Modern Love: Love outside the algorithm

Is it possible to find love when the algorithms are programmed to keep you single?

Dating apps and digital platforms have transformed the way we meet, connect and ultimately fall in love. Algorithms now mediate desire, shaping who we see and how we interact. But what happens when love resists the logic of code?

Hosted by broadcaster and writer Dr Jacinta Parsons (Triple R, Double J, ABC Radio National), Modern Love is a two-part series exploring how technology, digital platforms and cultural phenomena are reshaping human intimacy, desire and connection.

For the first event of the series, our stellar lineup of guests including Conor Gallacher (Human Love Quest), Dee Salmin (Triple J’s The Hook Up) and Professor Gery Karantzas (Relationship Science Online) join Jacinta for an in-depth panel discussion. Unpack the relationship economy and the digital infrastructure behind modern dating, exploring whether authentic connection is possible outside algorithmic matchmaking.

Please note: This event may contain adult themes and sexual references.

Dr Jacinta Parsons is a radio broadcaster and writer from Melbourne, Australia who has worked at community radio station Triple R, and for the ABC at Double J, ABC Radio Melbourne and ABC Radio National. She has released three books, Unseen (2020), A Question of Age (2022) and her most recent in 2025 – an investigation on wisdom and the elder woman – A Wisdom of Age. Parsons currently hosts the Friday Revue and Saturday Mornings on ABC Radio Melbourne, is single and doesn't enjoy dating apps.

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