DISPATCHES with Hollie McKay
Dispatches with Hollie McKay is where on-the-ground reporting meets real talk, no fluff, no agenda—just raw, unfiltered stories from the far corners of the world. Every week, I dive into the headlines that should be making news, the hidden humanitarian crises, and the extraordinary resilience of people too often forgotten. Alongside risk analyst Dennis Santiago, we’ll unpack global events, challenge narratives, and throw in a few personal picks—because sometimes, after covering war zones, you just need a good book, a great song, or a killer recipe. Welcome to Dispatches—where empathy leads the conversation.
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*This podcast is proudly brought to you by HumanizingGlobalPolicy.org
DISPATCHES with Hollie McKay
Dispatches: How to Go From Ballet to Battlefields
In this deeply personal dispatch, Hollie reflects on the unlikely path from a ballet studio in rural Australia to frontlines across the globe. Drawing from her recent article, Hollie opens up about how the discipline, grace, and storytelling of dance shaped her into the journalist she is today. Through stories of her working-class upbringing, early exposure to global narratives through choreography, and a fateful ankle injury that redirected her future, she shares how ballet wasn’t just an artform—but a survival mechanism.
This episode explores how our formative passions can become our compass, guiding us to unexpected and purposeful lives.
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