60 http://www.boston.com/news/podcasts/ This Boston Globe Spotlight Team investigation into the world of consumer debt in the United States found a system where debt collectors have a lopsided advantage, debtors are often treated shabbily by collectors and the courts, and consumers can quickly find themselves in a life-upending financial crisis. The Boston Globe Spotlight Team Copyright 2006 The Boston Globe en-us Thu, 27 Jul 2006 12:00:00 EDT Tue, 01 Aug 2006 23:00:00 EDT Clean A look at debt and debt collection agencies in the United States A Boston Globe Spotlight Team investigation on debt reveals that millions of Americans suffer through crippling debt, facing unsympathetic courts and aggressive constables who repossess their property. Boston.com Podcasts jtuohey@boston.com The Boston Globe Spotlight Team 04:01 http://cache.boston.com/news/special/spotlight_debt/podcasts/day4_mainstory.mp3 As the debt collection business in America continues to boom -- $66 billion worth of delinquent credit cards alone were purchased last year -- many debtors find themselves with their backs to the wall, laden with bills they can't pay and lacking protection from a seemingly unconcerned government. News & Politics Wed, 02 Aug 2006 01:00:00 EDT The Boston Globe Spotlight Team 27:36 http://cache.boston.com/news/special/spotlight_debt/podcasts/day4_specialists.mp3 Richard S. Daniels, head of a debt collection agency, and Elizabeth Warren of Harvard Law School, discuss avoiding and overcoming debt. News & Politics Wed, 02 Aug 2006 01:00:00 EDT The Boston Globe Spotlight Team 05:37 http://cache.boston.com/news/special/spotlight_debt/podcasts/day4_doctorsanddentists.mp3 Many people with tardy medical bills find their illness or injury isn't their only problem, as some physicians employ debt collectors to balance the unpaid fees. News & Politics Wed, 02 Aug 2006 01:00:00 EDT The Boston Globe Spotlight Team 04:41 http://cache.boston.com/news/special/spotlight_debt/podcasts/day4_statereps.mp3 Among the hundreds of thousands of Massachusetts residents who have been sued for bad debts are at least eight current state representatives. News & Politics Wed, 02 Aug 2006 01:00:00 EDT The Boston Globe Spotlight Team 05:59 http://cache.boston.com/news/special/spotlight_debt/podcasts/day3_mainstory.mp3 Constables, appointed by cities and towns to serve court papers and execute court orders, collect debt for agencies -- but many of them also have criminal records themselves and employ aggressive tactics. News & Politics Tue, 01 Aug 2006 01:00:00 EDT The Boston Globe Spotlight Team 03:03 http://cache.boston.com/news/special/spotlight_debt/podcasts/day3_statelaw.mp3 Many laws on property seizures are vague and antiquated, and in recent years, legislative action has left debtors' property more vulnerable, not less. News & Politics Tue, 01 Aug 2006 01:00:00 EDT The Boston Globe Spotlight Team 06:43 http://cache.boston.com/news/special/spotlight_debt/podcasts/day3_debtors.mp3 Four debtors talk about their encounters with the constables who seized their property for debt collection agencies. News & Politics Tue, 01 Aug 2006 01:00:00 EDT The Boston Globe Spotlight Team 05:00 http://cache.boston.com/news/special/spotlight_debt/podcasts/day3_constables.mp3 In Boston, nearly half of the constables have criminal arrest records, and seven were appointed despit criminal convictions. News & Politics Tue, 01 Aug 2006 01:00:00 EDT The Boston Globe Spotlight Team 07:18 http://cache.boston.com/news/special/spotlight_debt/podcasts/day2_mainstory.mp3 A Globe Spotlight Team investigation found small claims courts have mutated into a system that ignores individual rights and shows favoritism toward debt collectors and their lawyers. Facing court officials and attorneys who often break court rules, debtors are rarely informed of their rights and many find themselves threatened with jail. News & Politics Mon, 31 Jul 2006 01:00:00 EDT The Boston Globe Spotlight Team 04:41 http://cache.boston.com/news/special/spotlight_debt/podcasts/day1_mainstory.mp3 Today's installment, the first of four parts, reveals that many millions of Americans have slid, or been pushed by debt collectors and the courts, into a debtor's hell from which it can be virtually impossible to escape. News & Politics Sat, 29 Jul 2006 12:00:00 EDT The Boston Globe Spotlight Team 12:29 http://cache.boston.com/news/special/spotlight_debt/podcasts/day1_roundtablediscussion.mp3 Boston Globe Deputy Managing Editor John Yemma interviews Globe Spotlight Team members Walter Robinson, Beth Healey, and Michael Rezendes about reporting, researching, and uncovering the stories for the series Debtors' Hell. News & Politics Sat, 29 Jul 2006 12:00:00 EDT