Picks of the week: cults, urbanism and Obama

Heaven’s Gate Podcast

Why do people join cults? It’s a question that US podcast host Glynn Washington is better qualified than most to answer, having been raised in a doomsday church. The mass suicide by members of the Heaven’s Gate organisation in 1997 naturally spooked him more than most; what if his own group had met a similar fate? Here, he joins forces with the team behind hit pod Missing Richard Simmons for this compelling 10-parter about a sect that relied as much on religion and self-improvement as it did on science fiction. HJD

The Urbanist: Monocle

Spanning current affairs, music, film, literature and much more besides, Monocle is one of those freewheeling vehicles for outpourings of intelligent thought that makes the vagaries of online life worthwhile. Its blend of podcasts, catchup options and livestreamed radio make it a worthy port of call at any time. Today’s standout offering sees editor Andrew Tuck and the Urbanist team visit Lisbon to explore the ways in which sound brings a fourth dimension to architecture. PH

Making Obama

From the same stable (Chicago public radio station WBEZ) as the excellent Making Oprah comes this quality podcast about the rise of Barack Obama. Advisers, rivals and allies including Jesse Jackson and speechwriter Jon Favreau are on hand to fill in the former president’s backstory. Obama himself contributes, talking about what he had to overcome to get the job, and the first episode takes it back to 1985 when he was “a political newbie with a lot to learn”. HV

Your picks: deportation, digital politics and veganism

Michael Bossetta host of Social Media and Politics Photograph: Michael Bossetta

Social Media and Politics

This podcast is aimed at anyone who is concerned about the ubiquity of social media and what it means for democracy. Michael Bossetta interviews experts working in digital media or politics, and asks them about everything from Donald Trump’s presidential race to Labour’s campaign in the last British general election. What I like most is that the podcast takes an esoteric topic and makes it accessible for anyone using social media. Recommended by Anamaria Dutceac Segesten

The Vegan Option

Since the first episode, the Vegan Option has been smart, well produced, informative and entertaining. Host/producer Ian McDonald employs journalism rather than activism; facts are checked and all sides of every story are explored. This podcast warrants much more attention than it has received to this point. It’s a must-have for the electronic bookshelves of all vegans and vegetarians. Recommended by Cyndi Rook

Indefensible

This comprehensive, witty, lively podcast focuses on people in the US who are fighting deportation. Host Will Coley takes immigrants’ stories and fleshes them out, moving beyond the headlines and Trump’s bluster. It explores how tough talk and rhetoric translate into the real world, with often shocking implications. Recommended by Donna Schape

Three juvenile orangutans Tanjung Puting, Borneo. Photograph: Steve Bloom Images / Alamy

Science Weekly

In 2014, researchers found that different populations of great tits showed variations in feeding behaviour, leaving scientists to conclude that these birds were able to transmit cultural behaviours. But how does this cultural transmission differ from that found in humans? What does this tell us about intelligence? And how important is culture to our own evolutionary history? This was a fascinating podcast which left me thinking about things that had never even crossed my mind before. Did we make culture or did culture make us? Not only this, but do we need to be thinking differently about the animals that have culture? This podcast was just one great question after another, and I could have listened for hours. It’s a real must-listen. RS

If you’ve got a podcast that you love, send your recommendations to rowan.slaney@theguardian.com