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In this interview, Reza sits down with journalist, author, and filmmaker Robert Young Pelton for an unfiltered conversation about writing, conflict, survival, and truth. Pelton shares what it means to write from war zones, how publishing has changed, and why books still matter in a world of algorithms and AI.

The Origin of a Writer

Pelton learned to write by reading. With no formal training, he devoured The Odyssey at age six and finished the Hardy Boys series in first grade. That early obsession taught him structure and narrative instinct. At 17 he became a copywriter, learning to “balance words like stones.”

From Marketing to Magazines to Books

Before fame, Pelton built an Inc. 500 marketing business based on story-driven product creation. He transformed publishing models and eventually wrote The World’s Most Dangerous Places, a 1,000-page mix of firsthand reporting, survival advice, and pitch-black humor—an adventure guide that made readers laugh and stay alive.

Writing from Conflict Zones

The hardest part of writing from war, he says, isn’t danger—it’s accuracy. Exaggeration destroys trust. His rule: capture emotion without adding drama. “The less I wrote, the more powerful it became.”

An Endangered Species

Pelton was one of the first solo journalists to shoot, write, and report for ABC News online in the 1990s. His work appeared in outlets from CNN to Foreign Policy. Today, he says much of that journalism is buried or deleted in the digital churn.

The Solitude of Writing

Writing demands access and trust, yet remains solitary. Pelton works between 4–6am, then rewrites ruthlessly. Solitude, he says, is surgical: “It’s like carving away everything that isn’t your book.”

Licensed to Kill

For Licensed to Kill, Pelton traveled from Southern training camps to remote African islands, documenting the rise of private military contractors and producing a definitive record of their origins.

Magazines, Books, AI, and the Future of Truth

Though fluent in tech and imaging, Pelton writes like old-world explorers. He reflects on the collapse of print and the rise of AI content. He experiments with language models but remains skeptical: “AI seduces you. It writes to please you. But real books

Robert Young Pelton is a Canadian-American author, journalist, filmmaker, and adventurer known for his conflict reporting and for venturing alone into some of the world's most dangerous and remote areas to chronicle history-shaping events. His work often involves interviewing military and political figures in war zones and spending time embedded with various groups, including the Taliban, Northern Alliance, CIA operatives, al Qaeda, and Blackwater .

He has been present at numerous conflicts, from Ukraine to the the Battle of Grozny and from Qali Jangi in Afghanistan to the rebel siege of Monrovia in Liberia.

Pelton is the author of several books, most notably the New York Times bestselling guide, "The World's Most Dangerous Places," which provides information for navigating high-risk zones. He has also written "Come Back Alive," a survival guide, and his autobiography, "The Adventurist: My Life in Dangerous Places". His work includes feature stories for National Geographic, Men’s Journal, Foreign Policy and Vice. He has worked as a contributing editor for National Geographic Adventure and has worked for major media networks like Discovery Channel, National Geographic Channel, CBS's 60 Minutes, ABC Investigative Division, and CNN.

Pelton is also the founder of DPx Gear, a company that designs rugged survival tools and knives based on his field experiences.

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In this episode of The World’s Most Dangerous Places, host Robert Young Pelton sits down with Artie McConnell — a man who’s lived on both sides of danger. After a decade as a Manhattan prosecutor, McConnell moved into global investigations, chasing terrorists, traffickers, and cybercriminals across borders. His story reveals why law and order still matter — and what happens when nations forget that.

Pelton, who’s spent years among rebels, mercenaries, and killers, turns to McConnell for insight into why the rule of law remains essential.

From the Boroughs to the Battlefields

McConnell admits he went to college mainly to play soccer, but passions for geopolitics and constitutional law changed his path. Fascinated by Russia and Afghanistan, he traveled through Central Asia as it unraveled, learning lessons no classroom could teach. Back home, he joined Manhattan’s DA’s office under Robert Morgenthau, working homicide calls and ensuring every case held up in court as New York’s underworld evolved.

The Globalization of Crime

His cases soon expanded from local murders to conspiracies linking the Italian mob, Russian syndicates, Chinese triads, and street gangs. Organized crime, he says, learned to think globally first. Later, at the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Brooklyn, he tackled terrorism, espionage, and money laundering, showing how the U.S. dollar gives prosecutors reach worldwide. When a French company paid ISIS through New York banks, McConnell’s team helped prosecute Lafarge — resulting in a billion-dollar penalty.

The Quiet Side of National Security

Unlike Hollywood thrillers, real counterterrorism is about prevention. “You don’t know what you’ve stopped,” McConnell says. He recalls a radicalized woman bound for ISIS who already had agents’ license plate numbers. His work shows that diplomacy and trust often achieve more than threats.

Faith in the System

Despite growing cynicism, McConnell stays optimistic. “The justice system is designed to self-correct,” he tells Pelton. Solving the 20-year-old murder of Jam Master Jay reaffirmed that faith: “To hug his family and know we got justice — that’s what makes it worth it.”

The Takeaway

From New York’s boroughs to global warzones, McConnell’s journey proves that justice and order aren’t abstractions

Robert Young Pelton is a Canadian-American author, journalist, filmmaker, and adventurer known for his conflict reporting and for venturing alone into some of the world's most dangerous and remote areas to chronicle history-shaping events. His work often involves interviewing military and political figures in war zones and spending time embedded with various groups, including the Taliban, Northern Alliance, CIA operatives, al Qaeda, and Blackwater .

He has been present at numerous conflicts, from Ukraine to the the Battle of Grozny and from Qali Jangi in Afghanistan to the rebel siege of Monrovia in Liberia.

Pelton is the author of several books, most notably the New York Times bestselling guide, "The World's Most Dangerous Places," which provides information for navigating high-risk zones. He has also written "Come Back Alive," a survival guide, and his autobiography, "The Adventurist: My Life in Dangerous Places". His work includes feature stories for National Geographic, Men’s Journal, Foreign Policy and Vice. He has worked as a contributing editor for National Geographic Adventure and has worked for major media networks like Discovery Channel, National Geographic Channel, CBS's 60 Minutes, ABC Investigative Division, and CNN.

Pelton is also the founder of DPx Gear, a company that designs rugged survival tools and knives based on his field experiences.

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From Propaganda to Psychographics

Pelton traces the arc from Sigmund Freud’s nephew Edward Bernays—who pioneered “engineering consent”—to Cambridge Analytica, where psychological profiling became the core of modern political warfare.
They break down the difference between demographics (who we are) and psychographics (how we think and feel), revealing how platforms like Facebook opened the floodgates to emotional targeting and mass persuasion.

“When Bernays said civilization depends on narrative control — he wasn’t joking. We just turned that into an algorithm.”

The OCEAN Model and the Science of Manipulation

Using the OCEAN model—Openness, Conscientiousness, Extraversion, Agreeableness, and Neuroticism—Pelton and Reza unpack how these traits became a digital map for influence.
Pelton examines how fear, resentment, and uncertainty became the new currency of persuasion—and how global actors exploited that data to polarize societies.

“Psychological operations used to be about tricking the enemy. Now they’re about tricking your neighbor.”

The conversation connects the dots from Brexit and 2016 election interference to January 6th, showing how tactics once used abroad are now deployed at home.

Active Measures and Cognitive Warfare

Drawing on decades inside war zones—from Afghanistan to Chechnya to Ukraine—Pelton compares PsyOps in combat to what he calls mass cognitive warfare today.
They explore how Russia’s “active measures” evolved into today’s fog of truth, half-truth, and fiction so dense that citizens lose trust in every institution.

“When everything feels unstable — that’s not an accident. That is the strategy.”

As the discussion moves to America, Pelton explains how fear, conspiracy thinking, and algorithmic outrage have replaced empathy and dialogue. His warning: the line of defense isn’t the government — it’s you.

Fighting Back: Reclaiming Agency in a Manipulated World

• Question everything that triggers strong emotions.
• Cross-check stories before sharing.
• Rebuild trust through real human connection.
• Recognize fear as the oldest, easiest manipulation tool.

Pelton reminds us that democracy is fragile but resilient — and that understanding manipulation is the first step toward defending it.

“Most

Robert Young Pelton is a Canadian-American author, journalist, filmmaker, and adventurer known for his conflict reporting and for venturing alone into some of the world's most dangerous and remote areas to chronicle history-shaping events. His work often involves interviewing military and political figures in war zones and spending time embedded with various groups, including the Taliban, Northern Alliance, CIA operatives, al Qaeda, and Blackwater .

He has been present at numerous conflicts, from Ukraine to the the Battle of Grozny and from Qali Jangi in Afghanistan to the rebel siege of Monrovia in Liberia.

Pelton is the author of several books, most notably the New York Times bestselling guide, "The World's Most Dangerous Places," which provides information for navigating high-risk zones. He has also written "Come Back Alive," a survival guide, and his autobiography, "The Adventurist: My Life in Dangerous Places". His work includes feature stories for National Geographic, Men’s Journal, Foreign Policy and Vice. He has worked as a contributing editor for National Geographic Adventure and has worked for major media networks like Discovery Channel, National Geographic Channel, CBS's 60 Minutes, ABC Investigative Division, and CNN.

Pelton is also the founder of DPx Gear, a company that designs rugged survival tools and knives based on his field experiences.