Influenced - Left the Chat: No 6. The Telegram War

The encrypted messaging app Telegram is haunted by a single question - if it really is as secure as it claims to be, why does Vladimir Putin allow it to be used in Russia?

And should Russian dissidents, independent journalists and Ukrainian soldiers use this Wild West of an app, where you can find everything from porn to drugs to faked propaganda videos?

Answering those questions takes Helen on a journey that begins with a young Russian entrepreneur throwing 5,000 rouble notes off a balcony, folded like paper aeroplanes, and finishes with him in exile in Dubai, rich beyond his wildest dreams. But what does Pavel Durov, the founder of Telegram, really believe?

Producer: Tom Pooley Assistant Producer: Orla O'Brien Sound Design: Louis Blatherwick Editor: Craig Templeton Smith Original Music: Coach Conrad

A Tempo & Talker production for BBC Radio 4

Influenced - Left the Chat: No 5. Thug Shaker Central

When investigative journalist Aric Toler saw a handful of supposedly fake classified documents online, he had a hunch - what if they were real? The only way to find out was to hunt for the original source.

It was a journey that took him through the deep internet, beyond the reach of search engines. He scoured through chat forums about SpongeBob SquarePants, infiltrated servers named after edgy memes, and found a vital clue in screenshots of a video game about zombies. Eventually, Toler got his man - and his identity was not at all what you might expect.

At the heart of this story is the chat service Discord - a casual, conversational space without which, Toler thinks, his unlikely leaker would never have posted classified documents online.

A Tempo & Talker production for BBC Radio 4

Influenced - Left The Chat: No 4. I Married a ChatBot

After years of bad dates and toxic relationships, Chris finally found love - with a chatbot called Emma. Is this the future of digital love, or is Chris caught in an illusion?

In this episode focusing on how instant messages have changed our love lives, Helen also uncovers the heart warming story of the first couple to marry after reconnecting on Friends Reunited, and the strange tale of a woman who was literally ghosted.

A Tempo & Talker production for BBC Radio 4

The Indicator from Planet Money - What do the royals do all day, anyway?

You've heard of the British royal family, but what about the "working royals?" Today on the show, an expert on the royals explains what the job is like — how they measure productivity, how they get paid, and how this tiny, specialized workforce of 11 people might cope with the health crises of King Charles III and Kate Middleton.

Subscribe to journalist Elizabeth Holmes' newsletter on the British royal family.

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The U.K.'s most famous family firm in crisis

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Everything Everywhere Daily - Songkran (Encore)

Songkran is a traditional festival celebrated in Thailand that marks the start of the Thai New Year. It is also known as the Water Festival, as it involves splashing water on one another as a symbolic gesture of cleansing and washing away the sins and bad luck of the previous year.

However, it has since evolved into something much more than a religious observance. It has become the world’s biggest water fight. 

Learn more about Songkran, the Thai New Year’s celebration, on this episode of Everything Everywhere Daily.


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NPR's Book of the Day - Amor Towles revisits an old protagonist in ‘Table for Two’

In Amor Towles' story collection Table for Two, the writer revisits a character from his very first book – Rules of Civility. Towles talks to NPR's Mary Louise Kelly about checking into the Beverly Hills Hotel for research purposes, and why he avoids technology in his stories.

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The Indicator from Planet Money - Why companies spin off

General Electric has been staggering along for years as a conglomerate. But recently, it's turned to a popular strategy to unlock new value: spinning off. Just last week, GE spun off its clean energy business into a new company: GE Vernova. On today's show, we explore what a spin off is and why companies do them.

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Everything Everywhere Daily - The Telemark Raids (Encore)

During World War II, one of the biggest concerns of the Allies was the development of a German atomic bomb. 

As such, the allies and various partisan groups in occupied countries made the destruction of anything related to the Nazi atomic program a high priority.

One place, in particular, was subject to allied bombing, commando missions, and partisan sabotage throughout the war. 

Learn more about the Telemark Raids and how Norway became an important front in the Second World War on this episode of Everything Everywhere Daily.


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NPR's Book of the Day - Hanif Abdurraqib’s new book ponders LeBron James, growing up and going home

Hanif Abdurraqib's new book, There's Always This Year, is difficult even for the author to summarize — it's part memoir, part basketball analysis, part poetry and essay collections. In today's episode, the MacArthur Fellow and writer speaks with NPR's Scott Detrow about how growing up in Columbus, Ohio, watching LeBron James' spectacular ascent, and understanding the passage of time all led to a meditation on mortality and success.

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