Stuff They Don't Want You To Know
Episodes
Strange News: Maritime Updates, A Child Recovered, The United States Murders Marcellus Williams
30 Sep 2024
Contributed by Lukas
A billionaire's sunken yacht holds sensitive data -- and governments want it. A child abducted in 1951 is found alive. The United States cosigns the e...
My Momma Told Me, With Langston Kerman and David Gborie
27 Sep 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Did you ever grow up hearing a story or fact that, years later, you learned wasn't true? The podcast My Momma Told Me, hosted by Langston Kerman and D...
Listener Mail: Terrors of Adoption, Black Sludge is Poop, the Dangers of an AI-driven, 'Teacherless' Classroom
26 Sep 2024
Contributed by Lukas
An anonymous listener relates first-hand experience with the dark side of adoption and the state childcare industry. Metagent asks for more informatio...
The Mystery of Nan Madol
25 Sep 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Out in Micronesia, an ancient civilization rose and fell, leaving nothing but oral history, folklore, and a stunning, ruined, megalithic city. So what...
CLASSIC: The Eternal Shadow: Serial Killers Throughout Ancient History
24 Sep 2024
Contributed by Lukas
While serial killers may seem like a relatively new phenomenon, the human species hasn't changed as much as we all might like to think. Join the guys ...
Strange News: Massive Pager Attacks in Lebanon, Japan's Resignation Industry, CIA Denies Plotting to Kill Venezuela's Maduro
23 Sep 2024
Contributed by Lukas
One of the largest covert operations in history occurred in Lebanon, where exploding pagers and walkie-talkies injured thousands - prompting disturbin...
The Terrifying Future of Food
20 Sep 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Sustenance is one of the few things uniting all living beings. Whether we’re talking aristocrats or peasants, celebrities or your typical college st...
CLASSIC: The Death of Diana: Accident or Conspiracy?
19 Sep 2024
Contributed by Lukas
When Princess Diana died as a result of a horrendous car crash in Paris, the United Kingdom was shaken to the core. As more details emerged, some peop...
Missing in Arizona, with Jon Walczak
18 Sep 2024
Contributed by Lukas
April 10, 2001, an explosion rocked a cozy Scottsdale neighborhood. The mother of the family, along with her children, were discovered murdered inside...
CLASSIC: Locked Up and Lost: Healthcare in the Prison System
17 Sep 2024
Contributed by Lukas
While the United States is home to some of the world's most advanced medical technology, it's no secret that it has a terrible healthcare system -- mi...
Strange News: Classrooms with AI Teachers? A Mushroom-robot Hybrid, and Trouble in Millersville, TN
17 Sep 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Over in the UK, David Game College has instituted a revolutionary -- and disturbing -- pilot program: What if, they argue, we can just have AI teach s...
The Future of Robot “Servants”
13 Sep 2024
Contributed by Lukas
The human world is increasingly 'assisted' by a pantheon of automations. Yet this emergent reality brings to bear fundamental philosophical quandries ...
Listener Mail: Project Monarch, Skyhook, and Venezuelan Gangs (Allegedly) Overtaking Colorado Apartment buildings.
12 Sep 2024
Contributed by Lukas
How much do we really know about MKULTRA (spoiler: not much). What about Project Monarch? What's the deal with all these viral stories about Venezuela...
The Dark Side of Adoption
11 Sep 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Adoption is, at heart, an amazing concept. People who'd love nothing more than being part of a family come together and create their own -- no two way...
CLASSIC: Canada's Roswell: The Shag Harbor Incident
10 Sep 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In 1967 the tiny fishing community of Shag Harbor became ground zero for one of the most infamous UFO sightings in Canadian history. More than 50 year...
Strange News: The Death of a "Spy" Beluga Whale, Mobile Phones and Cancer, Car Rentals For Thieves
09 Sep 2024
Contributed by Lukas
After making waves in 2019 with his affable nature and mysterious harness, the legendary beluga whale Hvaldimir has been found dead -- prompting serio...
Election Monitoring and Conspiracies
06 Sep 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Voting is a pretty big deal -- and, around the world, it's also often controversial. Current civilization puts a great amount of weight on the legitim...
Listener Mail: The Social Security Hack, Mount Weather, the AI Basilisk and Letters From Home
05 Sep 2024
Contributed by Lukas
What happens when so many social security numbers get exposed, all at once? What's happening up at Mount Weather? Could an inorganic, sentient mind re...
Fake Fruit, Preservation and Consequences: The Wide World of Produce Conspiracies
04 Sep 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Modern civilization is far from perfect, but it's still pretty amazing how we can often order produce from around the world, right to our doors, even ...
CLASSIC: The Ticketmaster Racket
03 Sep 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Ticketmaster was founded in 1976, and since that time it's grown to be one of the most powerful forces in the industry -- whether you've gone to symph...
Strange News: A Tragedy in Idaho Springs, Stranded Astronauts, The Future of Moon Water, and More
02 Sep 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Doberman puppies remain missing in the aftermath of a tragic Colorado homicide. Two veteran astronauts remain stranded in space as the world works to ...
The Ica Stones, Part Two: Secrets Revealed
30 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Do the mysterious Ica stones genuinely depict humans and dinosaurs co-existing? Did some ancient South American cultures actually possess fantastic fl...
Listener Mail: Pest Control, Myanmar; a Reptilian Contacts the Gang.
29 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Mr. E provides an insider perspective on pest control. Surf Writer (Rider?) inspires a future episode on the porous borders of Myanmar. A Reptilian co...
The Ica Stones, Part One: A Mysterious Origin Story
28 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
When outsiders first encountered the ancient Inca Empire of Peru, they were astonished by the magnifcent stone work -- and struck by an abiding sense ...
CLASSIC: Was the 7th Floor Group a real 'Shadow Government'?
27 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
During the hectic news cycle of 2015, numerous stories popped up in headlines, only to disappear as soon as another event (or scandal) came to light. ...
Strange News: AI Without Guiderails, A Tech Tycoon's Yacht Disaster, Putin Wants You To Move to Russia (Don't)
26 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Controversial tech tycoon Mike Lynch temporarily goes missing after his luxury yacht sinks off the coast of Sicily. Elon Musks's social platform X rai...
CLASSIC: MKULTRA 201: The Conspiracies
23 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Earlier, the guys explored the fact, fiction and speculation surrounding MKULTRA programs, during which the Central Intelligence Agency financed and d...
CLASSIC: MKULTRA 101: The Basics
22 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
The rumors spread for decades: Somewhere in the US, our own government was conducting dangerous, heinous and illegal experiments on citizens from all ...
What exactly is ectoplasm?
21 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
If you're a fan of ghosts and spirits -- not to mention the Ghostbusters franchise -- you've heard of ectoplasm. According to the true believers, this...
CLASSIC: The Race to the Arctic: Who will control the poles?
20 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Across the span of modern human history, the Arctic has been a desolate, dangerous wasteland of freezing ice, inaccessible waters and more than a bit ...
Strange News: Disney Goes Full Supervillain, Food Monopolies, Glitter on Mars and More
19 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Imagine your wife dies on a Disney vacation, and their lawyers try to get your wrongful death lawsuit dismissed... because you signed up for a Disney+...
Hostile Climate: The Home Insurance Crisis
16 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Home insurance. Yeesh! For most folks, it's somewhere between a necessary evil and a snoozefest. If you're like most homeowners, you have insurance on...
Listener Mail: Plastic Bottle Sabotage, Blackstone and DNA, Is Stockholm syndrome made up?
15 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Sveriges baffles the crew when they ask whether the infamous Stocholm syndrome is entirely made up. Frederick wonders whether European manufacturers a...
Leon G. Turrou: The Nazi Hunter
14 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In tonight's episode: a strange, twisting tale of hidden history. While most people these days associate the Nazi party with the horrors of World War ...
CLASSIC: Who Killed Artemus Ogletree?
13 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
On January 2, 1935, a man checked into room 1046 at the Hotel President in Kansas City. He gave his name as Roland T. Owen, and listed his a home addr...
Strange News: Crickets Are Back on the Menu, RFK and Bear Corpse Litter, the EPA versus Herbicide, and More
12 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Singapore approves insects as a food source -- and the reasoning behind this may surprise you. The EPA (finally) bans an incredibly dangerous herbicid...
CLASSIC: How did North America's largest city disappear? The Mysterious Collapse of Cahokia
09 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Four centuries before Columbus reached the western hemisphere, Cahokia was a prosperous pre-American city with a population similar to London’s. In ...
Listener Mail: Big Bug, the Fuyao Factory Raid, Irish Perspective on Speed Limiters and The Great Last Meal Debate
08 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Conspiracy Realist scbuggeek writes in with an inside look at Big Bug. Lauren writes in for more information on the raid of a Fuyao factory raid in Da...
The US versus the American Indian Movement
07 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Nowadays most people in the United States are well aware of the larger Civil Rights movement -- including the US government's conspiratorial efforts t...
CLASSIC: Power, Politics, Corruption and Prayer: What is 'The Family'?
06 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Washington, D.C. is home to numerous organizations and institutions created to broker deals and funnel power from one place (or policy) to another. Ma...
Strange News: Spain's Porn Passport, the Paris Olympics, China's New Nuclear Reactor and a Bay of Piglets
05 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Spain will roll out a new "porn passport" to track online visits to adult websites. The gang weighs in on the manufactured controversy around the Olym...
Carl-Erik Björkegren: The Disappearing Billionaire
02 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
It's often been said money doesn't buy happiness. In fact, it can lead to more problems, up to and including troubling, mysterious disappearances. In ...
Listener Mail: The Most Dangerous Animal, Secret ESP Countermeasures, Spies and Psychics
01 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Arborious prompts a conversation about ESP and the nature of intuition. Joe calls in to ask whether state-level actors have countermeasures against ps...
The Mystery of the Dropa Stones
31 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
The story has all the makings of a science-fiction blockbuster: in 1937, an intrepid archaeologist discovers hundreds of perfectly-engraved stones, su...
CLASSIC: Orang Minyak: Mythical Monster or Monstrous Cover-up?
30 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In Malay folklore, the Orang Minyak is an supernaturally agile, humanoid creature coated in an oily, slippery substance. It is primarily known for abd...
Strange News: Crowdstrike, Fake Picassos, Cocaine Sharks, the Looming Yellowstone Volcanic Supereruption
29 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Fake Picassos launch a fascinating discourse about gender in Australia. The massive Crowdstrike outage exposes troubling vulnerabilities in software i...
Angel Hair and Star Jelly: What the heck is this stuff?
26 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
For thousands of years, humans were convinced meteors and stars shed heavenly goo onto Earth's surface, or that shreds of the Virgin Mary's veil drift...
Listener Mail: Targeted Ads, Driving in Europe, a Word from King John
25 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
An astronaut writes a Tripadvisor review of life in space. King John calls in to prompt an excellent conversation about food as medicine... and how pr...
Can you hack the emergency alert system?
24 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
If you live in the US, you've heard the tone before: a staccato series of beeps followed by an oddly neutral voice disclosing any number of warnings o...
CLASSIC: What will humanity be like in 1,000 years?
23 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
If you met a person from the year 1019, they would be, in many ways, much like you. But what if you met a person from 3019? How different will human b...
Strange News: Horrifying Discovery of a Kenyan Serial Killer, Oceangate Cofounder Pitches Lunar Colony, Fentanyl Robbery Gang
22 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
33 year-old Collins Jumaici Khalusha has been arrested in connection to multiple murders in Kenya -- he himself has testified to killing 42 women in t...
Do fish ever really rain from the sky?
19 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
It's a weird -- and weirdly common -- story throughout history: a storm that carries not just rain and thunder, but any number of strange animals drop...
Listener Mail: The Good Fork, Microgeneration, FedEx Teams Up with the Cops, Nazi Drugs and UAP Sightings
18 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Do you anthropormorphize inanimated objects? Ben has a pantheon of them. Side Pocket Kid writes in about the concept of alternative power and microgen...
STDWYTK: Breaking: Someone Tried To Kill A President
17 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
On 13 July, 2024, a person later identified as Thomas Matthew Crooks attempted to assassinate former US President and current Republican Presidential ...
CLASSIC: The death of Panama Papers journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia
16 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
The Panama Papers are a collection of over 11 million leaked documents exposing shady financial dealings from more than 200,000 offshore entities, som...
Strange News: History's Biggest Password Hack, Mandatory Speed Limiters, and the First Robot Suicide.
15 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
A massive password hack compromises 10 BILLION passwords -- and no one's sure what will happen next. As of July 7th, all new cars sold in the EU and i...
The Pentagon's Anti-Vax Program, Part Two: The Conspiracy Goes Global
12 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
So why would the US government push so hard for people to get vaccinated domestically, then turn around and wage an anti-vaccination propaganda war on...
Listener Mail: The Targeted Pricing Conspiracy, Living Underground, Google is Getting Worse
11 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Geist writes in from Germany, with a fascinating and conspiratorial first-hand look at the potentially insidious end goal of 'surge' and 'flex' pricin...
The Pentagon's Anti-Vax Program, Part One: The Great Game is Dirty
10 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
How far would you go to maintain control of the world? It's a question militaries across the planet ask themselves, every single day. In the first par...
CLASSIC: Will the real Shakespeare please stand up?
09 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Playwright William Shakespeare is widely acknowledged as one of the most influential writers in the English language, and his plays have been read or ...
Strange News: SCOTUS Rules Against Democracy, A Trial Update, Bird Flu and AI vs Emissions
08 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In a stunning and genuine conspiracy, the US Supreme Court rules a President should have the powers of a Monarch. Scientists warn about the slow burn ...
Crop Circles: Fact and Fiction
05 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Have you ever seen a weird pattern in a field? Grain, grass, swamp or wheat, all bent toward some sort of spiritual-mathematical attempt at communicat...
Listener Mail: Drones and Insurance, Philly Bombed Civilians, Ozempic Off-label and A Warning about Sandwiches
04 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Cabeza de Vaca prompts a conversation about private drones and home insurance. Skippy shares terrifying first-hand experience with the consequences of...
Cryptids of India, Chapter II
03 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Imagine a stunning amount of biodiversity amid one of the most densely-populated nations in the modern world. In tonight's episode, Ben, Matt and Noel...
CLASSIC: Third Eye Spies, the CIA and the Quiet Mind with Russell Targ
02 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
What if you could travel outside your body at will, sending your consciousness across the planet and beyond? While it may sound like a tale of science...
Strange News: Julian Assange is "Free," the Pentagon went Anti-Vaxx, Social Media as Cigarettes, Telehealth Busted Peddling ADHD Medication
01 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Wikileaks founder Julian Assange secures "freedom" in Australia. The Pentagon planned a massive anti-vaccination scheme to discredit China. The US Sur...
Project 2025: Should we be concerned?
28 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Every Presidential election brings with it a virtual army of advisors, donors, academics, think tanks and policy wonks. They're often full of ideas ab...
CLASSIC: The Student Loan Conspiracy
27 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Higher education offers millions of people the opportunity to pursue their dreams and make meaningful contributions to civilization -- but it often do...
Why Freeports Are A Conspiracy
26 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
For the vast majority of humans, freeports don't really matter, nor impact their lives. But make now mistake: for the well-heeled and criminals alike,...
CLASSIC: What is the Finders cult?
25 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
On Thursday, February 5, 1987, two men were arrested on suspicion of kidnapping six children and transporting them to Tallahassee, Florida. While the ...
CLASSIC: Cell Phones, 5G & Cancer
24 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Smart phones have fundamentally changed the world -- at times, it's difficult to imagine life without one of these handy computers. There's a world of...
The World Is Full of Mysterious Holes
21 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Do you live near a mysterious cavern, pit, or abandoned mine? In tonight's episode, Ben, Matt and Noel explore the wide world of mysterious holes, spa...
Listener Mail: Real Estate Software, the Superconducting Super Collider, the Two by Twos and Our Poop Joke of the Week
20 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
A real estate expert weighs in on the discussion of proprietary valuation/pricing software. A conversation about the failed Superconducting Super Coll...
Supplements, Part Two: Nootropics
19 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
What if you could take a pill, an injection, or a series of substances to make you fundamentally smarter? To gift yourself with eidetic memory, superi...
CLASSIC: Who Killed Fred Hampton?
18 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
The Black Panther Party For Self-defense was founded in Oakland, California in 1966 by Huey Newton and Bobby Seale. They originally wanted to protect ...
Strange News: Missouri May Murder An Innocent Man, Baby Reindeer, Bananas and Paramilitaries, Good News From the FBI
17 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
The state of Missouri has set a date for the execution of Marcellus Williams -- despite emerging evidence overwhelmingly indicating his innocence (and...
Disappearing Planes: The 2024 Update
14 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Global civilization depends on the power of flight. Yet over the past few decades, planes seem to keep disappearing or meeting with disaster. In tonig...
Listener Mail: Ticketmaster is Nuts, TwinRay, and: Is a Big Mac Lasagna?
13 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Brett the Hitman shares a bizarre story about Ticketmaster, Taylor Swift and Paris. Tree Forts shares the mystery of TwinRay in Ashland, Oregon. Chick...
The Observer Effect and the Double Slit Experiment: Ben and Matt vs. Reality
12 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Reality is philosophically terrifying. What is it, exactly? Where does it come from? Why are we, humans and everyone else, stuck within this thing no ...
CLASSIC: Returning To The Moon
11 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
The nation of China recently made international news by successfully completing an unmanned landing on the far side of Earth’s moon, marking a pivot...
Strange News: Atlanta's Water Disaster, Google's AI Search, Soaring Rental Prices
10 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Atlanta's water disaster prompts a conversation about the conspiracies that led to it and the larger threat of crumbling infrastructure across the US....
Listener Mail: The Atlas Network, The Rainey Street Ripper, and the Problem with Scopolamine
07 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
An email hips the guys to the global conspiracy of the Atlas Network -- a think tank that creates think tanks. Fun Crusher looks for more information ...
CLASSIC: Is there a secret funeral monopoly?
07 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Death is one of humanity's great unifiers. Before the dawn of recorded history our species and others like it venerated, feared and honored the dead. ...
Did Charles Manson work with the CIA?
05 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Years after his death, Charles Manson remains one of the most infamous cult leaders in US history. While the mainstream public seems pretty satisfied ...
CLASSIC: The Mysterious McKinsey Group
04 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In recent history more and more analysts have been concerned about the rise of privately-owned, multinational corporations wielding the type of geopol...
Strange News: North Korean Poop Balloons, Sling-Shot Crime, Fast Food Becomes a Luxury
03 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Why is North Korea sending balloons filled with trash and poop over the border? A new poll reveals most Americans consider fast food a luxury. A forme...
Actual Trolls: Not the Ones Online
31 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Trolls! These mythical creatures are -- nowadays -- beloved. Most folks think of trolls as creatures of myth, up there with the minotaur, the kraken, ...
Listener Mail: Chemicals and Fame, Aura Goggles, Food Cube Theory and Pornhub Bans in Texas
30 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
How have notable historic figures been affected by dangerous chemicals? Did the US really suppress secret goggles that allow you to see auras? Why has...
What are Freight Brokers?
29 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Civilization only exists as a result of global trade. Without countless trucks, trains, cargo ships and aircraft, the world as humans understand it wi...
CLASSIC: What caused the world’s weirdest earthquake?
28 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
On November 11, 2018, seismologists began puzzling over a weird low-frequency rumble that rang through the entire planet. The wave wasn’t connected ...
Strange News: Non-Human Intelligence, Baby Reindeer, Karl Nell and Karen Reed
27 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
At a recent conference for high-dollar investors, a prominent retired Colonel bluntly states "non-human intelligence" is real, world governments know,...
The Gang Explores The Reptilian Conspiracy
24 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Have you ever wondered whether some secret group genuinely runs the world? Ben, Matt and Noel finally explore the concept that hybrid reptilians chang...
Listener Mail: Active Fitness Clubs, Election Monitoring, Mysterious Holes
23 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Is there an international conspiracy to certify rigged elections across the planet? What's with the Coast to Coast story of "Mel's Hole?" Fiona writes...
Cryptids of India: an Untold Story
22 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
You've heard of Bigfoot, but what else is out there? In tonight's episode, Ben, Matt and Noel explore the fact and fiction of cryptids in India.They d...
CLASSIC: Famous Lost Tombs, Part II
21 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In an earlier episode, the guys delved into the modern mystery of Genghis Khan's hidden grave, and found he was far from the only famous historical fi...
Strange News: Hidden Cameras, Randy Travis, and AI Dating For You
20 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Country music legend Randy Travis approves an AI-generated song based on his voice. The guys explore the double-edged sword of hidden cameras. Bumble ...
The Horrifying Truth of Online Pornography
17 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Warning: this episode is not appropriate for all audiences. Anyone with an internet connection can find -- well, almost anything they wish. In a way, ...
CLASSIC: Famous Lost Tombs, Part I
16 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In an earlier episode, the guys delved into the modern mystery of Genghis Khan's hidden grave, and found he was far from the only famous historical fi...
The Dead Internet Theory
15 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
The internet is amazing, terrifying, hilarious and, as you read this, still evolving today. We genuinely don't know if humans are ready for it. Tonigh...
CLASSIC: What exactly is 'Natural Flavoring'?
14 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
You can find phrases touting "natural" flavoring on products throughout most modern supermarkets, from beverages to cereal to more -- but what exactly...