# 03/15/2026: Choke Point, Laser Focus, Growing Up Behind Walls Page: https://stenobird.com/podcast/60-minutes-45492/03-15-2026-choke-point-laser-focus-growing-up-behind-walls Text version: https://stenobird.com/podcast/60-minutes-45492/03-15-2026-choke-point-laser-focus-growing-up-behind-walls.md Podcast: [60 Minutes](https://stenobird.com/podcast/60-minutes-45492) Published: 2026-03-16T01:00:00+00:00 Episode link: https://www.podtrac.com/pts/redirect.mp3/pdst.fm/e/traffic.megaphone.fm/CAD3579475163.mp3?updated=1774052670 Audio file: https://www.podtrac.com/pts/redirect.mp3/pdst.fm/e/traffic.megaphone.fm/CAD3579475163.mp3?updated=1774052670 Processing state: not_requested JSON: https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/60-minutes-45492/episodes/03-15-2026-choke-point-laser-focus-growing-up-behind-walls Duration seconds: 2852 ## Resource Even in its weakened state after two weeks of war, Iran maintains its chokehold on one of the most important shipping channels in the world: the Strait of Hormuz. Correspondent Cecilia Vega reports on the unprecedented closure of the 21-mile-wide waterway, which has stranded roughly 700 cargo ships and oil tankers in the Persian Gulf - increasing gas prices to their highest level in years. Iran has made extensive use of cheap drones in the war to menace the U.S. military and allies in the Persian Gulf. One emerging counter-drone solution is laser systems. Correspondent Lesley Stahl visits one Pentagon contractor developing such a system to explore how advanced lasers work and whether they are ready to be deployed. Sixteen years after the devastating earthquake in Haiti, the government has all but collapsed and gangs battle for control of the capital Port-au-Prince. Correspondent Anderson Cooper visits an orphanage in the besieged city where children have been sheltered from the violence for more than four years. Run by bestselling author Mitch Albom, the organization Have Faith Haiti takes in vulnerable children and, with an emphasis on education and faith, gives them a chance at an extraordinary future. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices ## Actions - request_transcript: `POST https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/60-minutes-45492/episodes/03-15-2026-choke-point-laser-focus-growing-up-behind-walls/transcription-requests` — Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode. - read_markdown: `GET https://stenobird.com/podcast/60-minutes-45492/03-15-2026-choke-point-laser-focus-growing-up-behind-walls.md` — Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource. A page view does not enqueue transcription. Agents should invoke `request_transcript` explicitly when they need this episode processed. ## Transcript Full transcripts are not published on public pages unless there is a clear rights basis.