8.0/10115 votes#1 - A Thousand Cuts
Season 40 Episode 1 - Aired 1/8/2021
With press freedom under threat in the Philippines, we go inside the escalating war between the press and the government. The documentary follows Maria Ressa, a renowned journalist who has become a top target of President Duterte's crackdown on the news media.
Director: Ramona S. Diaz
Writer: Ramona S. Diaz
7.7/10103 votes#2 - President Biden
Season 40 Episode 2 - Aired 1/19/2021
The story of how crisis and tragedy prepared Joe Biden to become America’s next president. Those who know him best describe the searing moments that shaped President-elect Biden and what those challenges reveal about how he will govern.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
7.4/1042 votes#3 - Trump's American Carnage
Season 40 Episode 3 - Aired 1/26/2021
From his first days as president to his last, how Trump stoked division, violence, and insurrection. FRONTLINE investigates Trump’s siege on his enemies, the media, and even the leaders of his own party, who for years ignored the warning signs of what was to come.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
7.7/1036 votes#4 - China's COVID Secrets
Season 40 Episode 4 - Aired 2/2/2021
The untold story of the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic and how China responded. Chinese scientists and doctors, international disease experts and health officials reveal missed opportunities to suppress the outbreak, and lessons for the world.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
7.3/1043 votes#5 - Iraq's Assassins/ COVID in Yemen
Season 40 Episode 5 - Aired 2/9/2021
How Iranian-backed Shia militias are terrorizing Iraq. FRONTLINE investigates allegations that militias are threatening and killing critics with impunity and targeting U.S. interests. Also in this hour, how COVID is worsening Yemen's humanitarian crisis.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
7.6/1041 votes#6 - Death Is Our Business/ Love, Life & the Virus
Season 40 Episode 6 - Aired 3/23/2021
At Black-owned funeral homes in New Orleans, COVID-19 reshapes the grieving process. How the pandemic has transformed mourning in a city known for its jazz-filled funerals. Also in this hour, follow a mother’s fight to survive COVID-19 and see her newborn baby. FRONTLINE filmmaker Oscar Guerra documents how the coronavirus hit one immigrant family, their struggle to be reunited, and the community that rallied around them.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
7.4/10159 votes#7 - American Insurrection
Season 40 Episode 7 - Aired 4/13/2021
Over the last three years, FRONTLINE has collaborated with ProPublica to investigate the rise of extremism in America. In the aftermath of the assault on the U.S. Capitol, FRONTLINE and ProPublica team up again to examine how far-right groups were emboldened and encouraged by former President Trump and how individuals were radicalized and brought into the political landscape.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
6.5/1095 votes#8 - The Virus That Shook the World (1)
Season 40 Episode 8 - Aired 4/26/2021
The epic story of how people around the world lived through the first year of the coronavirus pandemic, from lockdowns to funerals to protests. Filming across the globe and using extensive personal video and local footage, FRONTLINE documented how people and countries responded to COVID-19 across cultures, races, faiths and privilege.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
7.0/1089 votes#9 - The Virus That Shook the World (2)
Season 40 Episode 9 - Aired 4/27/2021
The epic story of people around the world living through the year of the pandemic continues in a second part. With extensive personal video and local footage, FRONTLINE shows the differing struggles, beliefs and responses, across cultures, race, faith and privilege.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
7.3/1049 votes#10 - Escaping Eritrea
Season 40 Episode 10 - Aired 5/4/2021
An unprecedented undercover investigation into one of the world’s most repressive regimes — Eritrea. Exclusive secret footage and testimony shed new light on shocking allegations of torture, arbitrary detention and indefinite forced conscription.
Director: Evan Williams
Writer: N/A
6.9/1029 votes#11 - The Healthcare Divide
Season 40 Episode 11 - Aired 5/18/2021
FRONTLINE and NPR investigate the growing inequities in American healthcare exposed by COVID-19. The documentary examines how pressure to increase profits and uneven government support is widening the divide between rich and poor hospitals, endangering care for the most needy.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
7.7/1015 votes#12 - The Jihadist
Season 40 Episode 12 - Aired 6/1/2021
A powerful Syrian militant called a terrorist by the U.S. seeks a new relationship with the West. In his first interview with a Western journalist, former Al Qaeda commander Abu Mohammad al-Jolani says his fight is with Syrian President Assad, not the U.S.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
7.6/1036 votes#13 - Germany's Neo-Nazis & the Far Right
Season 40 Episode 13 - Aired 6/29/2021
FRONTLINE investigates the rise of far-right extremism and violence in Germany. The documentary traces how extremists have carried out terror plots and attacks on Jews and migrants, infiltrated the security services, and what authorities are doing to confront the growing problem.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
NaN/100 votes#14 - The Power of the Fed
Season 40 Episode 14 - Aired 7/13/2021
When COVID struck, the Federal Reserve stepped in to try to avert economic crisis. As the country’s central bank continues to pump billions of dollars into the financial system daily, who is benefitting and at what cost?
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
NaN/100 votes#15 - Leaving Afghanistan/India's Rape Scandal
Season 40 Episode 15 - Aired 7/20/2021
FRONTLINE investigates the consequences of America’s withdrawal from Afghanistan. With exclusive access to a militant wing of the Taliban, correspondent Najibullah Quraishi tells the story of Iran’s growing influence across Afghanistan. Also this hour, a report on politics and rape in India.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
NaN/100 votes#16 - In the Shadow of 9/11
Season 40 Episode 16 - Aired 8/10/2021
How seven men in Miami were indicted for the biggest alleged Al Qaeda plot since 9/11. From the director of "Leaving Neverland," the bizarre story of an FBI sting that led to a terror prosecution, though the men had no weapons or connection to Al Qaeda.
Director: Dan Reed
Writer: N/A
NaN/100 votes#17 - America After 9/11
Season 40 Episode 17 - Aired 9/7/2021
From veteran FRONTLINE filmmaker and chronicler of U.S. politics Michael Kirk and his team, this documentary traces the U.S. response to the September 11 terrorist attacks and the devastating consequences that unfolded across three presidencies. This two-hour special offers an epic re-examination of the decisions that changed the world and transformed America.
Director: Michael Kirk
Writer: Michael Kirk, Mike Wiser
NaN/100 votes#18 - Boeing's Fatal Flaw
Season 40 Episode 18 - Aired 9/14/2021
In an investigation with The New York Times, FRONTLINE examines the commercial pressures, flawed design and failed oversight behind Boeing’s 737 Max jet and the crashes that killed 346 people.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
NaN/100 votes#19 - Taliban Takeover
Season 40 Episode 19 - Aired 10/12/2021
The Taliban take over Afghanistan, and the threat of ISIS and Al Qaeda intensifies. On the ground, reporter Najibullah Quraishi investigates uncertainty and fear among the Afghan people and revisits the lead-up to the U.S. defeat and the Taliban’s return.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
NaN/100 votes#20 - Pandora Papers/ Massacre in El Salvador
Season 40 Episode 20 - Aired 11/9/2021
A leak reveals hidden assets and deals of the wealthy and powerful; the legacy of a 1981 massacre in El Salvador.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
1.0/101 votes#21 - Shots Fired
Season 40 Episode 21 - Aired 11/23/2021
Amid record police shootings in Utah, an investigation into the use of deadly force in the state. With local journalism partner The Salt Lake Tribune, FRONTLINE examines police training, tactics and accountability, as well as racial disparities in the way force is used.
Director: N/A
Writer: N/A
The Best Episodes of Frontline Season 40
Every episode of Frontline Season 40 ranked from best to worst. Discover the Best Episodes of Frontline Season 40!
Since it began in 1983, Frontline has been airing public-affairs documentaries that explore a wide scope of the complex human experience. Frontline's goal is to...
Genres:DocumentaryNewsTalk
Network:PBS
Season 40 Ratings Summary
"A Thousand Cuts" is the best rated episode of "Frontline" season 40. It scored 8/10 based on 115 votes. Directed by Ramona S. Diaz and written by Ramona S. Diaz, it aired on 1/8/2021. This episode is rated 0.3 points higher than the second-best, "President Biden".