the resource project
Suggested Podcasts
This podcast list was thoughtfully curated by The Ironwood Project’s Executive Director, Chris Kirby. For each recommendation, Chris has included a brief overview of what you can expect to hear, so you can decide what feels right for you.
Some of these conversations explore difficult or potentially upsetting topics. Please protect your well-being as you listen - especially in the days and weeks following a disclosure. Take breaks, skip an episode or stop listening altogether if something feels like too much. You can always come back to it another time.
Listen here: CBC Podcast - Hunting Warhead
This is always the podcast that I suggest people start with if they are looking for more information and understanding about CSA. Hunting Warhead is a co-production of CBC podcasts and the Norwegian newspaper VG and is an incredibly well crafted podcast that handles very sensitive material in a way that is careful and considerate while still managing to tell the whole story.
Hunting Warhead explores, amongst other things, some of the darkest places on the internet, the people who exist in those places as well as the people and groups who work to shine a light into those dark places. There are interviews with law enforcement officials, IT specialists, psychologists, offenders and the families of offenders. The interviews with the families may be the most striking point in this podcast as it really illustrates how people can fly under the radar when we aren't paying attention.
The other reason that I suggest this podcast as a place to start is I am generally asked by people who live in Southern Ontario and the main focus, the character Warhead, lived in Guelph Ontario at the time of his arrest and was originally from North Bay. This really helps to put to rest that idea that CSA is a problem that exists elsewhere and not in our backyard.
To be clear, this is a very challenging listen. While it does not go into graphic detail in any way I always suggest that people listen a little bit at a time and that they make sure they are listening in a safe space where they can easily access support.
Listen here: CBC Podcast - The Banned Teacher
The second podcast that I always refer people to when they are looking for more insight on CSA and that is The Banned Teacher. Now again, there are some parts of this that are hard to hear so please do take care but the good folks at CBC podcasts have done a fantastic job of presenting the subject matter in a clear and concise way that tells the truth without being too hard to stay with.
Now if you search for the Banned Teacher on the CBC site you will get two seasons, one of which is titled ‘The Band Played On’. They play like two seasons of the same podcast, one covers offences against high school males in the 60’s, 70’s, 80’s and 90’s by their teachers and the other covers offences against high school females during the same era.
This podcast focuses primarily on the stories of the survivors and it is incredibly moving. It gives a very clear insight into the reactions of these children when the offences were occurring, and how they struggle with their history later in life.
Sadly it also does a great job of pointing out the systemic flaws that allowed this abuse to happen, and allowed it to continue without punishment.
I would say that this podcast is less graphic in its content than Hunting Warhead but it is by no means any less powerful and like Hunting Warhead, the main characters are all located in Ontario.
Listen here: Disclosed: The Children In The Pictures
This is the third and final podcast that I suggest to people when they ask what they can listen to for more insight and understanding on CSA. As I always say these podcast can be a tough listen, and in my opinion, this one is the most challenging of all three. If you do choose to listen to this one, please take some precautions and maybe listen just a little bit at a time making sure you have some support available if there is anything too upsetting in this one.
All of that being said this podcast has a lot of important information and insight on the topic. It follows the man who created the podcast as he is doing the research for it and how this experience affects him personally.
This one also has the most information about the challenges of fighting what is essentially a global phenomenon and what law enforcement agencies around the world are faced with every day.
I get that these are not entertaining things to listen to but for someone who has been doing this work for a while I firmly believe that if you are a parent or a custodian of a child in today’s world, these three podcasts we have reviewed should be meant for more information.
Podcast Episodes
Mormon Stories episodes 1640 and 1664
These episodes give a very extensive description of the origins of abuse in the Bot Scouts of America and how the abuse was covered up and silenced by both the BSA and the Mormon Church. It details how there are more than 82,000 registered cases of CSA against the Scouts, the bankruptcy and the approximately $850 million dollar settlement. The guest of these episodes is Tim Kosnoff, an American attorney who has spent two decades representing victims of abuse.
Boy Scout Abuse and the Mormon Church with Attorney Tim Kosnoff | Ep. 1640
Boy Scouts Bankruptcy and the Mormon Church – An update w/ Tim Kosnoff | Ep. 1664
Other People's Problems (CBC Podcasts)
The episode Andrew: Unlocking memories of childhood sexual abuse follows a real therapy session with clinician Hillary McBride. The episode breaks down the complex psychology of a teenager abused by a trusted adult.
Armchair Expert
The May 20, 2026,