Podcast
Frankely Judaic: Explorations in Jewish Studies
Hosted by University of Michigan Frankel Center for Judaic Studies · EN
A Jewish Studies podcast series featuring the research of Frankel Institute fellows at the University of Michigan.
12episodes
Episodes
Newest firstAll episodes
Uri Schreter, "Reverberations: Jewish Music in the LP Era"
5d ago00:21:42Tap to summarizeThis episode explores the research of Uri Schreter, who examines the impact of Jewish LP records in shaping American Jewish identity and culture. Hosted by Jeremy Shere, the discussion delves into 'Olives, Almonds, and Raisins,' an enigmatic 1950s album by Ray Martin, highlighting its multiple versions and regional adaptations. The episode also covers the evolution of recording formats, the marketing of Jewish music, and the role of media in influencing public perception. Through Schreter's insights, listeners gain a deeper understanding of the complex interplay between music, culture, and history in the post-war era.
Transcribe →Ayelet Brinn, "Government Censorship and Surveillance of the American Yiddish Press During World War I"
2w ago00:15:34Tap to summarizeHistorian Ayelet Brin discusses her research on the American Yiddish press during World War I, focusing on government censorship and surveillance. She highlights the immense influence of the Yiddish press, the broad powers of the Espionage Act and Trading with the Enemy Act, and the role of the Bureau of Translation. Brin also examines the complex dynamics between newspapers, the government, and perceptions of Jewish loyalty in the United States, as well as the broader implications for American Jewish history and the relevance of these events today.
Transcribe →Olga Gershenson, "Beyond Hollywood: The Oxford Handbook of Judaism and Film"
Apr 1900:16:26Tap to summarizeIn this episode, film scholar Olga Gershenson (University of Massachusetts Amherst; co-head fellow at the Frankel Institute for Advanced Judaic Studies, (University of Michigan) discusses her project, "The Oxford Handbook of Judaism and Film", a 38-chapter Oxford University Press volume available online through library access. She explains why she chose “Judaism and film” over the slippery category “Jewish film,” moving beyond binary in/out definitions to examine production, distribution, reception, interpretation, religion on and off screen, expanded geographies, and non-realist genres like horror. Gershenson contrasts conventional Jews-in-film narratives centered on American Jewish experience and Hollywood with global case studies including Jewish women stars in early Indian cinema, Malayalam films nostalgically reconstructing Kerala’s Jewish past, and the extensive network of Jewish film festivals originating in 1981 San Francisco. She also highlights transnational dybbuk adaptations and Israeli religious-horror television, arguing for curiosity and openness to the field’s breadth.
Transcribe →Sigal Yona, "The Eden Cinema: A Borderland Theater Linking Tel Aviv, Jaffa, and the Wider Middle East"
Mar 2400:15:44Tap to summarizeIn this episode we explore Sigal Yona’s research on Tel Aviv’s Eden Cinema, a landmark venue that opened in 1914 on the edge of the Neve Tzedek area, operated with for six decades, and closed in 1974. Yona describes how the cinema began as a contested Zionist-era project that depended on Egyptian distribution networks and multilingual advertising, drew mixed audiences during the silent-film era, and later navigated growing Jewish-Arab tensions and the transition to sound, including live Arabic mediation and early Egyptian sound films. After financial struggles in the 1940s and becoming a workers’ cooperative, it reinvented itself in the 1950s as a major hub for Yiddish films and then Indian and Egyptian films, creating highly participatory collective viewing experiences despite official restrictions. The cinema declined with television and changing film availability, and today the abandoned, graffiti-covered building faces possible renovation.
Transcribe →Gilad Halpern, "Before The Jerusalem post: The Story of The Palestine Post"
Feb 1600:23:06Tap to summarizeIn this episode, we tell the story of the precursor to The Jerusalem Post--the Palestine Post, with the help of journalist and media historian Gilad Halpern. We delve into the life of Gershon Agronsky and explore how the newspaper navigated the complex terrain of British Mandate Palestine, WWII, and the establishment of the State of Israel. This narrative examines the paper's balancing act between objective journalism and Zionist advocacy, its transformation over the decades, and its impact on media history and journalism ethics.
Transcribe →Matt Handelman, "Cultural Politics and the Legacy of the Frankfurt School"
Feb 300:18:58Tap to summarizeIn this episode, we explore the work of Matt Handelman, Associate Professor of German and core faculty in Digital Humanities at Michigan State University. We delve into his research on German Jewish intellectuals, particularly those linked to the Frankfurt School, and the concept of 'cultural politics.' The narrative traces the origins of this intellectual movement from the Weimar Republic through exile and adaptation in America, focusing on figures such as Siegfried Kracauer and Walter Benjamin. The episode also touches on the lasting impact of their ideas and the current misuse of Frankfurt School theories by the far right.
Transcribe →Uri Schreter, "Reverberations: Jewish Music in the LP Era"
Jan 500:22:04Tap to summarizeThis episode explores the research of Uri Schreter, who examines the impact of Jewish LP records in shaping American Jewish identity and culture. Hosted by Jeremy Shere, the discussion delves into 'Olives, Almonds, and Raisins,' an enigmatic 1950s album by Ray Martin, highlighting its multiple versions and regional adaptations. The episode also covers the evolution of recording formats, the marketing of Jewish music, and the role of media in influencing public perception. Through Schreter's insights, listeners gain a deeper understanding of the complex interplay between music, culture, and history in the post-war era.
Transcribe →Ayelet Brinn, "Government Censorship and Surveillance of the American Yiddish Press During World War I"
Nov 2500:15:40Tap to summarizeHistorian Ayelet Brinn discusses her research on the American Yiddish press during World War I, focusing on government censorship and surveillance. She highlights the immense influence of the Yiddish press, the broad powers of the Espionage Act and Trading with the Enemy Act, and the role of the Bureau of Translation. Brinn also examines the complex dynamics between newspapers, the government, and perceptions of Jewish loyalty in the United States, as well as the broader implications for American Jewish history and the relevance of these events today.
Transcribe →Shachar Pinsker, "Below the Line: The Feuilleton & Modern Jewish Cultures"
Oct 3100:15:46Tap to summarizeIn this episode, host Jeremy Shere talks with Shachar Pinsker, a professor of Judaic and Middle East Studies at the University of Michigan, about the historical and contemporary relevance of the feuilleton–an arts and entertainment section of newspapers that during the 19th and 20th centuries became known as a Jewish genre of journalism. The discussion covers the origins of the feuilleton during the French Revolution, its development and popularity among Jewish writers across Europe, and the genre’s unique ability to address both lighthearted and critical societal issues. Pinsker elaborates on how the feuilleton allowed writers to explore sensitive political and social topics under the guise of light entertainment and reflects on the genre's continued importance in media studies. Explore Pinsker’s online collection of Feuilletons here.
Transcribe →
Iris Rachamimov, "The Evolution of Trans History and Identity in Israel"
Jul 1400:15:29Tap to summarizeIn this insightful podcast episode, Iris Rachamimov, a historian of modern European history and a visiting fellow at the Frankl Center at the University of Michigan, discusses her book project that chronicles the history of trans people in Israel from the establishment of the state to the present day. Iris delves into the personal stories of individual trans people, the formation of trans communities, the evolving Hebrew terminology related to gender variance, and the broader societal reactions to trans identities. She highlights the crises of masculinity in Israel, especially during the Yom Kippur War, and its impact on trans people. The episode also touches on the publication of Israel's first trans novel The Cut and the societal changes in the late 1990s and beyond. Iris emphasizes the importance of understanding and accepting diverse identities, advocating for the message of liberation that trans history offers to everyone.
Transcribe →