One hundred years of Isaac Babel's Red Cavalry
The massacres that came before the bloodlands - and the Jewish writer who documented them with a notebook and a false name.
Beyond Berlin
Stories —big and small— that start in Berlin and look eastward, where Europe´s heart beats and its future unfolds.
Subscribe:.rss.atom.json.md.m3u.pls
Live Last read · last published · next check
Latest episodes
Saves to your Listen queue, to pick up on another day or another device.
When AI builds itself, Prague’s Golem awakens
From a Jewish legend to Anthropic's warning: are we wise enough for what we have created?
Alone together, without a voice: Europe in the spring of 2026
For the first time in living memory, Europe is truly alone together. Two former leaders hold the credibility Europe needs. Neither holds the power to act.
Görlitz and Gorizia: A tale of two cities
One on the German-Polish border. One on the Italian-Slovenian frontier. Divided by war, forgotten by history, reunited in the spirit of Europe. Two cities that never knew they were sisters, until now.
God's wars
When messianic narratives converge, they are harder to stop than any weapon.
The East German woman was more emancipated. Wasn't she?
How four decades of divided history still shapes German women today — and why the conversation is overdue.
Weihnachten 1945: Berlin's first Christmas in the ruins
Rubble, longing, and stubborn hope.
What if it were burnout?
Germany—stuck in its debates, uncertain about everything, pessimistic and almost resigned. Is there a way out of what looks very much like collective burnout?
Learning from Ukraine: Karl Schlögel’s Peace Prize Speech and Europe’s Moral Wake-Up Call
Historian Karl Schlögel, winner of the 2025 Peace Prize, urges Europe to learn from Ukraine's courage and reject a "peace" built on fear, trade-offs, and moral surrender.
We will dance again
Watch now | An exhibition on the Nova Music Festival massacre, marking two years since October 7th — and a beacon of hope now coming to life.
Air, light, sunshine and lots of greenery: Berlin's dream of housing for all
IN PICTURES A tour of Berlin's suburbs, where the Weimar Republic realised its dream of healthy housing, combining architectural innovation, functionalism and modern design.
When Bullets Speak Louder than Ballots: Weimar Lessons for the Present Times
ALSO AVAILABLE AS AN E-BOOK WITH EXTRA MATERIALS | Political Assassinations and the Erosion of Democracy: 1920s Europe to 2025.
Brecht's Children's Anthem: The Shadow Anthem of a Better Germany
During every German anniversary—whether it's about the Wall, Unity or the Constitution—the divide between east and west reveals itself in symbols that not everyone identifies with.
Giacomo Casanova: The Twilight of a Man and the Birth of a Myth
Without the final thirteen years of his life spent in a remote Bohemian castle, the Casanova myth would never have emerged. A tale of a human twilight and a literary dawn.
Very Symbolic, Very Concrete, Very Disputed: Israel as German "Staatsräson"
From post-war reparations to semi-covert arms deals, from memory politics to identity struggles — Israel's place in Germany's Reason of State is multifaceted, complex and seemingly untouchable.
Jew Süss: The Many Lives and Deaths of Joseph Süßkind Oppenheimer
From novellas and theatrical plays to a 1925 literary masterpiece and a 1940 Nazi propaganda film, the true legacy of Joseph Süß Oppenheimer, executed three centuries ago, still waits to be reclaimed.
Potsdam 1945: The Seventeen Days That Shaped the Post-War Order
In July 1945, the three Allied powers met in Potsdam near Berlin to shape the post-war world. Their decisions redrew Europe's map, laid Cold War foundations, and determined Japan's fate.
Srebrenica: where were we all, when it happened?
11-17 July 1995: the Srebrenica massacre. Europe's darkest week and its devastating legacy. A genocide, a thirty-year funeral procession, surrounded by those who still attempt to bury the truth.
German, an open language.
In multilingual Europe, the only truly viable option, German is once again becoming a bridge between East and West, open and inclusive.
Putins Krieg gegen die Frauen
PODCAST | Sofi Oksanens "Putins Krieg gegen die Frauen" und Victoria Amelinas "Blick auf Frauen den Krieg im Blick". Zwei Bücher, eine Botschaft, drei Worte: Frau, Krieg, Gerechtigkeit.