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China tightens grip on independent films at home and abroad – DW – 11/20/2025

5Dec

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Life Style, World

China tightens grip on independent films at home and abroad – DW – 11/20/2025

Photos of empty cinemas have been circulating online in recent weeks — a form of protest staged by Zhu Rikun, curator of the New York–based IndieChina Film Festival, against what he called the Chinese government's crackdown on independent films. The festival was canceled on November 6, just days before it was due to start, due to pressure from the Chinese government. "I didn't notice any warning signs… In the festival statement, I even expressed hope that the festival could soon return to China. I didn't want it to become an event in exile," Zhu told DW.Photos of empty chairs were used as a way of protesting pressure from BeijingImage: Zhu Rikun He recounted that the pressure began with a call from his father who urged him "not to do anything harmful to the country." Soon after, almost ...

Spanking tradition ends on German island of Borkum – DW – 12/03/2025

5Dec

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Spanking tradition ends on German island of Borkum – DW – 12/03/2025

Most people in Germany associate the feast of Saint Nicholas with a harmless tradition: Children leave their cleaned shoes next to the front door on the night of December 5, and the next morning, they expect to find their footwear filled with small presents and treats brought by Nikolaus. There are, however, regions in Germany, such as in Bavaria, where the Father Christmas-like character has a dark sidekick, the Krampus. The hairy devil has different names across regions and is part of folkloric festivities involving terrifying costumes and processions. The Krampus is a mythical figure in Austria and other parts of EuropeImage: Werner Lang/imageBROKER/picture allianceSimilarly, the Klaasohm festival on Borkum, an island near the Netherlands with a population of 5,000 people, follows in ...

Should the sale of Nazi-era relics be banned? – DW – 11/22/2025

3Dec

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Should the sale of Nazi-era relics be banned? – DW – 11/22/2025

Nazi documents on a forced sterilization at the Dachau concentration camp, Gestapo index cards, the notebooks of an anonymous Polish Jew who survived the Holocaust and Stars of David from the Buchenwald concentration camp. These are just some of the items that were due to be sold at the Felzmann auction house in the western German city of Neuss this week before it was canceled following public outcry. Many of the objects dating from 1933 to 1945 up for sale under the title "System of Terror Vol II" contained the names and personal information of the persecuted. "For victims of Nazi persecution and Holocaust survivors, this auction is a cynical and shameless undertaking that leaves them outraged and speechless," Christoph Heubner, the executive-vice president of the International Auschwi...

‘Berlin Apartment’ video game lets users live German history – DW – 11/26/2025

3Dec

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‘Berlin Apartment’ video game lets users live German history – DW – 11/26/2025

"The Berlin Apartment," a novel new video game, is initially set in 2020. The German capital was in lockdown due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and few people walked the streets and cafes and restaurants were closed. The game, created by the Berlin-based indie video game studio Blue Backpack, begins with second-grader Dilara as she accompanies her father, Malik, to work since schools are closed. Malik has been tasked with renovating an apartment in an old Berlin building. As they begin to remove the wallpaper and tiles, they discover traces of the former residents. Players can take on the unique perspective of these different Berlin residents as they embark on a four-hour journey through over a century of German history. Malik uncovers layers of history that come alive as he renovates a Berl...

Iranian filmmaker Jafar Panahi sentenced to prison – DW – 12/02/2025

3Dec

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Iranian filmmaker Jafar Panahi sentenced to prison – DW – 12/02/2025

This is not the first conviction for Jafar Panahi. For decades, the filmmaker has experienced censorship and imprisonment in his home country of Iran. He never set out to be a political filmmaker. "In my definition, a political filmmaker defends an ideology where the good follow it and the bad oppose it," the Iranian director told DW earlier this year. "In my films, even those who behave badly are shaped by the system, not personal choice." But for more than a decade, Panahi, the winner of the 2025 Palme d'Or, the Cannes Film Festival's top prize, has had little choice. Following his support for the opposition Green Movement protests, the director of "The White Balloon" and "The Circle" was handed a 20-year ban on filmmaking and international travel in 2010 by Iranian authorities. That d...

Burnout from casual sex has women rethinking hookup culture – DW – 11/27/2025

2Dec

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Burnout from casual sex has women rethinking hookup culture – DW – 11/27/2025

Casual sex isn't inherently harmful, but for some people, overlooking personal needs or emotional boundaries can take an emotional toll. Despite the promise of freedom and easy intimacy, hookups don't always feel empowering. For some women, they can lead to unexpected feelings of depletion. DW spoke to several women from North America, Europe and parts of Asia who spoke of hookups that gave feelings of short-term confidence but also made deeper intimacy harder. Heather, a 40-year-old woman from the US, describes this tension as leaving her feeling "empty, sad and temporarily empowered, but always craving more." When engaging in casual sex, she regularly tried to turn off her emotions, which felt like "cutting off a part" of herself. Her description of the negative side of hookup cultur...

‘Politzek’ doc denounces Russia’s system of repression – DW – 11/27/2025

2Dec

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‘Politzek’ doc denounces Russia’s system of repression – DW – 11/27/2025

In a social media video, a young Russian teenager holds a solo protest by showing anti-government slogans that read "Freedom for political prisoners," or "I am against Putin." We can immediately sense that this boy, Arseny Turbin, who is only 14 years old at the time, is committed to social justice. But few would imagine that his courageous, if somewhat naive, activism might in any way threaten the power of Russian president, Vladimir Putin. Yet in a country where crackdown on dissent is widespread, such posts — even when they don't go viral — apparently carry enough threat to attract the authorities' attention. Turbin is currently serving a five-year prison sentence, making him one of Russia's youngest political prisoners.Arseny Turbin is still in a penal colony todayImage: Babel_Doc...

What’s the deal with the luxury Advent calendar craze? – DW – 11/28/2025

2Dec

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What’s the deal with the luxury Advent calendar craze? – DW – 11/28/2025

"I accidentally spent $11,000 on an Advent calendar!" That's how Singaporean influencer Grace Glazee starts a Tiktok video in which she unboxes the entire contents of Dior's new luxury gift set, "La Malle des Rêves Holiday 2025." Right after this first sentence, she adds the sound effect of a slap — reflecting what many viewers might be thinking: "Uh, accidentally? How stupid can you be?" But the influencer knows exactly what she's doing: You've been baited. You will now join the millions of people who have watched her go through the 24 drawers of this "trunk of dreams." Spoiler alert: It's filled with different Dior perfumes, a snow globe, a designer scarf and … paper ornaments. Of course, not everyone might find it the best use of $11,000 (although, to be fair, that sum is actuall...

Why Ukrainian school students still speak Russian in Kyiv – DW – 11/29/2025

2Dec

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Life Style, World

Why Ukrainian school students still speak Russian in Kyiv – DW – 11/29/2025

After Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, many Russian-speaking Ukrainians deliberately decided to refrain from using Russian in daily life and to speak only Ukrainian. Over time, this initial emotional impulse seems to have subsided, and some Russian-speaking Ukrainians have reverted to their old ways. A significant proportion of young people in schools, and sometimes even teachers, continue to speak Russian to each other. Nevertheless, the use of Ukrainian in schools continues to increase, according to a study conducted by the State Service of Education Quality of Ukraine (SSEQU) and the Commissioner for the Protection of the Ukrainian Language in April and May 2025. About 48% of the students surveyed in Ukraine, a bilingual country, said that they communicated ex...

AI music creates unease as it tops the charts – DW – 11/29/2025

2Dec

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AI music creates unease as it tops the charts – DW – 11/29/2025

Can you trust your ears to tell man from machine when it comes to music? Most people can't, it seems. In a recent study by the streaming platform Deezer and market research company Ipsos, 97% of respondents could not tell the difference between music tracks made entirely by artificial intelligence (AI) and those made by humans. In other words, AI-generated audio is really convincing. And it's already everywhere, including on the Billboard charts: "Walk my Walk," from Breaking Rust — an entirely AI creation, from instrumentals to vocals to image — reached number one on the country digital song chart in mid-November. Then there is Xania Monet (whose video you see below), a similar virtual artist with Gospel and R&B charting singles who was recently signed for $3 million (€2.6 million...