If you find yourself six episodes deep wondering if the story goes anywhere…no, it doesn’t. This is the type of tale I’d expect to hear in a nail salon while trapped in the chair for an hour. I’d say, “wow, that’s crazy” then waddle out of the salon in my foam flip flops and promptly forget about it. Would have also been interesting to dive into the reason behind the stereotypes. There are actual groups of Romani who rely on highly organized theft and begging to get by, especially in Europe. Why is that? Would be really interesting to learn more about, while keeping in mind that this represents a tiny fraction of “bad actors” among a larger community.

Paulina frees herself from the expectations of both the restrictive, limiting culture she was raised in, and also frees herself from the expectations that the mainstream culture has on her. I was baffled that on the other side of finding freedom she was expected to have an easy, American triumph story in order for her choices to be valid. She ends up taking a break from college and returns to tarot, as she misses her culture while unapologetically advocating for her children to have the right to education. It’s as if she isn’t allowed to have a nuanced human experience. At the end of the podcast, my only disappointment was that some of the people who helped her get free of the restrictive community she grew up in were not satisfied that she didn’t have the All American Heroine story expected of her, such as continuing her own education or entirely abandoning her heritage all together, which is only another disguised form of demand. I feel it is an unrealistic expectation and ironically also confining. It is unreasonable to expect a woman conditioned to be entirely codependent wouldn’t struggle through romantic relationships following her freedom from an unhealthy marriage and family dynamic. This is a lifetime venture to break these patterns. I felt it was unreasonably judgmental when she returns to tarot, and embraces part of her cultural heritage while simultaneously advocating for change within her former community, for the women in this community, for the right to continue an education, for the right to have choices and yet appreciate the good in her culture. Instead, she was treated as if she were backsliding in her resolve, or had ulterior motives. Why does she have to choose one or the other, when she has bravely chosen to be true to both? It is ironic that both culture’s expectations are unrealistic in the end and I commend her for ultimately being true to herself and to her female children- to embrace the heritage she loves and advocate for women’s equality and education is honorable. Paulina deserves the right to pursue both without judgement. In a way, she is isolated from both cultures- excommunicated for wanting equality and empowerment in one culture, and judged harshly for her yearning to keep those parts of her heritage that feels like home to her in her new life by the American culture she embraces. The neat, clean, triumph story imposed on her by some who helped her miss that these patterns take a long time to undo and will show up in different relationships, and each will be a learning experience she has a right to as she overcomes inherent patterns related to specific traumas. This is not an overnight process, and having a nuanced human experience does not discount her sincerity, though it’s implied at times in this podcast. Those, who in trying to help her, are still subtly imparting a will to control her experiences, which is a great irony. Fortunately she chooses what feels right anyway. She’s still the hero of a remarkable story, and it is only the beginning because she is young. Thank you, Paulina, continue being true to yourself, without apology, for the benefit of your daughters and your culture! You are allowed to be a nuanced human being, and you do not have to give up your cultural heritage because you have chosen to take a stand for your freedom and those of your daughters. I appreciate the podcaster’s support, telling the story, and bringing it to the world. What I didn’t like is the podcaster’s inability to remain objective at times (such as assuming how her family felt about her advocating for Romani culture in a way that implies she’s an imposter, when she has every right to advocate for her culture while also advocating for the rights of women within her culture.) The podcaster makes several points not to speak for the other side (Romani family) but then speaks for them in the final episode. I assume this is with the hope that maybe another season comes with the Romani family’s experience being told through a hook and an unspoken invitation, but it felt amateurish for one making so many points not to speak to suddenly speak for their feelings by way of assumption when their actions are louder than words. The actions speak through the lack of educational opportunity for women, child brides, and shared experience of women’s conditions in this culture as well. The excommunication is loud and clear, it feels like a betrayal to imply Paulina does not have a right to her culture and has to choose one identity or the other. Her return to tarot is both nostalgic and pragmatic, yet she is judged harshly for this. Her romantic relationship with a man twenty years her senior discredits her, there is no wisdom from life experience to guide the expectations of the podcaster that she unknowingly colors Paulina’s life with. Paulina will not suddenly be struck “healthy” after growing up in a codependent culture which normalizes alcoholic enmeshment. Paulina has only just begun to work toward her freedom, but it’s impossible to miss the podcaster’s expectation that Paulina live out the choices a person would make had they grown up in a home life that was stable and supportive. It is tone deaf to the internal struggles that happen returning to education after it being cut short in childhood, tone deaf to the long term consequences this caused, and an unrealistic expectation for the ease Paulina has in overcoming it. It Paulina’s decision to walk in loyalty to both her heritage in choosing to read tarot cards does not suddenly discount her efforts for her daughters to get an education and go to ballet, and it shouldn’t be minimized because Paulina isn’t living up to the expectations the American culture has placed on her knowingly or unknowingly, either. I don’t understand the implications this young woman is disingenuous because she yearns to have both her culture and freedom to have the choice to pursue education, and that her daughters have a voice as well.

Just listened to Season 3 (haven’t tried 1 and 2 yet). Season 3 was so captivating, amazing journalism, and amazing story telling. I just wanted to keep listening. Very interesting personal stories from living in the Romani culture. I would love if they did an update to what’s going on now.

In case you forgot….

Infinite shades of grey. I was both moved and intrigued 🤓🤯🌞consistently Question: Bizet’s Carmen? Romani opinions?

I have been interested in the Romani culture for quite some time. It honestly parallels my own culture in so many ways. I truly admire Romani people for not only knowing their history but cherishing it. I think Paulina’s story is a perfect example of how nuanced our relationship with culture can be. We can love our culture so much but also feel suffocated by it. I wasn't surprised that Paulina learned to love her culture through time because honestly, what she hated was people’s interpretation of what it meant to be Romani. She later learned that she is Romani no matter what and no one could take away her heritage even if they blackballed her in the end. I’m glad she found love and community within the Romani activist movement and I think her voice should be heard and valued within it. Every story is not black and white; right or wrong its so complicated and I think the podcast did a great job of highlighting that. Bravo, Faith and Bravo, Paulina! It was a great ride with you both. Keep sharing about your culture because people want to hear it and its too beautiful to hide away.

I found out about this podcast after I got her book signed by her at Barnes and nobles. It’s a great book and a great podcast❤️❤️

Faith completely glossed over the fact that Paulina is part of the clan that drugged and scammed Karen Young out $1.3 million. These gypsies are still out there scamming people out of millions of dollars. They are living in luxury homes, driving fancy cars and carrying designer handbags and watches.

Loved this podcast. I don’t usually write reviews on podcasts but I really enjoyed this one. A glimpse into a different and intriguing culture by a host who kept this story like a page turning book. Looking forward to her next one. 🌟

Loved this story. Relatable to so many cultures. Paulina is so brave and whenever a woman has to lose her entire culture and family for her choices, it's time to rethink the cultural norms.

Good journalism here, the LA Times is a great source for news. This topic could have been fascinating, but as others have said, this is a pretty unremarkable story of a young woman who made poor choices (albeit due to cultural pressure) and folllowed those choices with more poor choices. I understand that once Ms Pinho realized Paulina's story was a bust, she had already sunk a ton of time into it. I would have LOVED to have her pivot to the scholars and have them really deep dive into the Romani culture. I had no idea there were different named groups, and honestly there was so much talk about preserving culture, but what is the culture? They mentioned coffee, dancing, singing, mysticism, and I guess predominantly subjugating women? There has to something I'm missing.

Was really into learning more about an insular culture and I think they did a decent job with that. However, this devolved into a pretty boring tale of a very immature and self-obsessed young woman and her marital distress. Could have knocked four hours off this podcast and been better for it.

Listened mostly because recent genealogy and DNA testing revealed part of my family is Romanchel. I’m a graduate of UT Austin and sorry I never knew about Dr. Hancock when I was a student there. However, Paulina’s story otherwise is very typical of young people from very conservative backgrounds in deciding to Rebel or not.

Excellent story telling - really captures the humanity of the subjects

Very well done and thought out perspective on the Romani culture. Told from multiple sides of the story. Thank you for producing and writing this! Very educational, I did not know much about the Romani people or practices and this was incredibly intriguing.

Take a tequila shot every time Padma Lakshmi says ‘Mexican’

Please

How is the concept of other races and ethnic groups being unclean not straight-up bigotry and racism….the very thing they claim to be subjected to themselves?

Minor mid-season spoiler: MAJOR creep vibes from Paulina’s new partner— a 40-something arrested for domestic abuse (“I didn’t handle my breakup well” 😵) who then decides to pursue a woman 20 years his junior…. Girl, run! Throw the whole man away!!!!!! I actually am scared for her.

Paulina, raised in the traditional Romani Culture (where women are expected to be mothers/servants/breadwinners) struggles to emerge from an ancient and restrictive culture to ensure her daughters get an adequate education and are never subject to the practice of becoming virtual servants in their in-laws home. This is a great tutorial on a little known culture. But the arc of the heroine’s growth, after she breaks away from her tribe is what really makes the tale. Paulina becomes a business owner, gets an education and becomes an advocate. A fascinating examination of how women both suffer and flourish when they refuse to perpetuate an insufferable environment.

Fascinating excavation of gypsy culture interwoven with one mother’s searing story.

Foretold tells the story about a community here in the US hidden in plain sight. But the podcast doesn’t veer into predictable terrain. Instead of offering up yet another “othering”-type narrative focusing on the Romany people as some sort of off-putting, retrograde cult, the team creates a complex picture of what it means to live a life outside the currents of “mainstream” culture, asking us to reconsider whether such a thing exists at all. It’s easy to fall in love with the main character and feel completely immersed in her world, while at the same time recognizing all of the contradictions at the heart of this beautiful, powerful and extremely well-told story. Congratulations to the entire team. The LA Times was lucky to get to work with them and I can’t wait to see what they all go on to do next!

What an intriguing series. Being along for the journey is thought provoking and fascinating. While Paulina’s story is her own distinct experience, it is one we can all relate to as a reflection of the transition from family of origin to self-determination. Very well done. More please!

Beautifully told story that builds nice momentum. Introduced me to and educated me on a culture I used to know very little about. A definite listen!

I have mixed feelings about this podcast. I listened to all the episodes because I wanted to know what happened, which I suppose is a nod to the storytelling. I listened initially because I was curious one, what it was really about, and two, to learn more about Romani culture. I did learn some about Romani culture. It does seem like there are some real barriers to this material, such as both the historic disdain that dominating cultures have shown for the Romani and the habits of secrecy they’ve developed in response. I appreciated that the reporter was transparent about what she tried to access and could not; I think this podcast does a good (if unintentional) job showing how hard it can be to report a human interest story that’s as much about its surroundings as it is about the central characters. And yet, even though I listened to the end, the storytelling felt somehow lacking. In part I think this is because it never became clear to me why the reporter was telling this story, whether she ever decided what it was really about, or why when her initial plans evaporated she kept talking to the woman at the center of it all. It feels sometimes like she took a “sunk cost” approach. I don’t think it’s really responsible to tell a story like this when no one on the “other side” will talk to you. It’s a bummer, but if you have only one side of a story and it’s clear there is a legitimate but unavailable counter-argument and the material is not necessary public information, sometimes you have to decide that you don’t have enough to tell it. *No one* who really knows this protagonist and her story and disagrees with the way she handled it is heard (although they had ample opportunity to speak). And in the end (no spoilers!) I ended up being conflicted about the protagonist I’d been steered into cheering for through 9 episodes. All this to say, perhaps it’s good to have a podcast out there that doesn’t follow any of the established narrative trajectories. It’s great to have a major publication like LAT focus on the Romani. But be prepared to sit with some contradictions and listen with a grain of salt.

This was a wonderful ride. I loved hearing about the complexities of cultural traditions and family dynamics as they collided with the need for growth and change. Very well done.

Echoing LisaLPharmD: “This is a podcast made to prove gypsies are not scammers, during which the podcaster gets scammed by a gypsy.” Haha

No heroes. No villains. Just life… and all of it’s messy and intriguing nuances. Didn’t know what to expect when I started down this rabbit hole, but it was worth the trip. Got some cultural anthropology along the way.

The story of Paulina was so interesting because it provided a glimpse into Romani culture. The storyline was complex and provided the perspectives of various individuals while being respectful to the culture. Absolutely loved listening to it and hope there will be more storylines like this that tell the story of an individual while offering a glimpse into another culture.

Just finished the podcast. I loved it. The last episode really hit me as something that a lot of immigrant kids go through. This feeling of not being completely one culture, not “American” enough either. I loved Faith’s line about taking the best of both cultures in your life and using it to make your own choices in life. Paulina’s story is really a quintessentially American story of belonging, identity, and the pains of progress. I bet many immigrant families can relate to many aspects of it.

I loved this podcast and it was extremely educational. The issue I have was that no one called out the misogynist nature of the Roma . The “experts “ defending it were men ! If I were a Roma man I would want it to go on forever as well !!

Interesting story well told.

Positive: I learned a lot about Romany culture, some of it deeply concerning (e.g., educational neglect as a cultural norm, the widespread practice of arranged marriages, and underage marriage). Negative: The promotion of fortune telling as a cultural activity, rather than a con game, is troublesome. Victims of this con were given short shrift in this podcast. Paulina is portrayed as heroine, achieving “success” as a full-time fortune teller who markets herself as a “healer” - a deceptive business practice at best. An endnote about the dangers of this pseudoscience, and how people can protect vulnerable loved ones from victimization would have been nice.

It started off very exciting, but at the end you realize Paulina just used this reporter to tell her story and promote her own podcast. I mean there’s no story here other than a promotion piece for Paulina who’ll probably give this up and have a new stance on romanis in a few months.

This is a podcast made to prove gypsies are not scammers, during which the podcaster gets scammed by a gypsy. An interesting listen, nonetheless.

This was a great podcast. Great storytelling, good pace, satisfying wrap-up.

I love how you reported and Paulina discussed differing viewpoints. Her struggle to reconcile her wish to be free of her community of origin while valuing her culture is compelling.

Just finished the last episode of Foretold and it was truly a captivating story. I really enjoyed the exploration of Romani culture — a subject I have read about from time to time but never knew as much about. Very well-produce and fascinating. I’d love to see another season where we learn more about a different aspect of Roma culture or a different family.

I loved this podcast. The storytelling is brilliant. I’m glad that Faith didn’t use the “f” word (since many would have objected), but that’s what this podcast is ultimately about..feminism. When a culture is based on the subjugation of women, that is problematic. There is a reason that young girls don’t receive an education; it takes away choice. I love that Paulina is straddling the line - loving aspects of her culture but acknowledging that problems exist within the culture. Her girls will appreciate her bravery.

Totally engaging story. I couldn’t wait for each week’s episode to come out. I look forward to more on this topic and from Faith!

I learned so much. Paulina and Faith are very engaging. This is a great story. Paulina’s doing her life her way. Kudos!

Great storytelling. I was hooked and learned a lot. I wanted more each time.

I was captivated by this story. I want more of it or more like it. I love the production and the interviewer did a good job narrating. The only thing I would change is the title. The title foretold made it hard to find this podcast when I heard it in a commercial.

I'm a sucker for podcasts with quality content and amazing sound quality. This has it all plus more! The host, Faith Pinho, takes you on a crazy journey about a culture I never heard of until I heard this podcast and it has completely captivated me from the start. I look forward to each episode release and I'm rooting for Paulina! As a mom to an almost two-year-old, I get it...being away from my child is so painful. Keep fighting and keep up the great work! Amazing podcast and worth a listen!

I’m not through with the podcast, but I’m at the part where there’s this notion that i’m not through with the podcast, where the sources are concerned that listeners may focus on the fortunetelling aspect of the story. I actually have zero problem with the fortunetelling portion of the story. I respect it. There’s a market, and they’re taking advantage of the market, just like any capitalist. Honestly I hate my job and a fortunetelling job sounds super fun and rewarding. No qualms with that. The problem, and what I’m disturbed about hearing, is the sexism and the abuse of women’s unpaid labor. This idea that women are deprived of sleep, demanded to sing and dance for these men who do just as much career work but zero of the home work, is super gross. I have heard concerns about what people might think about Romani women, but what I’m left with is a severe distaste for Romani men, or, more reasonaby, this aspect of Romani culture. I really like the podcast. I am fascinated that I’m getting to the part where the reporter and the sources are concerned that people will seize on the fortunetelling aspect. I wonder how many people are like me, who have absolutely zero problem with the fortunetelling, but a huge problem with the sexism and abuse of women’s unpaid labor.

A hard topic held in gentle hands. I’m learning while I’m being moved and entertained. Love. It.

Paulina is such a brave soul to tell her story. And Faith does an excellent job of putting together all of the pieces. And to recognize that the message in the story may change along the way is profound. This is a story we all should listen to so that we can better understand & appreciate our differences. Well done!

Child marriage is immoral. I respect the need for cultural heritage, but when your entire culture hinges on the enslavement of women and girls, it’s not worth conserving. I hope the people of this culture can keep their unique spiritual identity and also stop illegally marrying their young girls.

we all live different lives. our experiences rhyme but they aren't the same. sometimes, there's a piece of media that hits you in the gut, reminding you that the best way to live a life is with compassion and grace for others. this is one of them. gorgeous, empathetic work.

One of the best narrative shows I’ve listened to all year. The story is so interesting and unique. It’s also very relatable to anyone from a minority, immigrant, or smaller religious community. I’ve learned a ton about the Roma community. The unique storytelling and sound keeps me coming back. Can’t wait to hear what happens next!