Terry Gross

Journalist Jon Fasman says local police are frequently able to access very powerful surveillance tools — including publicly accessible CCTV cameras, automatic license plate readers and cell phone tracking devices — with little oversight. Fasman embedded with different police departments across the country to see how officers integrate technology into their day-to-day job.

The Human Factor gives a behind-the-scenes view of the peace effort between Israel and Palestine. We talk with filmmaker Dror Moreh and Dennis Ross, President Clinton's point man in the effort.

New Yorker writer John Colapinto says the development of vocal structures may have been the key to humans' becoming the dominant species on the planet. His new book is This is the Voice.