Stuff They Don't Want You To Know

Listener Mail: Fish in Florida are on Drugs, A Disturbing Rash of Brain Tumors in New Jersey

16 Jun 2022

Contributed by Lukas

An instagram user hips the guys to a bizarre, frightening study of fish off the coast of Florida -- they're testing positive for pharmaceutical drugs,...

The Hazards of Standardized Testing

15 Jun 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Each and every year, billions of children take some form of standardized tests. In theory these tests help measure how much a child has learned, allow...

CLASSIC: Free Wifi: Gambling with Your Privacy

14 Jun 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Public wifi can be an enormously convenient thing -- it helps people dodge data charges in coffee shops, airports and other places around the globe. B...

Strange News: Historic Cancer Breakthrough, and a Company Decides Not To Put Drones in Schools

13 Jun 2022

Contributed by Lukas

The CEO of Axon thought he had a solution to mass shootings in schools: putting taser-equipped drones in public facilities. Axon's ethics board resign...

How To Citizen, with Baratunde Thurston

10 Jun 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Most Americans can agree that society isn't perfect -- in fact, most people in other parts of the world can say the same about their own societies. Bu...

CLASSIC: Crime, Kidnapping and Organs: The Red Market

09 Jun 2022

Contributed by Lukas

For the majority of human history, a failing vital organ was a death sentence. Yet hard-won lessons from countless tragic medical experiments have giv...

The Dangers of Outsourcing

08 Jun 2022

Contributed by Lukas

For some, outsourcing is perfectly fine -- for others, it's dangerous. In today's episode, the guys dive into the ins and outs of outsourcing, from th...

CLASSIC: Are there secret space programs?

07 Jun 2022

Contributed by Lukas

For millennia humankind has dreamed of reaching the heavens, and in recent decades several countries have begun turning these dreams into reality. Yet...

Strange News: Uncle Sam's Top Secret Plans Exposed (Sort of), AI Cartoons, A Brutal Religious Heist

06 Jun 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Brazen thieves make off with priceless religious artifacts in Brooklyn. AI pushes the boundaries of art. Recent sleuthing reveals the US government ha...

The Future of Private Space Travel

03 Jun 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Past and current philosophers often argue the future of humanity is found not on Earth, but in the stars. In recent decades, private entities have pus...

Listener Mail: The "Most Dangerous Man" and the Looming Threat of Trigger Laws

02 Jun 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Like many inventors, Thomas Midgeley Jr. was certainly driven -- but he seemed driven to constantly create increasingly dangerous, deadly substances. ...

The Corpsewood Manor Murders

01 Jun 2022

Contributed by Lukas

When Dr. Charles Scudder and Joey Odom moved to a remote location in rural Georgia, they sought to create their own, personal paradise — complet...

CLASSIC: Berenstein or Berenstain? The Mandela Effect

31 May 2022

Contributed by Lukas

How reliable are your memories? Is it possible that, somehow, history is changing? People around the world believe the past isn't as static as it migh...

Strange News: Digital Product Placement, Cop Car Corruption, and The Why People Are Hoarding Food

30 May 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Digital product placement may be the future of cinema. Police in Highland Park seize a building an demand two cars as payment. The UN and multiple exp...

Censorship in China

27 May 2022

Contributed by Lukas

By almost every metric imaginable, China is a huge country -- and its government works around the clock to control the flow of domestic and internatio...

CLASSIC: You're Worth About A Dollar: Targeted Online Ads

26 May 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Have you ever searched for something online, only to find an eerily related series of ads popping up at each website you visit afterward? If so, you'v...

Congress and UFOs: A Conversation with Jeremy Corbell

25 May 2022

Contributed by Lukas

As speculation over multiple reports of bizarre phenomena in the sky grows at an unprecedented pace, the United State Congress recently held a public ...

CLASSIC: Chemtrails

24 May 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Look -- up in the sky! It's a bird! It's a plane! It's a ...chemtrail? You've probably heard of these allegedly poisonous strips of stuff streaking ac...

Strange News: Poop Transplants Make You "Younger," Canada's QAnon Queen, A Meaty Conspiracy

23 May 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Recent studies indicate fecal microbial transplantation may mitigate age-related disorders... and no one's sure how it works. In Canada, a self-declar...

How to Change People's Memories

20 May 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Memory is, when you think about it, a super power. The ability to relive past experiences can help inform and shape our decisions about the present an...

Listener Mail: Why the Mob Hates Drought, Lucid Dreaming, and Time Travel

19 May 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Multiple bodies surface as drought lowers Lake Mead to unprecedented levels -- and locals seem sure more will be uncovered. Uhura prompts a conversati...

Nigeria's "Forest of Horror"

18 May 2022

Contributed by Lukas

In 2014 a group of people looking for their missing coworker stumbled across a run-down building in Ibadan's Soka forest. While they didn't find their...

CLASSIC: Ghosthunters: The Warrens

17 May 2022

Contributed by Lukas

For decades Ed and Lorraine Warren claimed to investigate paranormal phenomena, confronting the forces of darkness with the power of faith. They've in...

Strange News: Mysterious Deaths in the Bahamas, a Wicked Bible, A Supreme Court Leak

16 May 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Three tourists were found dead at Bahamas resort, and a woman was also airlifted to Miami-area hospital. A copy of the infamous 'Wicked Bible' was jus...

Wealthy People vs. Taxes

13 May 2022

Contributed by Lukas

It happens every year as tax season comes around in the US. Numerous media outlets publish excoriating investigations of wealthy corporations and indi...

Listener Mail: Union Edition

12 May 2022

Contributed by Lukas

In this week's listener mail, the gang shares stories from Conspiracy Realists across the planet, each of whom weighs in with their own experiences re...

The Love Canal Tragedy

11 May 2022

Contributed by Lukas

You may not have heard of Love Canal, but it remains one of the most disturbing environmental tragedies (and cover-ups) in US history. In today's epis...

CLASSIC: Who was the Original Night Stalker?

10 May 2022

Contributed by Lukas

From 1979 to 1986, an unknown serial killer assaulted and murdered at least 10 people. As of 2016, he was still uncaught. So who was he? Is it possibl...

Strange News: Water Crisis, A Mysterious Death, Nationwide Food Supply Disasters

09 May 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Across the country, a series of bizarre disasters -- from fires to outright plane crashes -- prompts public speculation that someone, somewhere, may b...

Serial Killers On The Loose: 2022, Part II

06 May 2022

Contributed by Lukas

It sounds like something straight out of a noir film -- an unidentified killer goes on a murder spree and vanishes, taunting the cops before disappear...

CLASSIC: What are Jinn?

05 May 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Forget everything you learned about 'genies' from Aladdin - tales of the Jinn, also called Djinn, are ancient and not at all as family-friendly as Dis...

Serial Killers On The Loose: 2022, Part I

04 May 2022

Contributed by Lukas

It sounds like something straight out of a noir film -- an unidentified killer goes on a murder spree and vanishes, taunting the cops before disappear...

CLASSIC: Money, Mystery and Millionaires: The Panama Papers

03 May 2022

Contributed by Lukas

You've probably heard of shell companies, tax havens and offshore trusts. But how common are they? How many people use these techniques as a way to sq...

Strange News: Russian Oligarchs are Endangered, Musk Buys Twitter and a Man Threatens Merriam-Webster

02 May 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Deaths of 2 Russian oligarchs within 48 hours add to wave of executives found dead in ‘suspicious’ circumstances. Elon Musk's acquisition ...

Nazi Billionaires, with David de Jong

29 Apr 2022

Contributed by Lukas

In the days before and during World War II, German tycoons make billions off the horrors of the Third Reich -- and largely got away with profiting fro...

Listener Mail: Alien Pregnancy, What Happens to Your Medical Info, and the Corpsewood Manor Murders

28 Apr 2022

Contributed by Lukas

An anonymous healthcare professional outlines the ways in which your own medical info may be used against you. S emails to follow up on vaccine questi...

The Strange Story of Ong’s Hat

27 Apr 2022

Contributed by Lukas

The legend sounds like something out of The Twilight Zone. A group of renegade Ivy League scientists gather in secret, in a small, abandoned town, to ...

CLASSIC: Missing in National Parks

26 Apr 2022

Contributed by Lukas

In 2015 alone more than 300 million people visited the US national park system. Some stayed for a few hours, others for a few days - and, occasionally...

Strange News: Google Unblurs Russian Sites, Infowars Files Bankruptcy, Self-driving Car on the Lam

25 Apr 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Tech giant Google has reportedly unblurred several formerly secret Russian military sites on Google Maps. A self-driving car in San Francisco attempts...

The Vampire Tunnels of Springfield, Missouri

22 Apr 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Every town has its own rumors, tall tales and legends, and Springfield, Missouri is no exception. This idyllic American city is home to US Highway 66,...

Listener Mail: Rampant Phishing Scams, Alternative Funeral Rites, Cannabis and the World of Dreams

21 Apr 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Samurai provides a heartbreaking experience with body brokers, prompting an exploration of unique, alternative funeral rites. Colonel Buffington descr...

What’s the deal with tinfoil?

20 Apr 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Nowadays, almost everyone knows the trope of the tinfoil hat -- it's common in all sorts of fiction, often meant as visual shorthand to indicate the p...

CLASSIC: Beyond Flint: The Looming Lead Crisis

20 Apr 2022

Contributed by Lukas

What's in the water in Flint? Did city officials really cover up a potentially deadly situation? Tune in as Ben, Matt and Noel look into the Stuff The...

Strange News: Alien Pregnancies, COVID Scams, Fake Federal Agents

18 Apr 2022

Contributed by Lukas

A report released by the Pentagon appears to indicate at least one witness in an alleged alien abduction believes she became pregnant as a result. Two...

The Lonnie Zamora Incident

15 Apr 2022

Contributed by Lukas

In April of 1964, a police officer in New Mexico named Lonnie Zamora halted a high speed chase when he saw something strange fall from the sky. As he ...

Listener Mail: The Killenworth Mansion, the Strange Story of Marcus Hutchins, the Problem with Medical Implants

14 Apr 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Brett from Facebook hips the gang to the story of Marcus Hutchins, a hacker who singlehandedly saved the internet. Justin responds to Ben's earlier qu...

Union Busters, Part II: The Present and the Future

13 Apr 2022

Contributed by Lukas

While they're not as common as they once were, labor unions are back in the news as employees of companies like Amazon, Starbucks and more choose to o...

CLASSIC: The Fermi Paradox: Where the heck are all the aliens?

12 Apr 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Given the sheer size of the universe, it's overwhelmingly likely that some form of alien life exists - so where the heck are they? Tune in to this cla...

Strange News: Russian War Crimes, Population Decline, the Rise of Male Birth Control

11 Apr 2022

Contributed by Lukas

The US and multiple eyewitnesses state Russia is actively committing war crimes. The pandemic led to a baby bust, rather than a baby boom. The rise of...

Union Busters, Part I: An Origin Story

08 Apr 2022

Contributed by Lukas

While they're not as common as they once were, labor unions are back in the news as employees of companies like Amazon, Starbucks and more choose to o...

Listener Mail: Eastman Explosions in Tennessee, The Dangers of Being Prepared, Hank's Episode Ideas

07 Apr 2022

Contributed by Lukas

A recent mishap in Kingsport, Tennessee highlights a long history of brushes with industrial disaster. Riding around with a gas mask in Idaho just mig...

How many nukes are out there?

06 Apr 2022

Contributed by Lukas

How many nuclear weapons exist? Since the days of the Manhattan Project, nuclear weaponry has redefined war -- and the global order. So how many nucle...

CLASSIC: Technology and the Occult

05 Apr 2022

Contributed by Lukas

In this episode, the guys welcome returning special guest Damien Patrick Williams (aka @Wolven) as they explore the bizarre confluence of the occult a...

Strange News: Declassified UAP Report Released, An Odd Workplace 'Benefit,' and Gangs Infiltrate LA Law Enforcement

04 Apr 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Turns out UFOs are real. Declassified documents make Uncle Sam sound even shadier. A company attempts to alleviate workplace woes by giving all employ...

Body Brokers

01 Apr 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Have you ever known someone who donated their body to science? On paper, it's an extraordinarily noble act. Yet in the US, this form of donation is ch...

Listener Mail: Trouble at the Post Office, the Center of the Universe, and the Halifax Toe Tickler

31 Mar 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Why do so many people have a problem with the current leader of the US Postal Service? What's it like to visit the Center of the Universe (the Tulsa v...

The Return of Lucky Yates

30 Mar 2022

Contributed by Lukas

In today's grab-bag interview, the guys catch up with actor, comedian and returning guest Lucky Yates. Tune in as they explore conspiracies, catch up ...

CLASSIC: Alchemy | with Damien Patrick Williams

29 Mar 2022

Contributed by Lukas

In today's classic episode, the gang joins forces with special guest Damien Patrick Williams (aka @Wolven) as they explore the origins of alchemy, as ...

Strange News: Bringing Brains Back From The Dead, Deep Fake Update, Benzene Is In Everything

28 Mar 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Scientists partially resurrect the brains of long-dead pigs, paving the way for potentially astonishing (and terrifying) breakthroughs in neuroscience...

Back From the Dead: the Future of De-Extinction

25 Mar 2022

Contributed by Lukas

As the world struggles through an ongoing mass extinction, scientists across the planet are getting closer and closer to bringing entire species back ...

Listener Mail: The Government's 'Secret Internet,' Night Drones, Sonic Booms and Sky Trumpets

24 Mar 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Does the US government have a secret internet? Who's out there flying drones at night? How can we explain sonic booms and sky trumpets? All this and m...

The Hunt For the Tasmanian Tiger

23 Mar 2022

Contributed by Lukas

The last known thylacines, or Tasmanian tigers, passed away in captivity in the 1930s. Yet ever since that time, people in Tasmania and the Australian...

CLASSIC: Flat Earth Update

22 Mar 2022

Contributed by Lukas

In ancient days civilizations across the world believed Earth was some sort of plane, a flat space in the absolute center of the universe. In recent d...

Strange News: De-Extinction, AI Avatars in Politics, and Digging the World's Deepest Hole

21 Mar 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Humanity is closer than ever before to bringing back extinct species, from the mammoth to the dodo and the Tasmanian Tiger. In South Korea, the Presid...

CLASSIC: The Rise of the Superbug

18 Mar 2022

Contributed by Lukas

It's true - scientists around the world are increasingly concerned that antibiotics are losing their effectiveness, leading to a future filled with un...

Listener Mail: The Center of the Universe, The Fraud Triangle, and the Tricky Business of Counting Nukes

17 Mar 2022

Contributed by Lukas

What's going on at the Center of the Universe in Tulsa, OK? How does the fraud triangle help us understand when people are likely to commit crime? Wha...

The Future of Digital ID

16 Mar 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Most people can agree that identification is important. But what happens when you have a single ID for everything? And not just a physical ID, but an ...

CLASSIC: Cattle Mutilation

15 Mar 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Are nefarious forces really moving through ranches in the night, mutilating livestock? How? Why? Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.ihea...

Strange News: Stolen Heads, a Mysterious Z, and a Broken Stone in Japan May Have Just Released a Demon

14 Mar 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Someone has stolen a box of human heads from Denver's Central Park. Speculation grows regarding the 'Z' worn by supporters of the Russian invasion. Ov...

What is SWIFT?

11 Mar 2022

Contributed by Lukas

In today's globally-connected financial system, it's pretty easy to send money from one place to the next, across most of the planet -- and that's all...

Listener Mail: Red Summer, Solving the Sonic Boom Story, and the Gang Gets into Elden Ring

10 Mar 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Ben, Matt and Doc Holliday plan escapades on Elden Ring. K writes in with reliable information about the Sonic Boom described in a previous show. A le...

Russia and Ukraine: The Long Road to War

09 Mar 2022

Contributed by Lukas

When Russian forces recently invaded Ukraine, many members of the public seemed taken by surprise. But for the people of Ukraine and others living in ...

CLASSIC: Why You Can't Win Arguments Online

08 Mar 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comThey don't want you to read our book.: https://static.macmillan.com/static/f...

Strange News: Tin Foil Hats Make a Comeback, Marines Busted in Human Trafficking Ring, Life Really Does Flash Before Your Eyes at Death

07 Mar 2022

Contributed by Lukas

A group of Marines has been convicted of participating in a long-running human trafficking scheme. Terrified by the possibility of government-induced ...

What is Acquired Savant Syndrome?

04 Mar 2022

Contributed by Lukas

For most people, learning any skill is a long, at-times challenging journey. Humans struggle to acquire expertise and, after attaining it, they must r...

Listener Mail: Did Walmart Smuggle Explosives? Did Woody Harrelson's Dad Shoot JFK? What is The Brook?

03 Mar 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Honey Badger relates a story of international explosives smuggling, possibly involving one of the world's largest retail chains. Anonymous calls in af...

Neuralink: Putting the Cloud in Your Head

02 Mar 2022

Contributed by Lukas

What if, one day, you no longer needed your hands to interact with computers? What if you didn't need to type anything to access the cloud? These are ...

CLASSIC: What is Gnosticism?

01 Mar 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Gnosticism may be one of the oldest conspiracy theories in human civilization - but what is it, exactly? Join Ben, Matt, Noel and special guest Joe Mc...

Strange News: Credit Suisse Leak, a Counterprotest Song, and Living at Disney FOREVER

28 Feb 2022

Contributed by Lukas

A massive leak reveals the secret owners of £80bn held in a Swiss bank. A raunchy counterprotest song goes viral. Out in California, Disney wants you...

The Strange History of Rocky Flats

25 Feb 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Today, the Rocky Flats National Wildlife Refuge is free and open to the public. It's located outside of Denver, Colorado on a windy, picturesque plate...

Listener Mail: Sonic Booms, Metaverse Time Travel, and Critical Race Theory

24 Feb 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Big Boy shares a strange tale of sonic booms over New Mexico. Chip explores the idea of time travel via the metaverse. Lionel Putz wonders why honest ...

What are Sanctions?

23 Feb 2022

Contributed by Lukas

You've heard of sanctions before -- the term pops up pretty often in international news. Country A does something Country B finds objectionable, but n...

CLASSIC: Porter Ranch: Fossil Fuel Cover-ups

22 Feb 2022

Contributed by Lukas

There's no two ways about it: oil spills and gas leaks are disastrous, causing massive amounts of ecological damage in a matter of days or hours. So h...

Strange News: Wordle Saves Lives, Cybercrime, and Qanon Hates Butterflies

21 Feb 2022

Contributed by Lukas

An elderly woman may well owe her survival to Wordle. Another recent Bitcoin scam is called the 'heist of the century.' Over in Texas, Qanon has found...

Does junk food target children?

18 Feb 2022

Contributed by Lukas

While it may not be especially great for you, there's no denying that junk food is delicious. Nowadays, all the salty, fatty, sweet and savory stuff h...

Listener Mail: Mysterious Fishing Club, Terrorism in the Metaverse, Trouble in Ottawa

17 Feb 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Smitty relates a strange childhood story from his time growing up near the Pisgah National Forest. Kyle notes the metaverse offers tremendous potentia...

What is ecoterrorism?

16 Feb 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Most people can agree the proverbial writing is on the wall: Earth's climate is in trouble, and its degradation will have profound consequences of lat...

CLASSIC: Ghosts and Infrasound

15 Feb 2022

Contributed by Lukas

While humanity has yet to generate any universally-accepted proof of ghosts or hauntings, millions of people around the world report seeing apparition...

Strange News: China Censorship, Robots on the Border, One Guy Hacks North Korea

14 Feb 2022

Contributed by Lukas

In a rare decision, China reverses an earlier act of censorship. Those dogbots Ben and Matt are so concerned about are deployed on the US-Mexico borde...

Project Azorian, or: the CIA Steals A Submarine

11 Feb 2022

Contributed by Lukas

When the USSR lost a powerful submarine, the US scrambled to make the most of a grisly opportunity. In today's episode, the guys explore the strange s...

Listener Mail: Grandfathers on America's Most Wanted, North Korean Museums, and... is Facebook in your head?

10 Feb 2022

Contributed by Lukas

A listener learns their grandfather was on America's Most Wanted. Will shares his adventures at museums in North Korea and Tehran. Anon calls in to re...

CLASSIC: Does the UK control the US?

09 Feb 2022

Contributed by Lukas

What if the Revolutionary War didn't happen the way it's described in textbooks? Tune in and learn why some people believe the UK still controls the U...

CLASSIC: Congress 101

08 Feb 2022

Contributed by Lukas

It's no secret that voters distrust Washington, D.C. In numerous polls, citizens of every political overwhelmingly disapprove of Congress. But why? Wh...

Strange News: Cartels in Your Produce Aisle, Explosions in Sacramento, Celebrity NFTs

07 Feb 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Authorities have made an arrest related to multiple suspicious explosions in Sacramento. Celebrities are officially in the NFT game. And while cartels...

Should We Fear the Metaverse?

04 Feb 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Facebook recently made waves in the press when it announced plans to create a more immersive online experience, something it described as the 'metaver...

Listener Mail: What is the Oculus Temple? Parents in the CIA, and more on New Brunswick

03 Feb 2022

Contributed by Lukas

An anonymous caller wants more people to know the bizarre story of the Oculus Temple. Mr. Tin Mouse recounts how he discovered his father worked for T...

Presidents and Substance Abuse

02 Feb 2022

Contributed by Lukas

It's no secret that being President is a stressful job (to say the least). A sizable amount of the domestic population will hate you regardless of wha...

CLASSIC: The EPA

01 Feb 2022

Contributed by Lukas

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is tasked with safeguarding the country and its citizens from environmental harm. But how well is the agency ...

Strange News: Big Brother in Your Car, Cloning Pets, Georgia Imprisonment

31 Jan 2022

Contributed by Lukas

A short passage buried in recent legislation will require all automakers to introduce extreme surveillance equipment in new vehicles -- but the detail...

The Strange Story of Secret Museums

28 Jan 2022

Contributed by Lukas

Who doesn't love a good museum? In these repositories of art, history, the natural world and so on, human beings can connect with the past, discover i...