5 Podcasts I Highly Recommend
A new, occasional feature, sharing some notes on what I'm reading, listening to and watching.
Raising the swastika in 1936, this scene took place not in Berlin but at a pro-Germany rally in a Los Angeles park. Rachel Maddow’s series, Ultra, tells the shocking and little-known story of how Nazi Germany engaged U.S. Congressman and others in a plot to overthrow the American government. Photo: Archives of Jewish Federation Council of Greater Los Angeles and California State University, Northridge.
We’re all too busy.
You know the problem well. It’s a real challenge to discover and keep up with all the good stuff out there amidst all the junk that comes our way.
So I thought it might be helpful to share with you notes on a few podcasts that I have been urging relatives and friends to download and listen to. I hope you find them as compelling as I have.
As you can see below, I find the Shalom Hartman Institute’s podcasts particularly enlightening and entertaining. And the two other podcasts cited here reflect the importance of high-quality investigative reporting
(Just so you know, I am recommending these podcasts on my own. I’m not being paid in any form for these brief reviews, and I haven’t contacted any of these podcast producers.)
If you do listen to one or more of them, please share your comments with me. And I welcome your recommendations for other podcasts you believe “Between The Lines” subscribers would enjoy.
Best to email me at rosenblattgary25@gmail.com
Ok, you’re ready to check them out.
Just click on the title of the shows below.
Happy listening,
Rachel Maddow Presents: Ultra (MSNBC)
Did you know that in the years leading up to World War II the Nazis instituted a bold and frightening plan to keep America out of the war? It included support from members of the U.S. Congress in spreading pro-German propaganda and supporting efforts to overthrow our government through violence.
I wasn’t aware of this ugly chapter of American history, and was spellbound by MSNBC program host and commentator Rachel Maddow’s thoroughly documented 8-part series. It describes how Nazi agents, high-level members of our government and ultra-nationalist U.S. extremists – fueled by fear and hatred of Jews – employed deadly violence in seeking to launch a war on American democracy.
Their efforts led to the biggest sedition trial in American history in 1944.
Parallels to America eight decades later are eerie.
For Heaven’s Sake (Shalom Hartman Institute, SHI)
Among SHI’s many innovative projects, this one offers a lively and insightful discussion every other week from Jerusalem on timely political and social issues impacting Israel and American Jews. Host Donniel Hartman, a rabbi and president of SHI, and Yossi Klein Halevi, an author, journalist and senior fellow of the Institute, offer their viewpoints and then invite Elana Stein Hain, senior fellow of SHI North America, to offer a Jewish text perspective.
Hartman and Klein Halevi manage to have a lively, unscripted and thoughtful conversation – tinged with humor at times, no matter how serious the topic – and Stein Hain provides a fresh American ‘take’ in addition to citing rabbinic writings.
The conversations between Hartman and Klein Halevi dealing with the current crisis over the new Israeli government reflect the pain, frustration and deep concern of many Israelis.
Other provocative segments in recent months include: “Does Israel Still Matter?” and “The Anti-Semitism We Tolerate.”
Identity/Crisis (Shalom Hartman Institute)
Yehuda Kurtzer, Jewish public intellectual and president of SHI North America, hosts this weekly program, inviting creative and thoughtful guests to discuss and explain issues in the news – and cultural phenomena – through the lens of Jewish ideas and values. Along the way, Kurtzer offers his own insights and prods his guests to “unpack” ways for listeners to better understand the context of stories in the news.
Among recent topics: “Bible By Bot,” “Why Is Ben-Gvir So Popular?” “The Peculiar Power of Jewish Food Influencers,” and “The Torah of Tik Tok.”
The Trojan Horse Affair (New York Times/Serial)
In 2014, a mysterious letter sent to a city council representative in Birmingham, England, asserted that Islamic extremists had launched an intricate plot – code name: Operation Trojan Horse – to infiltrate and take over the city’s schools. The story made national headlines and created a national panic. A number of investigations were undertaken by the government, major changes were made in schools, teachers lost their jobs, and British Muslims felt increasingly marginalized by the process.
Years later, Brian Reed, an American journalist and host of the popular podcast “S-Town,” is approached by Hamza Syed, a British Muslim doctor about to start journalism school. Syed manages to convince a reluctant Reed to join him in finding the answer to a question that had never been seriously explored or answered: Who wrote the mysterious letter?
Their long, intriguing and maze-like attempts to get to the bottom of the story have more twists and turns than a John Grisham thriller.
What makes the eight-part series especially compelling is the narration by Reed and Syed, which includes their frank discussions and disagreements over objective vs. advocacy journalism and the different perspectives of a white American and British Muslim in approaching the story.
Heretic In The House (Shalom Hartman Institute)
If you follow pop culture portrayals of the chasidic experience, you might believe that most men and women who abandon their chasidic roots do so out of desperation. But Naomi Seidman, a professor of Jewish studies who grew up in a chasidic home, says Jews who are OTD (“off the derech,” or off the religious path) are misunderstood more than mistreated.
As host of this four-part series, Seidman, who is no longer observant, interviews a number of her fellow OTDs about their experiences. They talk about their love-hate relationship with their upbringing, and poke holes in stereotypes – often fostered by their families – like suggesting they are “nebechs,” to be pitied, rather than successes in their new lives.
At times blasphemous, at times funny and often poignant, “Heretic in the House” offers a rare insight into the authentic experiences of those who opt out of religious life
I want to second Gary's recommendations on the Hartman Institute podcasts. They are often available on the Times of Israel website and a great listen when doing chores around the house.