[ad_1]
The Witch Trials of J.K. Rowling
Probably one of the most controversial podcasts of 2023 so far, this new audio documentary from The Free Press explores some of the contentions surrounding the famed British author J.K. Rowling.
The show is hosted by Megan Phelps-Roper (a woman known for leaving the famously homophobic Westboro Baptist Church back in 2012) and features extensive interviews with Rowling herself.
Over the course of seven episodes, the podcast covers a significant amount of ground, including Rowling’s modest beginnings as an author, her abusive marriage with her ex-husband, the Christian backlash against Harry Potter in the 1990s and the author’s near saint-like status that emerged as her books grew in popularity.
But the central controversy – and perhaps the likely main reason for this podcast – is to do with Rowling’s views on transgender rights. As Rowling describes it, she dropped “a hand grenade into Twitter” with a series of tweets about sex and gender back in 2020, and ever since then, she’s been denounced by many for her views.
Getty
Well-made and highly listenable, The Witch Trials of J.K. Rowling isn’t intended as a defence of her views on trangender rights, but it seems rather skewed in that direction.
The series is produced by Andy Mills, formerly of The New York Times’ hit podcast, The Daily, so it is undeniably well-made and highly listenable – and it includes a variety of voices aside from Rowling’s. But while Phelps-Roper has said the series isn’t intended as a defence of Rowling, so far, it seems to have skewed in that direction.
You never know – Phelps-Roper may turn up the heat on Rowling in the final two episodes still to come out, and the final minutes of episode five suggest that we will soon hear more from Rowling’s critics. However, unfortunately I suspect many of Rowling’s fans who feel hurt and betrayed by her might not make it that far.
New episodes of The Witch Trials of JK Rowling come out every Tuesday on all major podcast platforms.
READ MORE:
* Imperfect Paradise: Compassionate podcast looks at one woman’s descent into extremism
* The Last Soviet: NYSNC singer Lance Bass’ lightning-in-a-bottle podcast
* The Coldest Case in Laramie: Slow-burn turns to shocking revelations in this Serial podcast
* New Harry Potter game sparks boycott, divides fans over trans-inclusion
Bear Brook: A True Crime Story
Five years after Bear Brook’s critically acclaimed first season, New Hampshire Public Radio’s Jason Moon is back with a new true crime case.
This season, the podcast investigates the story of Jason Carroll, a man who is still serving a life sentence for the 1989 murder of Sharon Johnson.
While Carroll confessed to the crime during the initial police investigation, he later recanted it, and has declared his innocence ever since.
The case is an eye-opening tale of how a confession can hold an outsized weight in the criminal justice system, despite questionable police work and a lack of any other evidence.
Moon is a careful narrator and seems acutely aware that whatever elements make it into an “official” version of a story – and what bits get left out – can have wide-ranging effects, so he is careful and painstaking with his journalistic precision.
Perhaps this is why A True Crime Story seems to lose a bit of momentum in the middle, with some detail-heavy episodes. However, it does pick up again later on and clearly the thoroughness of the show is all in service of achieving justice.
New episodes of Bear Brook: A True Crime Story come out widely every Monday.
Dynamite Doug
This new podcast from Project Brazen investigates an art dealer called Douglas Latchford, who, in the first few minutes of the opening episode, is described as having looted the entire cultural heritage of Cambodia.
It’s a bold, provocative assertion that certainly piqued my interest and, over the course of six episodes, host Ellen Wong briskly outlines the arc of Latchford’s less-than-stellar track record as a Cambodian antiquities dealer.
A particularly interesting element of the show is the role that others played in enabling Latchford’s dodgy dealings; for example, a senior curator at the Metropolitan Museum in the 1960s seemed to look the other way on matters of provenance, which therefore gave Latchford’s activities a kind of “prestige-washing”, if you will.
The fast-paced, detailed nature of Dynamite Doug means it’s not one to half-listen to: this show commands your full attention, and those that give it will be duly rewarded.
New episodes of Dynamite Doug come out widely for free every Wednesday, or you can listen to the full series now by subscribing on Apple Podcasts.
[ad_2]