Witch Hunt Podcast

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Witch Hunt explores history's most infamous witch hunts (literal and metaphorical) and the history of scapegoating. Season one examines the Salem Witch Trials and season two covers the Great Satanic Panic of the 1980's and 90's.

Brainy Byrd Media


    • Nov 26, 2017 LATEST EPISODE
    • infrequent NEW EPISODES
    • 22m AVG DURATION
    • 25 EPISODES
    • 2 SEASONS


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    Latest episodes from Witch Hunt Podcast

    Season 2, Episode 8: D&D and the Devil

    Play Episode Listen Later Nov 26, 2017 27:29


    How the enormously popular role-playing board game "Dungeons and Dragons" became a target during the satanic panic. Featuring Nathan Lloyd, host of the Historical Blindness podcast. The Epic, by Boom Audio https://audiojungle.net/item/the-epic/20940531   Heartfelt, by Royalty Free Music Club https://itunes.apple.com/us/artist/royalty-free-music-club/547510897   Piano Music, by Royalty Free Music Club https://itunes.apple.com/us/artist/royalty-free-music-club/547510897   Ripley, by Lucas King https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/emotional-piano-music-ii-royalty/id1014292638   Hope, by Alex Mason & The Minor Emotion http://freemusicarchive.org/music/Alex_Mason__The_Minor_Emotion/Soul_Breaker/01_alex_mason___the_minor_emotion_-_hope

    Season 2, Episode 7: Memory and Myth

    Play Episode Listen Later Nov 12, 2017 29:48


    We look at memory - real, repressed, and invented and its impact on the Satanic Panic.  Featuring expert Elizabeth Loftus. Episode Music: The Way the World Ends, by Lucas King  https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/emotional-piano-music-ii-royalty/id1014292638   Amelie, by Royalty Free Music Lab https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/cinema-tv-and-spot-vol-2/id632397129   Peaceful Piano, by Royalty Free Music Club https://itunes.apple.com/us/artist/royalty-free-music-club/id547510897   Hope, by Alex Mason & The Minor Emotion http://freemusicarchive.org/music/Alex_Mason__The_Minor_Emotion/Soul_Breaker/01_alex_mason___the_minor_emotion_-_hope   Melancholy, by Lucas King https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/emotional-piano-music-ii-royalty/id1014292638   End, by Royalty Free Music Lab https://itunes.apple.com/jp/album/royalty-free-music-for-cinema/id566281456?l=en

    Season 2, Episode 6: Medical Evidence

    Play Episode Listen Later Oct 29, 2017 17:57


    We reveal how medical experts got it wrong.  Warning: adult content. Episode Music: Melancholy, by Lucas King https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/emotional-piano-music-ii-royalty/id1014292638   Levantara`n el vuelo (Piano Solo) by Circus Marcus http://freemusicarchive.org/music/CIRCUSMARCUS/~/Levantarn_el_vuelo_Piano_Solo   Ice Where Your Parents’ Love Should Be by Kyle Preston http://freemusicarchive.org/music/Kyle_Preston/Geo/Ice_Where_Your_Parents_Love_Should_Be   The Way the World Ends, by Lucas King  https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/emotional-piano-music-ii-royalty/id1014292638   You Promise, by Alex Mason and the Minor Emotion http://freemusicarchive.org/music/Alex_Mason__The_Minor_Emotion/Soul_Breaker/08_alex_mason___the_minor_emotion_-_you_promise

    Season 2, Episode 5: Cult Cops

    Play Episode Listen Later Oct 16, 2017 27:52


    Retired police detective Duane Gonyon sheds light on how the Satanic Panic got out of control. Episode Music: Whisper, by Lucas King https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/emotional-piano-music-ii-royalty/id1014292638   Seeker, by Kai Engel http://freemusicarchive.org/music/Kai_Engel/The_Run/Kai_Engel_-_The_Run_-_01_Seeker   Sunset Piano, by Royalty Free Music Club https://itunes.apple.com/us/artist/royalty-free-music-club/id547510897   Hope, by Alex Mason & The Minor Emotion http://freemusicarchive.org/music/Alex_Mason__The_Minor_Emotion/Soul_Breaker/01_alex_mason___the_minor_emotion_-_hope     Three Kites Circling by Axletree http://freemusicarchive.org/music/Axletree/Cormorant_EP/Three_kites_circling   Show Notes: https://www.brainybyrdmedia.com/season-2-episode-5-show-notes

    Season 2, Episode 4: McMartin

    Play Episode Listen Later Oct 1, 2017 33:56


    The story behind the most famous case of satanic ritual child abuse that never happened. Featuring RetroReport Producer Barbara Drury. Episode Music:  You Promise, by Alex Mason & The Minor Emotion http://freemusicarchive.org/music/Alex_Mason__The_Minor_Emotion/Soul_Breaker/08_alex_mason___the_minor_emotion_-_you_promise   Hope, by Alex Mason & The Minor Emotion http://freemusicarchive.org/music/Alex_Mason__The_Minor_Emotion/Soul_Breaker/01_alex_mason___the_minor_emotion_-_hope   The Way the World Ends, by Lucas King https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/emotional-piano-music-ii-royalty/id1014292638   Three Kites Circling by Axletree http://freemusicarchive.org/music/Axletree/Cormorant_EP/Three_kites_circling     Whisper, by Lucas King https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/emotional-piano-music-ii-royalty/id1014292638   End, by Royalty Free Music Lab https://itunes.apple.com/jp/album/royalty-free-music-for-cinema/id566281456?l=en Show Notes: https://www.brainybyrdmedia.com/season-2-episode-4  

    hunt panic witch whispers satanic hunts world ends scapegoating mcmartin lucas king axletree you promise alex mason the minor emotion axletree cormorant ep three
    Season 2 Episode 3 - What Michelle Remembered

    Play Episode Listen Later Sep 17, 2017 16:53


    We unpack, "Michelle Remembers," the harrowing, horrible hoax that started the "satanic panic" of the 1980s/90s. Episode Music:  Seeker by Kai Engel:  http://freemusicarchive.org/music/Kai_Engel/The_Run/Kai_Engel_-_The_Run_-_01_Seeker Amelie by Royalty Free Music Lab https://itunes.apple.com/tm/album/cinema-tv-and-spot-vol.2/id632397129 Melancholy by Lucas King https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/emotional-piano-music-ii-royalty/id1014292638 Sunset Piano by Royalty Free Music Club https://itunes.apple.com/us/artist/royalty-free-music-club/id547510897 Ice Where Your Parents’ Love Should Be by Kyle Preston http://freemusicarchive.org/music/Kyle_Preston/Geo/Ice_Where_Your_Parents_Love_Should_Be Show Notes: https://www.brainybyrdmedia.com/season-two-episode-three

    Season 2 Episode 2: The Big 80s

    Play Episode Listen Later Sep 3, 2017 23:46


    Episode two explains Satan's big social comeback in the 1980s. Featuring experts Professor Megan Goodwin and Mary DeYoung. Episode Music Levantara`n el vuelo (Piano Solo) by Circus Marcus http://freemusicarchive.org/music/CIRCUSMARCUS/~/Levantarn_el_vuelo_Piano_Solo Ice Where Your Parents’ Love Should Be by Kyle Preston http://freemusicarchive.org/music/Kyle_Preston/Geo/Ice_Where_Your_Parents_Love_Should_Be   Show Notes https://www.brainybyrdmedia.com/wh-episode-12

    Episode 11: The Great Satanic Panic

    Play Episode Listen Later Aug 20, 2017 21:33


    The premiere episode of season two explores how what we believe and how we react to allegations of child abuse fueled a moral panic that destroyed thousands of lives. Featuring an interview with The Intercept's Jordan Smith.

    Special Episode Three - Paper Plates and Sympathy

    Play Episode Listen Later Apr 23, 2017 17:51


    Our mini series finale explores the truth behind "Patient Zero" and the AIDS epidemic. Writer Michele Lent Hirsch shares her story of life under quarantine. Episode Music: The Way the World Ends – Lucas King https://itunes.apple.com/us/album/emotional-piano-music-ii-royalty/id1014292638 Ice Where Your Parents’ Love should Be – Kyle Preston http://freemusicarchive.org/music/Kyle_Preston/Geo/Ice_Where_Your_Parents_Love_Should_Be Show Notes https://www.brainybyrdmedia.com/special-episode-three

    Special Episode Two - There Was Something About Mary

    Play Episode Listen Later Apr 9, 2017 23:40


    This episode, we tell the story of the original Typhoid Mary. Featuring author and historian Judith Leavitt. Episode music: Seeker by Kai Engel http://freemusicarchive.org/music/Kai_Engel/The_Run/Kai_Engel_-_The_Run_-_01_Seeker Levantara`n el vuelo (Piano Solo) by Circus Marcus http://freemusicarchive.org/music/CIRCUSMARCUS/~/Levantarn_el_vuelo_Piano_Solo Ice Where Your Parents’ Love Should Be by Kyle Preston http://freemusicarchive.org/music/Kyle_Preston/Geo/Ice_Where_Your_Parents_Love_Should_Be Heartfelt Piano by Royalty Free Music Movies & Videos Backgrounds Show Notes https://www.brainybyrdmedia.com/special-episode-two

    Special Episode One - Keep Away

    Play Episode Listen Later Mar 26, 2017 13:20


    Why do we get mad at sick people for getting sick? This podcast special series explores the history of quarantines. Episode Music: Peaceful Piano - Royalty Free Music Club Melancholy - Lucas King Sunset Piano - Royalty Free Music Club Heartfelt Piano - Royalty Free Music Club The Way the World Ends - Lucas King

    Episode 10: It's Still Happening

    Play Episode Listen Later Jan 22, 2017 23:56


    It's not over. They're still hunting down and killing people accused of witchcraft all over the world. Learn how you can help make it stop.

    Episode Nine: That's My Eighth Great Grandmother You Hanged

    Play Episode Listen Later Jan 8, 2017 41:35


    Interviews with direct descendants of the men and women involved in the Salem witchcraft crisis of 1692. Featuring the descendants of Margaret Scott, Giles Corey, Rebecca Nurse, and Cotton Mather.

    Episode Eight: Making It Stop

    Play Episode Listen Later Dec 25, 2016 33:52


    This episode unpacks what brought the Salem witchcraft hysteria to its end and what Salem looked like when it was all over. Featuring professor and author Emerson Baker.

    Episode Seven: Judges, Jurors, & Executions

    Play Episode Listen Later Dec 11, 2016 24:34


    Who were the men behind the hangings of 19 innocent people in Salem, 1692? What was the town like on "Execution Day"? Featuring author and capital punishment expert, Richard Clark.

    Episode Six: Gospel Women & Wizards

    Play Episode Listen Later Nov 27, 2016 29:05


    Who were they? The innocent men and women hanged as witches in Salem, 1692. Let's take a look at the usual and the not-so-usual suspects.

    Let's Hang Out!

    Play Episode Listen Later Nov 21, 2016 0:47


    We're hosting our first ever Witch Hunt Podcast Google Hangout on Sunday, November 27 from 2-4 p.m. (EST). We'll be streaming live to answer your questions, talk about the show, or just say hi. See you there! - Nancy and Dan

    Episode Five: Mean Girls

    Play Episode Listen Later Nov 13, 2016 24:57


    Who were the main accusers in the Salem witchcraft hysteria of 1692 and what was really wrong with them?887cv8p8

    Witch Hunt Podcast Halloween Special

    Play Episode Listen Later Oct 30, 2016 27:44


    Meet Thomas O'Brien Vallor, a practicing witch from Salem, Massachusetts. Learn about the beliefs of modern witches. Happy Halloween!

    Episode Four: Law and Order 1692

    Play Episode Listen Later Oct 30, 2016 23:28


    The legal system in 1692 Massachusetts was anything but impartial. Learn about how the law worked against the accused during the infamous Salem witch trial crisis.

    Episode Three: An Evil Hand is Upon Them

    Play Episode Listen Later Oct 16, 2016 28:12


    It's January, 1692, and the disturbing and bizarre behaviors of two little girls in Salem Village trigger the first witchcraft accusations and arrests. Featuring historian and author Marilynne K. Roach.

    Episode Two: Puritans On The Edge

    Play Episode Listen Later Oct 2, 2016 27:11


    What was it about the villagers of Salem that made them the people most likely to unleash a witchcraft Hysteria? We spoke with Dr. Mary Beth Norton, the country's top historian, for the answer.

    Episode One: The Biggest Little Witch Hunt in History

    Play Episode Listen Later Sep 18, 2016 21:36


    Why is Salem the witch hunt people remember? Episode One: The Biggest Little Witch Hunt in History examines the European roots of the Salem witch trials. Featuring renowned author Frances Hill, author of "A Delusion of Satan."

    Introducing Witch Hunt

    Play Episode Listen Later Sep 18, 2016 7:15


    Meet the Witch Hunt Podcast, a biweekly show that explores history's most famous witch hunts - literal and metaphorical. Join us for season one as we unpack the Salem witch trial hysteria of 1692.

    Witch Hunt is Coming Soon

    Play Episode Listen Later Aug 28, 2016 1:48


    Introducing the Witch Hunt Podcast, a biweekly podcast premiering Sunday, September 18. The Witch Hunt Podcast examines history's most infamous witch hunts - literal and metaphorical - starting with the Salem witch trials of 1692. Why were 14 women and six men executed as witches? Join us as we take a closer look at the accusers, the accused, and a world that provided rope for the hangings.

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