Nine To Noon

In what Ukraine describes as provocation as G7 leaders meet in Germany to discuss the impact of Putin's invasion, Russia has bombed Kyiv for the first time in weeks.

The University of Canterbury is offering a free degree initiative for 300 school leavers who otherwise may not have the opportunity to pursue tertiary education.

New Zealand is falling behind other western countries in closing the gap between men and women's wages, according to new research.

Film and TV correspondent James Croot joins Lynn to look at Cha Cha Real Smooth (Apple TV+) - a Sundance Award-winning film about a young man who works as a Bar Mitzvah party host, who strikes up a friendship with a mother and her autistic daughter. He'll also look at BBC drama series This is Going to Hurt (TVNZ), Amazon's Chloe and the second season of Only Murders in the Building

Senior Researcher at the New Zealand Council for Educational Research Mohamed Alansari with some new research out today, highlighting how most secondary school teachers have changed something about the way they teach because of Covid-19.

Technology correspondent Peter Griffin joins Lynn to look at where the decision by two former Megaupload partners to plead guilty to a raft of charges leaves the third - Kim Dotcom. He'll also talk about the legacy of this long-running saga in the piracy war, and the changes the entertainment industry has made to fight against copyright infringement. Microsoft has backed away from using problematic facial recognition technology used to detect people's emotions, and what advice are tech companies getting about the economic rough times ahead?

Robyn Cuff from Take Note bookstore in Hokitika reviews Explore the Cemeteries of Westland and Buller by John Stewart, plus others from their specialist rare West Coast books collection

Hanna Polak's extraordinary film Angels of Sinjar details one woman's fight to find her five sisters, who were abducted and sold into sexual slavery by Isis.

 

Of all the barbaric acts committed by Isis, the genocide of the Yezidi people stunned the world. In August 2014 Isis carried out an attack in the Sinjar area of northern Iraq, home to the Yezidis. Men and boys who refused to convert to Islam were killed and dumped in mass graves. Thousands of women and girls were forced to become sexual slaves and many remain captive. Polish director, cinematographer and producer Hanna Polak's new documentary follows one woman's fight to be reunited with her five sisters, who were abducted, raped and sold into slavery. It's not Hanna's first foray into telling the stories of those fighting on the fringes - her documentary The Children of Leningradsky about Moscow's streetkids - was nominated for an Oscar and two Emmys. Angels of Sinjar is screening now as part of the DocEdge festival.

UK correspondent Matthew Parris joins Lynn to talk about the massive disruption to millions of passengers across Britain due to rail strikes. Will negotiations avert more planned action later this week? Shoppers face a £380 increase in their annual grocery bills, according new research - a lot higher than what was forecast. Two by-elections taking place today could provide another blow to Boris Johnson's authority, the summer solstice and the mystery over a bird tag that was taken to some puzzling locations.

What are consumer interests and rights in the age of big tech? And can our laws keeping up with swift change? Joshua Fairfield is a professor at the Washington and Lee University School of Law in the US, and the author of "Runaway Technology: Can Law keep up?" He says we can and must craft laws to protect consumer interests in the age of big tech. He talks to Lynn Freeman about online consumer contracts, laws for online communities, and data and privacy protection. Professor Fairfieid is currently in Wellington as a guest of Victoria University.