Brian Cox turns his lens on his adopted country, America. He wants to find out whether the American dream - that anyone can make it big if they work hard enough - is a myth or a reality. In Miami Brian meets Caroline, a highly successful 'influencer', who is posing for a photo shoot. Caroline is not just living the American dream - she's selling it. Brian worries that she may be promoting a fantasy that is out of reach for most Americans. Brian tells us how he came to America believing in it as the land of opportunity, but now he's not so sure. He is incensed to discover the difference in pay between typical CEOs in America and their workers, and meets labour activist, Chris Smalls, who has spearheaded a campaign to start a union at an Amazon warehouse on Staten Island, NY. Brian's blunt questioning and passionate anger expose a world in which the richest one percent own half of the world's wealth.
Brian Cox: How The Other Half Live was broadcast on SBS ONE at Wednesday 3 May 2023, 10:35.