{"podcast":{"title":"Borderland: Dispatches with Katarina Szulc","slug":"borderland-dispatches-with-katarina-szulc-7338689","podcast_index_feed_id":7338689,"rss_url":"https://feeds.megaphone.fm/IRD1459061282","website_url":"https://thisisironclad.com/","image_url":"https://megaphone.imgix.net/podcasts/dfd338de-31c1-11f0-a1c3-23ba1990f8e7/image/9bfd60ae3eee758123e41304ab51cbb3.png?ixlib=rails-4.3.1&max-w=3000&max-h=3000&fit=crop&auto=format,compress","author":"IRONCLAD","episode_count":74,"summary":"Cartel violence. Kidnappings. Disappearances. The headlines don’t tell the full story. Borderland: Dispatches, an IRONCLAD Original, delivers raw, on-the-ground updates from Mexico’s cartel war. Hosted by investigative journalist Katarina Szulc, the series offers real-time snapshots of a conflict reshaping the future of both Mexico and the U.S. With rare access to traffickers, law enforcement, and civilians caught in the crossfire, these fast-moving episodes expose the brutal truth behind the drug war. New dispatches drop every Thursday.","last_synced_at":"2026-09-16T08:19:39.439662+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/borderland-dispatches-with-katarina-szulc-7338689"},"episode":{"title":"The Cartel War That Turned Zacatecas, Mexico into a WAR ZONE: Katarina Szulc & Vince 'Rocco' Vargas","slug":"the-cartel-war-that-turned-zacatecas-mexico-into-a-war-zone-katarina-szulc-vince-rocco-vargas","published_at":"2026-09-15T16:41:00+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/borderland-dispatches-with-katarina-szulc-7338689/the-cartel-war-that-turned-zacatecas-mexico-into-a-war-zone-katarina-szulc-vince-rocco-vargas","show_page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/borderland-dispatches-with-katarina-szulc-7338689","url":"https://traffic.megaphone.fm/IRD4855682619.mp3","audio_url":"https://traffic.megaphone.fm/IRD4855682619.mp3","summary":"Vince “Rocco” Vargas sits down with Katarina Szulc to discuss her recent investigation in Tlaxcala, Mexico (which you can watch here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_rXThHW2xeg ), an uptick in violence in Zacatecas, cartels operating Canada and more. Borderland: Narcosis is an IRONCLAD Original. Chapters (00:00:37) Being chased on camera while reporting in Mexico (00:04:09) The cartel's PR angle and the FTO designation debate (00:06:33) Claudia Sheinbaum's stress and Mexican political intrigue (00:12:38) Car bombings and cartel war in Zacatecas (00:17:10) Hells Angels' role in Canada's drug trade (00:21:23) Why prosecution fails in Canada (00:26:42) Record-low border seizures vs. ongoing drug flow (00:29:22) How smuggling methods have shifted — tunnels, aircraft (00:37:16) What's next for Katarina Sponsors: 1st Phorm: Go to⁠ ⁠https://www.1stphorm.com/borderland⁠⁠ and get free shipping on any orders over $75, free 30 days in the app for new customers, and 110% money back guarantee on all of our products. Marek Health: Visit https://marekhealth.com/ and use code IRONCLAD to receive 10% off Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices","meta_description":"Vince “Rocco” Vargas sits down with Katarina Szulc to discuss her recent investigation in Tlaxcala, Mexico (which you can watch here: https://www.youtube.…","key_points":[],"chapters":[],"topics":[],"duration_seconds":2425,"processing_state":"not_requested","actions":[{"name":"request_transcript","method":"POST","url":"https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/borderland-dispatches-with-katarina-szulc-7338689/episodes/the-cartel-war-that-turned-zacatecas-mexico-into-a-war-zone-katarina-szulc-vince-rocco-vargas/transcription-requests","description":"Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode."},{"name":"read_markdown","method":"GET","url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/borderland-dispatches-with-katarina-szulc-7338689/the-cartel-war-that-turned-zacatecas-mexico-into-a-war-zone-katarina-szulc-vince-rocco-vargas.md","description":"Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource."}]}}