Podcasts about russophile

How France's new hardline position on Russia marks a major shift away from decades of pro-Russia policies. The fight to make hair discrimination illegal. And why VAT – a tax introduced 70 years ago – is so important to French finances, despite being deeply unequal. French President Emmanuel Macron has recently done a U-turn on Russia:  having argued against humiliating Russia following the invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, he has now become one of President Vladimir Putin's biggest critics. Journalist Elsa Vidal, the head of RFI's Russia service, author of La fascination russe (The fascination with Russia), talks about France's long history of Russophile foreign policy and how it has been coloured by a certain anti-Americanism. It led to complacency – even blindness – over Putin's increasingly autocratic rule. (Listen @0'30)France's parliament has begun debating legislation against a form of discrimination that's often overlooked: prejudicial treatment on the basis of hair. The bill is inspired by laws in the United States, where anti-racism campaigners have long argued that black people face unfair pressure to change their natural hair. Artist and activist Guylaine Conquet, who first came up with the idea for the French bill, explains why France is taking a different approach from the US: her proposal would classify hair discrimination as discrimination on the basis of physical appearance, not race. That's in line with France's universalist, "colour-blind" approach to racial discrimination, but also broadens the application of the law to everyone. (Listen @21'10) France was the first country to introduce a Value Added Tax (VAT), on 10 April 1954. 70 years later, the tax brings in more than half of France's revenue, and far more than income tax. Economist Julien Blasco explains that while VAT is regressive, it serves to fund crucial social welfare programmes. (Listen @16'30)Episode mixed by Cecile Pompéani. Spotlight on France is a podcast from Radio France International. Find us on rfienglish.com, Apple podcasts (link here), Spotify (link here) or your favourite podcast app (pod.link/1573769878).

"There was great optimism about Russia in the 90s as it emerged from decades of authoritarian control. This has gone into reverse since 2014, and its messy geopolitical divorce from the Western world is accelerating."As a teenager, Jonathan Fink was a Russophile. While in college, he lived in Russia to deepen his knowledge. He found that in the 90's, the Russian people were humbled but not scornful of foreigners. Today, he says the Russian climate is much different, and it's part of what has brought the country to a possible near coup during the invasion of Ukraine, with Putin finding himself unexpectedly sparring off with the head of the state-funded paramilitary organization, The Wagner Group.On his YouTube channel, The Silicon Curtain, Fink interviews academics and thought leaders on the topic of Russia, with a focus on "propaganda, digital disinformation, politics, corruption, hybrid warfare, weaponized conspiracy theories, social echo chambers and digital dystopias." Today on Ukraine 2 4 2, Fink explains how these tactics have created chaos and self harm, leaving Russians with no centralized opinion on the war, if any at all.  

When Ron Pollard, an architectural photographer from Colorado, legally acquired a hoard of Russian avant-garde paintings, he couldn't believe they were real. But they were; all the experts he asked agreed. Anyone connected to the Russian government, however – oligarchs, Russophile dealers, and so on – insisted they were forgeries. Are all of his 160 paintings fakes? Or is he sitting on a collection appraised at over $50 million? He talks to Greg Olear about his story, a lost school of painting, and the ultimate purpose of art. Plus: a song for the owner of the Speaker. Follow Ron on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ifoundmalevich_film/ Art of the Zero website, to view the collection: http://artofthezero.com/ Virtual museum of orphan Russian avant garde art: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bBmmgls6wUQ The film “I Found Malevich:” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d9q22pQ5hdc Sponsored by BetterHelp. Get 10% off your first month at betterhelp.com/greg Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Flor MacCarthy was born in West Cork and shares memories of one of Ireland's most idyllic regions. Her childhood was one rich in the indulgence of curiosity, filled with books, history, and fueled by a Russophile father.A Trinity College degree in French and Art History led unexpectedly to a career in journalism. Flor worked for 16 years at RTE, Ireland's national broadcaster, reporting on both domestic and international news.Following her successful career at RTE, Flor took up the position of Politics Presenter at Oireachtas TV which afforded the opportunity to continue her journalistic career while providing enough space to pursue literary ambitions. The President's Letters, An Unexpected History, released in 2021 has proven to be a highly successful product of her expanded brief.Join Flor and hosts, John Lee and Martin Nutty, as they discuss the surprising, amusing, and,  sometimes infuriating correspondence lurking in the archives of the Irish Presidency.Flor's LinksSeamus Plug: West Cork History FestivalThe President's Letters: An Unexpected History of IrelandLinkedInTwitterOireachtas TV 

An experiment I'm running to live tweet my interviews in the forms of questions: The first try is with ~timluc-miptev on Urbit He is constructing and coordinating a DAO that will be a Layer 1 that will start as a ZK roll-up in the Urbit ecosystem.     What is a program running on the Urbit operating system? What does it mean to write to the ETH blockchain? What are the main constructs in building what you are building? What will it take to build a full layer 1 on Urbit? What is the deal with hype-farming? What do you need for a full layer 1?  How do you get people on board? How do you make sure its secure? How many years does it take to build trust in an layer 1? What use cases can be solved by a layer 1? Why is Urbit the best environment for staying productive and happy as a programmer? How do you balance the money-making hype-farming with staying grounded? How do you not pump and dump? What are the hype-farming paths? What is your marketing strategy? Does Urbit have the most high end mind share like Quora did but no longer has? How can this be nurtured? What is starkware? How do you get developer mind-share in an age when the best is already post-economic? Is raising money for crypto companies better to do in a venture style as opposed to crowdfunding? How do you become an accredited investor? Who do you show the money to? What is the impact of devs being post-economic and post location? How do you do due diligence when people like being anon? Whtat is the value prop of Urbit? What is the future of gaming on Urbit? What is the difference between production programming and fun/tinkering programming? Urbit is the unifying software behind the fun factor for programmers? What is a networking operating system? What will Urbit look like in a thousand years? Behind the scenes network operating system that no one notices. Will your thing eventually work on hardware? What is it like to live in a world of bits? What is your long-term physical location ideal? Nomad? What is the main challenge of building a ZK roll-up? How does it work in ETH? How can we think about in terms of state when it comes to ETH? How do you build a small ETH program as a ZK roll up? What are the main use cases that are being created right now with ZK roll-ups? Make transactions cheaper ZK roll ups seem like strange distributed bots straight out of a Gibson Cyberpunk Novel. What is the metaverse? What will happen to real estate when crypto is fully embodied in our physical life? What does it mean to be Will-maximalist? What are the upsides to living a fully remote work life? How do you balance the upsides and downsides? What is the difference between being grounded and dependent on a physical location? What were doing in Ukraine? Why are you a Russophile? What was it like to be ungrounded quickly by war in Ukraine? How is news different when you are actually in the physical location where the news is taking place? What are input/output matches? Track what the inputs were and what they said. Test whether it turned out to be true. Say to yourself what you think is going on and test it.

This week I'll cover the initial phase of Operation Barbarossa. Remember last week we heard how the tension between Russia and Germany had been growing despite the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact which was a rather flimsy agreement based on mutual dislike rather than a proper peace document. And on June 22nd 1941 it became redundant because Germany invaded Russia as part of the massive Operation Barbarossa which Hitler had been planning since December. There is a great truth in Carl von Clausewitz's observation that the greater part of information obtained in war is contradictory, a still greater part is false, and by far the greatest part is of a doubtful character. InBetween the Wars German intelligence had been directed Westwards as Hitler built up his plans to attack Poland, then western Europe. He regarded the USSR as so backward that his intelligence gathering was erratic and largely incompetent. In consequence by 1941, German military intelligence on the Soviet Union compared rather unfavourably with the intelligence the Russians had on Germany. The arrogance is breathtaking. For example, the head of German Foreign Armies East Intelligence Lieutenant Colonel Liss could not speak Russian and appeared to have no real interest in the territory. Worse, Liss had no particular knowledge of the Soviet Union nor the Red Army and he was not even trained as an intelligence officer. This was worsened by the fact that intelligence gathering in the USSR was difficult. The Soviet system of the registration of the civilians who were forced to carry documents and labour books made it difficult to introduce agents into the country. Foreigners were frowned upon in the Soviet Union and all travel was tracked closely when permission was eventually granted. The Germans relied for their order of battle intelligence on information obtained from Finland, Hungary, Rumania and Japan. Inside Russia, the German Military attache was General Kostring who was a Russophile and unlike Liss, he was fluent in Russian. He correctly warned Berlin that the Red Army's best allies were time and space, a lack of roads, and bad weather. Hitler ignored his warnings to some extent. Kostring also stipulated in a report to Hitler that Moscow was not an important target because the most strategic heavy industry lay eastwards. To win – they had to destroy Russia's production capability which was mostly out of reach of both German planes, and saboteurs. German intelligence made a number of fatal guesses when it came to the Red Army. The first was that it was not fit for modern war and could not match a boldly led Wehrmacht. Kostring completely miscalculated the Soviet industry's capacity to provide weapons, clothing and vehicles for a long war. He also completely miscalculated the Russian fighting spirit. To give you an idea just how poor German intelligence was, when Operation Barbarossa began that Sunday in June 1941 Hitler and his Generals had no idea that both the Russian 9th Army and 26th Army were based in the Ukraine. They only discovered this almost a month later in July 17th yet both armies had been fighting the Germans since almost day one of the campaign

If you're at all a Russophile and you've never visited Russia Beyond (rbth.com), find out what you've been missing as we connect with the editor-in-chief of this amazing, culturally-focused international publication that now boasts 5 million readers worldwide. (Also, the alternate title for this episode is "Pants Challenge", courtesy of Tom -- you'll have to listen all the way to the end to find out who wins the pants challenge or at least who clearly does not.) Thank you for listening! https://pbs.twimg.com/profile_images/977487723790585856/4BVUH8GX_400x400.jpg NOTE: This episode was recorded via Zoom on April 10th, 2020. CREDITS Co-Host/Co-Producer: Tom Rehnquist (Connect: facebook.com/thomas.rehnquist) Co-Host/Co-Producer: Matthew Orr (Connect: facebook.com/orrrmatthew) Associate Producer: Kathryn Yegorov-Crate Associate Producer: Cullan Bendig Associate Producer: Lera Toropin Associate Producer: Samantha Farmer Associate Producer: Milena D-K Development Assistant: Luis Camarena Production Intern: Jasmine Geraci Additional Audio Editing: Jada Geraci Executive Editor/Music Producer: Charlie Harper (Connect: facebook.com/charlie.harper.1485 Instagram: @charlieharpermusic) www.charlieharpermusic.com Executive Producer & Creator: Michelle Daniel (Connect: facebook.com/mdanielgeraci Instagram: @michelledaniel86) www.msdaniel.com DISCLAIMER: The views expressed on this episode do not necessarily reflect those of the show or the University of Texas at Austin. Special Guest: Vsevolod Pulya.

Former Associated Press Moscow correspondent Andy Katell talks about his travels in Russia as a journalist and a tourist, taking the cover off a vast country largely unknown to Americans. In lieu of My Favorite Trip this week, Andy previews his seminar on sorting real information from fake news in a time of pandemic.

Due to the political climate in Soviet Russia of the day, Yevgeny Murzin was forced to build his synthesizer in secret with little access to electronic parts. Over next two decades (pre and post war), the ANS as it was known, was a self-financed, largely secret labour of love; Murzin had to work on it in his spare time over two decades with help from a like-minded, tight-knit circle of composers and technicians. Murzin finally completed construction of the ANS in 1958 and it was subsequently used by a number of pioneering 20th Century Russian composers such as Stanislav Kreichi, Alfred Schnittke, Edison Denisov, Sofia Gubaidulina and Edward Artemiev. The unearthly tones of the ANS were perfectly suited to the era of Soviet space exploration, and became the soundtrack instrument of choice for a series of classic Russian sci-fi films, the most famous being Andrei Tarkovsky’s Solaris released in 1972. Meet those who knew Murzin and saved his instrument from obscurity: Eduard Artemiev (celebrated soundtrack composer and Tarkovsky collaborator), Stanislav Kreichi (composer and de facto guardian of the ANS), Andrei Smirnov (Theremin Institute Moscow). Other synthesiser pioneers contribute including Suzanne Ciani (US composer) and Goldfrapp’s Will Gregory (Russian synth collector) as well as current synthesiser aficionados Kaitlyn Aurelia Smith. Presented by keyboard player and long-standing Russophile, Jon Ouin. Image: Yevgeny Murzin

Can a person sustain their life on their passions? Can you do what you love and live off of it, too? It’s the perfect road to go down, and one that travelers often find themselves seeking. Juliana Dever has found the path. A travel blogger and an actress from the television series Castle , Juliana has thrown herself into world traveling and drawing experiences from her fears. When she’s not acting, she’s traveling, testing her limits. A self-proclaimed Russophile, Juliana Dever has had a fascination with Russia since childhood. She wants to act and travel, and has found a way to maintain this lifestyle, doing what she truly loves. Keeping that life of travel up is possible, and Juliana can prove it. “If you never meet a stranger,” Juliana says, “then that’s all they’ll ever be to you.” The world is your oyster (and to Juliana, Russia is the pearl). How WiFi Sprung Me from a Russian Prison The second time Juliana Dever went to Russia, it was as part of a language class. She was given the option to stay with a Russian family, which she took, it being a great opportunity and all. She had visions of laughing around a dinner table, speaking Russian; her reality, though, was a young man who spoke absolutely no English, herself, who spoke very little Russian, and nobody else. Already in a confusing situation, she was with this young man who was very much immersed in that bachelor lifestyle: keeping to himself, leaving out pasta and ketchup for dinner, which was a rocky start to Juliana’s stay. However, the chaos of the experience culminated in her getting locked in her bedroom one day with no way to contact her host. A bit of WiFi, a well-timed email to her friend Rachel, and some frantic Googling helped her survive. Why Should I Travel to Russia? Juliana Dever is a self-proclaimed Russophile, and it shows in how she talks about Russia and her time there. Juliana is lived in Russia twice, the first time being for a couple of months in the winter, training with the Moscow Art Theatre. Growing up, Juliana was incredibly and inexplicably attracted to Russia, which didn’t make a ton of sense for her as a little girl growing up in rural Missouri. She considered the idea that she might be a reincarnated member of the Romanov family; after she went to Russia, made peace with it, and released it, she felt as though she was able to move on. For Juliana, Russia was like a painting in her head before she actually went. When she got there, though, all of a sudden, it crystallized into a glowing, beautiful, mythical place that hardly seemed real to her. Russia was what dreams were made of, for her. The smells, the sights, the sounds, the tastes - all are so hard to put into words, but they make up what Juliana loves most about Russia and about travel. How Do You Make a Living Doing What You Love? Juliana Dever believes that travel is about being in the moment. There is a lot of crossover between her interests -... --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/backpackdigital/message

Ang Lee's latest film, Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk, stars British actor Joe Alwyn as 19-year-old private Billy Lynn, who is caught on camera saving a comrade and, after the video goes viral on YouTube, becomes a pin-up for the war in Iraq. Through a sequence of flashbacks the realities of the war are revealed in contrast with the public's distorted perceptions of heroism. Kirsty talks to Ben Fountain, the novelist on whose book the film is based, and Joe Alwyn who was offered the part whilst still in drama school.Widely acclaimed as a central figure of the Bloomsbury Group, the modernist painter, Vanessa Bell (1879-1961) was a pivotal player in 20th century British art, but her reputation as an artist has long been overshadowed by her family life and romantic entanglements. Dulwich Picture Gallery in London seeks to rectify that with the first major solo exhibition of her work. Its curator, Sarah Milroy, shows Kirsty around.To mark the centenary of the Russian Revolution, Front Row has asked figures from the arts world to select the art work, inspired by the events of 1917, they most admire. Tonight writer, comedian and lifelong Russophile, Viv Groskop selects a poem by Anna Akhmatova.We remember sitcom writer Alan Simpson who has died at the age of 87. As one half of writing duo Galton and Simpson, the pair created sitcoms including Hancock's Half Hour and Steptoe and Son.Presenter: Kirsty Lang Producer: Edwina Pitman.

Daniil Kharms (1905-1942) is one of Russia's great lost absurdists - a writer whose world still alarms, shocks and bewitches more than half a century after he died in prison during the siege of Leningrad. In his short, almost vignette-like writings, nothing is sacred or as it seems. His narrators dip in and out of moments, describing curious, often disturbing events before getting bored and leaving his characters to their fates. Old ladies plummet from windows, townsfolk are bludgeoned to death with cucumbers, others wander around in search of glue, sausages or nothing. By turns pointless and harrowing, they are funny. Very funny. And they are funny now. Comedian, Russophile and crumpled polymath Tim Key has been entranced by Kharms' beautiful, horrible, hilarious world for years. But is there more to Kharms than a series of curious happenings cooked up by an eccentric mind in a troublesome world? Key suspects there is. And he's prepared to delve. As he delves, he encounters Noel Fielding, Alice Nakhimovsky, Matvei Yankelevich, Peter Scotto, Tony Anemone and Daniil Kharms.

Nina Tumarkin reads an excerpt from the short story "Peasants", collected in The Essential Tales of Chekhov edited by Richard Ford, published by Harper Perennial. (5:35) "I'll say it now. I'm a shameless Russophile who has yet to fully understand how one of the world's most despotic regimes could produce arguably the most glorious literary canon of the 19th century."

Russophile brought my attention to the following news from the Financial Times. Arch Putin enemy oligarch Boris Berezovsky admitted in an interview with FT reporter Jimmy Burns that he is indeed funding Other Russia. Don’t believe it? Listen to the audio file yourself. Russophile is right, Borya just doesn’t get it. He also is just […] The post Other Russia’s Sugar Daddy appeared first on SRB Podcast.