The Documentary Podcast

Dating in the Jewish world can be a struggle - different denominations, beliefs, being Kosher or not Kosher, ideologies and geography makes navigating this world difficult to decode. Amie Liebowitz talks to matchmaker and dating coach Aleeza Ben Shalom from Netflix's Jewish Matchmaker and goes on her own quest to learn about the traditional and religious values of matchmaking.

South Africa is marking 30 years of democracy this year, reflecting on the remarkable transition from apartheid that captivated the world. While some South Africans are celebrating, others are questioning whether the promises of democracy have delivered. The BBC’s Nomsa Maseko embarks on a personal journey, starting from the polling station she accompanied her mother to in April 1994, to meet the people who fought for South Africa’s freedom, built its democratic institutions, and are seeking to improve their own lives today. She asks all of them: what does 30 years of democracy mean to you?

A bonus episode from the Lives Less Ordinary podcast. Evy Mages grew up in and out of foster care in 1970s and 80s Austria. But even when she started a new life in the US, she was haunted by traumatic memories of a strange yellow house high up in the Alps, where she had been placed as an eight-year-old. It took an idle internet search in her 50s to reveal that this was actually an institution called a 'Kinderbeobachtungsstation', or 'child-observation station', where vulnerable children were experimented on by a psychologist using shocking methods. She decided to step back into her past to uncover the full, disturbing truth of what happened there. Evy's story first appeared in the New Yorker in 2023. Presenter: India Rakusen Producer: Edgar Maddicott Editor: Rebecca Vincent Get in touch: outlook@bbc.com or WhatsApp +44 330 678 2707 For more extraordinary personal stories from around the world, go to bbcworldservice.com/liveslessordinary or search for Live Less Ordinary wherever you get your BBC podcasts.

It's a quarter of a century since Kosovo emerged from a brutal war, one which pitted local ethnic Albanians against Serbs. Twenty-five years on, the government in Pristina is pressing ahead with reforms that could reinforce its separation from Serbia. They include banning the use of Serb dinars and curbing the import of things like Serb medicines. Pristina says the moves are needed to curb illegality and tax-evasion. But they have brought widespread complaints from local Serbs who feel victimised. Is the government justified in claiming there is a rising risk of violence, or are the restrictions themselves making this more likely?

Wangari Mathenge used to be a high-flying corporate lawyer before turning to her first love of art. She likes to express herself through her colourful palette, large-scale figurative paintings and immersive installations of places she has lived and worked. For this In The Studio, arts journalist Anna Bailey follows Wangari as she creates her next immersive experience, a life-sized replica of her Nairobi studio, where she invited 20 female domestic workers to have a day of rest, while also painting them for a new series of work which looks at the plight of female domestic workers in Kenya. Wangari also invites listeners into her Chicago studio, where she working on the next painting in the series. But as Anna finds out, rest is not only important to the workers but to Wangari herself. Presenter and producer Anna Bailey Executive producer Andrea Kidd.

Over the past twenty years, paintings from a private collection of Russian and Ukrainian modern art have been sold to museums and private collectors around the world. Paintings were sold for hundreds of thousands of pounds from the Zaks collection, as it’s known. It was said to include over 200 oil paintings of some of the most treasured Russian and Ukrainian avant-garde artists, including those by El Lissitzky, Exter, Goncharova and Popova, putting it among the largest in the world. This has caught the eye of three art detectives and the BBC’s Grigor Atanesian follows them, along with forensic experts, to discover more about the collection, what’s been happening and if the paintings are real or worthless fakes.

How is disinformation created and spread, and how is it impacting the way journalists work? We'll look at what's going on in Latin America, Russia and Nigeria with the help of three World Service journalists: Luis Fajardo is a senior editor with BBC Monitoring, covering South American media; Olga Robinson, also with Monitoring, is a disinformation analyst specialised in Russian affairs; and Olaronke Alo is part of the Disinformation Unit in Nigeria. Produced by Alice Gioia and Caroline Ferguson (Photo: Faranak Amidi. Credit: Tricia Yourkevich)

After months of delays, US politicians agreed a $61bn aid package of military assistance for Ukraine to support their fight with Russia. Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky said it could save thousands of lives in the war and President Joe Biden said it would make the world safer. In this edition, host Luke Jones hears from Americans who continuously raise support of their own for the Ukraine war effort. Many have family or friends in Ukraine and their fundraising supports everything from vehicles to medical aid to art therapy.

On the southern shores of Vietnam, whales are revered as gods of the oceans. Eliza Lomas visits whale temples and a whale cemetery, hearing about the roots and rituals of the belief. We learn how worshippers’ lives are entwined with the sea, joining a festival where whales are honoured with a ceremonial journey. With lives at sea full of risk, we hear how these sacred creatures ensure fishermen a safe return to land.

Sweden has a global reputation for championing high taxes and social equality, but it has more dollar billionaires, relative to its population size, than almost anywhere else on the planet. Stockholm-based journalist Maddy Savage untangles the rise of the super rich, from the country’s booming tech sector to wealth and taxation policy shifts. She also delves into the deep-rooted cultural norms which can discourage Swedes from celebrating money, and investigates the rise in impact investing, as some of Sweden’s richest business leaders plough their cash into new startups prioritizing social and environmental sustainability. A Podlit AB production.

From deepfakes to the fear of AI taking jobs, to the social media giants making money from abusive content, our technology dominated world is in a crisis – what are the solutions? AI researcher Kerry McInerney applies a feminist perspective to data, algorithms and intelligent machines. AI-powered tech, and generative AI in particular, pose new challenges for cybersecurity. Kerry proposes a new take on AI, looking at how it can be used on a small scale, acknowledging culture and gender, tailoring the technology for local applications rather than trying to push for global, one size fits all strategies. And in addressing corporate responsibility for Big Tech, Kerry discusses how tackling harassment online requires an understanding of the social, political and psychological dimensions of harassment, particularly of women in the wider world, as opposed to seeing this as a technical problem. Dr Kerry McInerney is a research fellow at the Leverhulme Centre for the Future of Intelligence, University of Cambridge, and the AI Now Institute. This is the last of four programmes from the Oxford Literary Festival, presented by Nuala McGovern, produced by Julian Siddle. Recorded in front of an audience at Worcester College Oxford.

For three decades Armenians ruled Karabakh – literally “Black Garden” – an unrecognised statelet inside neighbouring Azerbaijan. Many saw it as the cradle of their civilisation. But as Azerbaijan retook control last autumn, the entire population fled in just a few days. It was a historic catastrophe for Armenia. But the world barely noticed. How is Armenia coping with its loss? Can 100,000 refugees rebuild their lives? And will the cycle of hatred that caused the conflict ever be broken? Grigor Atanesian reports.

Philip K. Dick's novella The Minority Report was famously adapted into a science fiction blockbuster by director Steven Spielberg in 2002. More than 20 years later, it is now being adapted for the stage by writer David Haig and director Max Webster. Mark Burman goes behind the scenes of this bold adaptation, as the clock ticks down to opening night.

A bonus episode from the What in the World podcast. Korean shamans hold significant cultural importance in Korean society. They are often portrayed in Korean dramas and films, adorned in shiny and colourful traditional attire, dancing on sharp knives, summoning spirits, and banishing demons. They offer fortune telling services and perform rituals to help people with their personal issues. In South Korean media, shamans are often portrayed as deceitful characters who misuse their status to manipulate people and profit from others… but that negative image is slowly changing as young shamans are modernising their approach. They now have shrines in the busy centre of Seoul and they've become big on social media, even offering consultations online. BBC journalist Soo Min Kim has been speaking to shamans and their customers about why people go to see them and how social media is making them more accessible. Instagram: @bbcwhatintheworld WhatsApp: +44 0330 12 33 22 6 Email: whatintheworld@bbc.co.uk Presenter: Hannah Gelbart with Soo Min Kim Producers: Emily Horler and Adam Chowdhury Editor: Julia Ross-Roy

How do you prepare for the worst-case scenario? Juna Moon has been talking to young people in South Korea about how they perceive the threat of war in the region and how they’re planning for it. Growing up in Taiwan after the 1999 Jiji earthquake, Joy Chang has been trained on what to do in case another quake hit. So when the ground started to shake in early April, she knew exactly what to do. Plus Hernando Álvarez shares the life advice he received from Nobel Prize winner Gabriel García Márquez, and the story behind a handwritten note listing the author's favourite books.

The situation in the Middle East is being described as uncharted territory following strikes involving Iran and Israel. This is framed around the war between Israel and Hamas, now in its seventh month. Three people in Israel share their experiences with host James Reynolds. Avi, Lianne and Liah describe what it was like when Iran launched drones and missiles at their country and how the Hamas-led attack of 7 October continues to impact every moment of their lives.

What if you carry an inherited surname that you feel is profoundly un-Christian? Should you keep it or change it? Robert Beckford is going through this dilemma. His surname is a slave name, a brand of ownership passed down from his enslaved African ancestors in Jamaica. Over time, Robert has grown deeply uncomfortable with the meaning of this name and now wants to find a more spiritual alternative. He embarks on a journey of self-discovery, considering whether he should change or keep his inherited name.

An eight-year-old girl holds two cards in her hand. She places several plastic poker chips into the middle of the dining room table and makes a bet. Science writer Alex O’Brien has been teaching her daughter how to play poker for three years. She believes that the game will give her daughter important life lessons for the future - critical thinking skills, empowerment, controlling emotions and understanding psychology, probability and risk. But when the game is associated with casinos, gambling and men (95% of players are male), not every one agrees with her decision - including poker players.

Could going vegan help feed the world and save the planet? While industry and energy production are often singled out as the main drivers of climate change, the global meat production industry is a bigger polluter. Veganism advocate Gary Francione and nutritionist Dr Ron Weiss join Nuala McGovern to discuss the pros and cons of veganism. While it might make sense from an ethical and climate change perspective, it is a massive cultural leap for many. We ask whether veganism could really be useful in places where food might not be readily available. And answer concerns over whether a non-meat diet can provide adequate nutrition.

Reggaeton’s the soundtrack to Puerto Rico. The globally popular music reflects what’s going on in the cultural and political scene of the Spanish-speaking Caribbean Island. It started out as underground music in marginalised communities but was criticised for allegedly promoting violence and being too sexually explicit. Reggaeton has since been used as an anthem to overthrow a local governor and a way to criticise the island’s complex relationship with the United States. It’s also evolved from misogynist roots to reach new audiences in the LGBTQ community. Jane Chambers travels to Puerto Rico to meet the people and hear the music which is both maligned and revered.