Throughline (NPR): "The Internet Under the Sea"

Date: October 23, 2025
Hosts: Rund Abdelfatah, Ramtin Arablouei
Summary by an Expert Podcast Summarizer

Episode Overview

"The Internet Under the Sea" explores the hidden networks that make modern digital life possible: the undersea cables that carry virtually all of the world’s intercontinental Internet traffic. Hosts Rund Abdelfatah and Ramtin Arablouei connect recent disruptions—such as the Red Sea cable cuts caused by conflict—to the grand historical story of how the first transoceanic telegraph cables came to be. Through narrative storytelling and interviews with historians, engineers, and descendants, the episode highlights the technological audacity, setbacks, and human obsession behind creating the invisible global infrastructure tying continents together.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Fragility and Importance of Undersea Cables (00:19–06:20)

• The episode opens with a real-world scenario: a missile attack on the Rubymar cargo ship in the Red Sea (February 2024), which leads to catastrophic cuts in major Internet cables.
• Modern Relevance: Nearly all intercontinental Internet traffic runs through cables resting on the ocean floor—not satellites, as commonly assumed.
  • “If you took all the cables in the world and connected them, it could wrap around the earth 36 times…” — Ramtin Arablouei (04:32)
• Disruptions to these cables instantly impact millions, as seen when connections from Europe to Asia and Africa went down.
• Cables are extremely fragile—about the thickness of a human hair and easily severed by ship anchors, fishing, or sabotage.
• The episode highlights recent incidents: cable cuts near Taiwan, Finland-Germany, and Lithuania-Sweden, sometimes prompted by suspected sabotage (Russia’s "shadow fleet," geopolitical tensions).

Memorable Quote:
“These cables are an absolute essential technology that are also incredibly fragile. So fragile that in the beginning not many people thought it would actually ever work.”
— Ramtin Arablouei (06:20)

2. Contextualizing History: The Race for Instant Communication (08:48–23:07)

The Industrial Age and the Problem of Distance

• The hosts and experts describe the mid-19th century, with rapid innovation—trains, steamboats, telegraphs—but transoceanic communication remained painstakingly slow (weeks for messages to cross the Atlantic by ship).
• It’s in this era that Cyrus W. Field emerges, inspired by technological ambition and relentless energy.

Cyrus W. Field: Relentless Visionary

• Field, a successful paper magnate, was lured out of retirement by Frederick Gisborne’s failed Newfoundland telegraph project.
  • “When he was successful, he went back to all of those creditors who had no claim on him…but he paid them in full with interest, and that really helped cement his reputation…” — Bill Burns (13:40)
• After listening to Gisborne’s story, Field is struck by the idea: Why not stretch the cable all the way across the Atlantic (16:12)?
• Field had no technical background, but recruited experts like Samuel Morse and wealthy friends ("The Cable Cabinet"). Both the US and UK were convinced—eventually—of the project’s strategic potential.

Notable Reflection:
“He really thought this would help prevent wars from breaking out.”
— Cyrus W. Field IV (17:12)

The Enormity of the Challenge

• The proposed cable: over 2,000 miles long, to be submerged 12,000 feet deep, with technology and science still in its infancy.
• The scale and complexity paralleled the Apollo missions for its era (23:17).

3. Iteration, Failure, and Final Triumph (27:14–39:51)

First Attempts & Crushing Setbacks (27:14–39:10)

• The first cable-laying mission (1857) is thwarted by mechanical failure and ocean storms—hundreds of miles and a costly cable lost (30:15).
• Undaunted, Field raises more money and tries again; the second attempt is sunk by a violent storm, with ships battered and cables destroyed (34:00).
• The third attempt—finally—works! The 1858 cable briefly connects Queen Victoria and President Buchanan. Message transmission still takes 16 hours, but it's revolutionary (37:26).

Memorable Moment:
“They have a firework display that was so big and wonderful that it actually sets the dome of city hall on fire.”
— Rund Abdelfatah (37:47)

Collapse and Accusations

• Success is short-lived: the cable soon fails permanently, and Field is accused of fraud and public deception. The mood turns—from national hero to “humbug” (39:24).

4. The Ultimate Connection: Perseverance Across a Decade (41:25–47:39)

• Field embarks on multi-year efforts to redeem himself and the vision.
• Aided by British investors and the colossal ship Great Eastern, new, sturdier cables are designed.
• After yet another failed attempt (1865), Field perseveres, and in 1866, the team succeeds: the Atlantic cable is laid, connecting continents reliably.
• An emotional victory:
  “When they landed the cable, he [Cyrus Field] wept.” — Bill Burns (47:37)
  “I went to my cabin. I locked the door. I could no longer restrain my tears.” — Cyrus Field (47:39)

The Impact on Civilization

• The first cables cost a fortune to use—hundreds of dollars per 20-word message.
• But the precedent is set: by 1900, cables span nearly every continent, and today, their descendants remain absolutely crucial for global connectivity.

5. Reflection: Personality, Sacrifice, and the Legacy of the Cables (49:08–51:35)

• Field’s own fortunes decline after the cable, but his vision outlasts him.
• Modern undersea cables follow almost the exact routes of those first laid by Field and his contemporaries.
  • “If you look at a present day cable map of the world, and you look at the 1902 cable map… you will see those cables are on exactly the same routes…” — Bill Burns (50:20)
• The hosts and Field’s descendant discuss the personality traits—the mix of stubbornness, vision, and willingness to sacrifice—that drive radical change.

Thoughtful Quote:
“There’s certain personalities out there, and you can see them in the world today, and they, they can’t help themselves... I realize I’m not that kind of guy... but I’m not willing to sacrifice it all personally, for the greater good.”
— Cyrus W. Field IV (51:35)

Notable Quotes & Timestamps

• “Almost all intercontinental Internet traffic…actually go[es] through cables that run along the ocean floor.” — Ramtin Arablouei (03:54)
• “Those fiber optic cables are actually extremely fragile... just slightly more than a human hair.” — Ben Roberts (04:49)
• “There's always the more information you have as a merchant… the better equipped you are to make better decisions faster. And the faster you are, the more likely you are to be able to make more money.” — Rund Abdelfatah (17:31)
• “The strain on the man was more than the strain on the cable, and we were in fear that both would break together.” — Narrator (32:05)
• “...the first cable was thenceforth to sleep forever silent in its ocean grave. Years of labor and millions of capital were swept away in an hour into the bosom of the pitiless sea.” — Narrator (38:50)
• “The Queen of England and President Andrew Johnson congratulated each other… may the cable under the sea tend to promote harmony between the Republic of the west and the governments of the Eastern hemisphere.” — Ramtin Arablouei (47:55)

Key Segments & Timelines

• 00:19–06:20: Modern cable vulnerabilities and real-world disruptions
• 08:48–23:07: History of global communication, Cyrus Field’s origins
• 27:14–39:51: The Atlantic cable attempts, persistence in the face of failure
• 41:25–47:39: Final victory and the transformative 1866 cable
• 49:08–51:35: Reflecting on personality, legacy, and the continuing relevance of the cables

Conclusion

This episode weaves a compelling narrative connecting past and present—the ambition and perseverance behind the first transatlantic cable continue to echo in today’s fraught, invisible Internet infrastructure. The undersea cables are both fragile and world-changing, critical to our global society, and a reminder that radical visions, persistence through repeated setbacks, and sometimes painful personal sacrifices remain at the heart of technological progress.

For anyone interested in the backbone of the Internet, audacious engineering, and the personalities that shape world-changing innovation, "The Internet Under the Sea" is essential listening.