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WBUR

Untold histories, unsolved mysteries, and other jaw-dropping stories online and IRL. Hosted by Ben Brock Johnson & Amory Sivertson.

Endless Thread

Once upon a dimly lit hallway, Ben and Amory stumbled onto a beloved brainchild of the internet: Backrooms. It began as a "creepypasta"— a horror story or concept that originates online and often becomes a meme — based on the idea of glitching into an inescapable prison of empty rooms. Back in 2020, Endless Thread discussed how this chilling kernel of internet lore migrated from 4chan to Reddit. Now, "Backrooms" is a major motion picture from A24.

Amory and Ben take a little field trip to the theater to see the film and discuss how the concept holds up in the hands of Hollywood.

Back to the Backrooms!

Journalist Leon Neyfakh — known for the podcasts Slow Burn, Fiasco, and Backfired — wanted to know more about the massively popular and sprawling online ecosystem of OnlyFans. What are its nearly 400 million users really getting from it, and what can that tell all of us about relationships forged online? To find out, he teamed up with Gracie Canaan, a stand-up comedian and OnlyFans creator.

Ben and Amory sat down with them at the WBUR Festival to hear all about their new podcast for Audible, OnlyFantasy, in which they examine this bustling digital marketplace of sex and emotions, and try to understand the role it plays in the lives and relationships of the buyers and sellers.

Show notes:
OnlyFantasy (Audible)

This conversation was produced by Amory Sivertson and Ben Brock Johnson. It was edited down by Grace Tatter. Mix and sound design by Paul Vaitkus.

Endless Thread on OnlyFans

Jeremy Rellosa used to watch TV shows and movies from the '90s and revel in how the characters walked around untethered to a smartphone, with no expectations of constant connectivity. So he decided to run an experiment on himself: he'd live for at least two weeks without a smartphone. No Slack. No text messages. No Instagram or WhatsApp. If his friends, family, or boss wanted to reach him, they'd have to call him on his landline.

Sure, landlines were the norm just a couple of decades ago. But in our always-online world, how feasible is the landline life, really? Ben and Amory call Jeremy up to find out.

Show notes:

"I Turned Off My Phone for a Month and Used a Landline" (New York Magazine)

This episode was written and produced by Grace Tatter and edited by Meg Cramer and Dave Shaw. It was co-hosted by Ben Brock Johnson and Amory Sivertson. Mix and sound design by Paul Vaitkus.

Leave a message after the beep

Try reading this description as fast as you can: Ben and Amory zoom through two internet stories connected to speed running, including a look at a mysterious object on Reddit and an online trend directed at the Church of Scientology.

Show notes:

 Found in my son’s room • (Reddit)

 Storming Scientology Buildings: TikTok Trend or Hate Crime? • (The New York Times)

 What is a ‘Scientology speedrun’ and why is social media suddenly obsessed with it? • (The Guardian)

The Church of Speedrun!

Some Internet trends are temporary, but eggs are forever. Today, host Ben Brock Johnson serves up a story about a recipe that, according to the people of r/pickled, can't be beat, and producer Kalyani Saxena egg-splores online discourse around Korean mayak eggs, and why it matters which creators get credit for their popularity.

Show notes:

 • "Been a few years now. Figured I’d share my recipe." (
r/pickling • )

 • The eggs so addictive authorities want to change their name (
The Sydney Morning Herald • )

 • How a South Korean comfort food went global (
BBC • )

 • "Marinade recipe" (@courtneylcook's 
TikTok)
 • "we've officially lost the plot (@beefyboiii's 
TikTok)
 • @princess.paulai on Courtney Cook's mayak egg content (
TikTok • )

This episode was produced by Grace Tatter and researched and co-hosted by Kalyani Saxena and Ben Brock Johnson. It was edited by Dave Shaw and Meg Cramer. Mix and sound design by Paul Vaitkus.

Endless Egg

Of all the internet communities in all the world, you walked into ours.

Hosts Ben and Amory pay homage to the magic of chance encounters with producer Grace Tatter. Together, they explore the ways in which the internet fuels random yet delightful meetings between strangers online, from a website where you can impersonate ChatGPT to Craigslist's beloved Missed Connections page.

Show notes:

 YourAISlopBores.Me 
 What Craigslist’s missed connections are still good for • (The Bold Italic)

Credits: This episode was produced by Kalyani Saxena. Mix and sound design by Marquis Neal. It was edited by Meg Cramer and Dave Shaw, and hosted by Ben Brock Johnson, Amory Sivertson, and Grace Tatter.

Manifesting an online rom-com existence

Comedian Ben Palmer set up a fake tip line for reporting immigrants in the United States suspected of not having legal status. He recorded the conversations, and things... got uncomfortable and, in some cases, disturbing. But for a lot of viewers, these calls were surprisingly funny. How does Ben Palmer withstand the awkwardness and maintain his deadpan delivery as he trolls unsuspecting Americans trying to get their neighbors deported? And how did he go from being your average stand-up comic, doing sets after his day job, to creating viral social commentary full-time?

Show notes:

 • He made a fake ICE deportation tip line. Then a kindergarten teacher called. (
Washington Post • )

 • God, Country, Family (
YouTube • )

 • Ben Palmer's YouTube Channel (
YouTube • )

This episode was written and produced by Grace Tatter. It was co-hosted by Ben Brock Johnson and Amory Sivertson, and edited by Meg Cramer. Mix and sound design by Paul Vaitkus.

Ben Palmer's Brain

Introducing The Midnight Rebellion, a new climate fiction podcast from WBUR — a rollicking adventure to a flooded, robot-infested world where you choose what happens.

When Joule Watts-Green steps into her mom’s mysterious machine, she’s swept off to a polluted city of tides. Streets are rivers, “tin-skins” shoot lightning, and everyone eats gooey Algae-Os. To get home, Joule must be brave, clever, and make friends. She may even discover how to save the world — with your help.

Each chapter ends with a choice. YOU decide what’s next. This is Chapter 1.

Triumph or failure, it’s up to you.

Choose wisely.

This is Chapter 1 of The Midnight Rebellion.

And if you liked what you heard, listen to the rest and follow The Midnight Rebellion wherever you get your podcasts.

Endless Thread presents "The Midnight Rebellion"

Ben and Amory take a hike with producer Grace, following the digital trail of "Ridiculoubs" — a mysterious climber who traverses the world's peaks in striking footwear. Then, Amory celebrates the beauty of daily life with the Dull Women's Club, a Facebook group with nearly 1.6 million members.

Show notes:

 • "
Ridiculoubs" Reviews • (Google Maps)

 Ridiculoubs • (Instagram)

 Dull Women’s Club • (Facebook)

 Dull Women’s Club celebrating the ordinary

 

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Extraordinary vs. Extra Ordinary

Endless Thread goes to space! First, host Ben Brock Johnson goes deep on radio signals of unknown origin, with an assist from real-life radio astronomer and Reddit MVP Yvette Cendes, aka, Andromeda321. Then, producer Kalyani Saxena takes Ben down the metaphorical black hole of Saturn's hexagonal storm, a massive vortex twice the width of the Earth that's inspired internet conspiracy theories every bit as unweildy.

Show notes:

 • This storm never ends: Saturn’s north pole (
Reddit • )

 • Cassini Images Bizarre Hexagon on Saturn (
NASA • )

 • Cassini: Saturn's Perplexing Hexagon (
NASA • )

Credits: This episode was produced by Grace Tatter. It was researched and co-hosted by Ben Brock Johnson and Kalyani Saxena, and edited by Meg Cramer. Mix and sound design by Paul Vaitkus. Episode art credit of NASA.

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Back to the Backrooms!

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