Beginning in 1632, a convent of young Ursuline nuns made startling claims – from seeing dead priests, to being possessed by a horde of Satan’s demons. A team of priests presided over daily exorcisms – some of them public – for months…until the blame was directed toward one man: F ...Show more
Panic in the Streets: The War of the Worlds Radio Broadcast
On Halloween Eve, 1938 Orson Welles' The War of the Worlds aired on CBS radio. It detailed an alien invasion so realistic that, according to legend, it caused widespread panic among listeners. People really believed aliens were invading Earth. The mass hysteria is an important pa ...Show more
Mike tells Sarah how a "bad apples” explanation kept us from seeing the real scandal at the heart of America's largest corporate bankruptcy. Digressions include “Casino,” Thanksgiving economics and corruption catchphrases. Neither co-host truly understands how the stock market wo ...Show more
This week we're revisiting one of our favorite episodes about one of our favorite topics: Conspiracy theories. They're a feature of today's news and politics. But they've really been a part of American life since its founding. In this episode, we'll explore how conspiracy theorie ...Show more
Since the beginning of the pandemic, conspiracy theories about the coronavirus have exploded. But conspiracy theories themselves are nothing new - in fact, they're fundamental to American life. In this episode, how conspiracy theories helped to create the U.S. and became the curr ...Show more