News Gathering and Investigation: Video Documentaries

Borderless: The Lives of Undocumented Workers (27:00)

Geraldo, a Costa Rican construction worker, and Angela, a Caribbean domestic employee, describe their experiences with labor exploitation and restrictive immigration laws, as well as their separation from children and family.

Dying to Get In: Illegal Immigration to the E.U. (59:00)

This program surveys the high-tech methods being used to secure the E.U.’s borders against refugees and asylum-seekers alike while speaking with human smugglers, who both assist and exploit their clients, and illegal immigrants, who see Europe as their only safe haven.

Coyote: An Immigration Case Study (58:00)

For guidance northward, illegal immigrants from Latin America frequently enlist mercenary escorts known as “coyotes.”  This program examines one such charming and unseemly figure and the three Guatemalans who have placed their trust in him. Viewers follow the nervous foursome through checkpoints and river crossings as they employ unreliable forged documents and take on false identities—while facing physical danger and the constant threat of deportation.

Dying to Leave: The Dark Business of Human Trafficking (57:00)

Every year, at least two million people are packed in shipping containers, pulled through sewage tunnels, secreted in car chassis, and ferried across frigid waters. Among this human cargo, an alarming number end up as prostitutes, thieves, or sweatshop laborers. This Wide Angle documentary explores the worldwide boom in illicit migration and human trafficking.

Ties That Bind: Immigration Stories (56:00)

This program looks at the human drama behind the current debate over U.S. immigration policy. It roams both sides of the Texas-Mexico border, exploring the root causes of why Mexicans immigrate.