The Documentary: Archive 2008

In the United States a small but increasingly vocal group of people believe that members of the country's Muslim community are working from within to turn America into an Islamic state. This group of right wing thinkers believe this so-called 'Soft Jihad' is being carried out in schools, universities and other institutions across the country and they want to put a stop to it. In Assignment, Pascale Harter travels to America to find out how this fear is finding a foothold in public opinion there and hears from some of those accused of being the 'soft jihadists'.

In Brand Cuba, Allan Little analyses some of the factors that have kept Cuba alive in the public imagination over such a long period.

Throughout much of the Christian world Christmas is the time when Santa Claus dominates – a fat jolly chap who is our friend.

There are more than 10 million Palestinians living around the world, more than half of whom are stateless. In this year when Israel has been marking its 60th anniversary many Palestinians have been reflecting on the event that for them meant exile. The 'naqba', or catastrophe, is how they describe the destruction of many of their villages and towns and their own dispersal following the creation of the state of Israel in 1948. For Assignment Paul Adams spoke to four Palestinians in exile.

While China's economy has boomed over the past 30 years, many of its 700 million farmers have been stuck in poverty. Their only hope of a wage has been far from home in the factories and building sites of the boomtowns.

Timeline is the programme where the past sheds light on recent events though use of archive material.

Last year our correspondent Jill McGivering reported from Helmand Province in southern Afghanistan on the constant violence and the struggle to bring development to the region. Now she's returned, one year on, to see if there's been any progress.

While China's economy has boomed over the past 30 years, many of its 700 million farmers have been stuck in poverty.

In this four part series, using archive recordings and music from the time, Sir John Tusa examines what made 1968 such a climactic year. Programme three looks at how race and nationalism finally came to a head in 1968.

And now Assignment asks whether Bolivia is on the brink of civil war. In the run-up to next month’s crucial vote on a new constitution, Daniel Schweimler reports from the wealthy and white-dominated city of Santa Cruz, where the dispute over the policies of the country’s indigenous President Evo Morales are spilling over into racial violence.

In this four part series, using archive recordings and music from the time, Sir John Tusa examines what made 1968 such a climactic year. Programme two captures the student unrest around the world.

Five years after doing a series of reports on HIV and AIDS in the Caribbean, Emma Joseph retraces her steps for Assignment to find out whether the region still has one of the highest infection rates in the world, and to meet some of the people she first encountered in 2003.

In this topical and lively series, contemporary stories and events are explored through the examination of archive material of events that have gone before.

In this four part series, using archive recordings and music from the time, Sir John Tusa examines what made 1968 such a climactic year. Starting with the Vietnam War and the assasination of Bobby Kennedy, this series reflects on why 1968 was significant in world history.

Rupa Jha explores what ex-militants in Kashmir and their families expect from the future.

This series looks at street art in two very different cities: New York and Sao Paulo. Each episode profiles a rising artist, and speaks to people on the street to discover how attitudes to graffiti and street art vary from city to city. Episode 1 looks at New York through the eyes of Elbow-Toe.

Rupa Jha talks to former militants in Kashmir and their families about why they took up arms and the reasons behind giving up violence. What are the challenges of returning to normal society?

You might think that copper is just another metal, but in fact it is a vital substance. Discover why, without this metal, even the evolution of life itself would be radically different.

Hundreds of thousands of people were made homeless when Hurricane Katrina devastated parts of the southern coast of the United States in 2005. Many survivors were rehoused by the federal government in travel trailers which they claim made them sick. For

Former Kabul correspondent Alan Johnston reflects on decades of turmoil in Afghanistan, from the Soviet invasion in 1979 to the intervention by the West.