstanding-misinformation-wardle/
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About Stage Talks with Bellingcat
Join Bellingcat and a live audience in our discord server, where every two weeks we host discussions with leading voices within open source research and investigations. Be part of the audience at the next stage talk by joining our discord community here: https://discord.gg/bellingcat
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