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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

Note: This episode describes sexual situations that are non-consensual.

Sharing a photo of yourself online has always carried some risk. But things got a lot scarier this year when users began using Grok, X's generative AI chatbot to create sexualized deepfakes of women and children. Iona Fyfe, Scottish folk singer and activist, was one of the people who had an image altered and manipulated by Grok. Hosts Ben Brock Johnson and Amory Sivertson talk to her about her experience.

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What it's like to be undressed by Grok without your consent

Some rare folks are born with the perfect music taste. But most of us have to look elsewhere for a tune that sparks a shoulder shimmy or two. Hosts Ben and Amory spend some time jamming to obscure music from Reddit. They also explore how a TikTok original became Dr. Pepper's catchy new jingle. 

And "baby, it's good and nice."

Show notes:

 I wasn't sure on this one at first, but you can't beat the messaging • . (Reddit)

 Boko Yout [9-2-5] • (Reddit)

 Molly • by Ecca Vandal

 Theme Song for Dr. Pepper: Let's Collaborate! • (TikTok)

 Dr. Pepper's Viral Jingle Moment Has Everyone Pitching Songs to Brands • (Atlanta Black Star)

 Beautiful and unique music. Hope someone an share details about her and the music • (Reddit)

 everyday_naturalist 
 christycoysh

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Obscure music is good and nice!

Melania, a documentary about the first lady, has a 10 percent score on Rotten Tomatoes from critics, but a 90 percent score from audience members, an unusual discrepancy that raises the question, how did Rotten Tomatoes get those scores anyway?

Show notes:

 • The 'Melania' movie audience: Older white women (
NPR • )

 • Melania’s Movie Shows Signs of Bulk Buying to Boost Box Office: Guru (
The Daily Beast • )

 • You Can Thank 'Rush Hour' for Rotten Tomatoes (
Vice • )

 • Rotten Tomatoes Owner Says ‘Melania’ 99% Audience Score Is Not ‘Bot Manipulation’: ‘Reviews Are Verified… Users Bought a Ticket to the Film’ (
Variety • )

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

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Fresh, stale, or politics? The Melania doc's Rotten Tomatoes score, explained

In this OG throwback from the Endless Thread archives, hosts Ben Brock Johnson and Amory Sivertson revisit a classic episode from their first year of production in 2018.

Originally produced during the show's early partnership with Reddit, "Love in Transition" explores the most powerful emotion in the universe in all its forms, shapes, and sizes. This might just be your perfect weekend listen, celebrating a timeless story about affection and the many ways we experience love today.

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Rewind: Love In Transition

In the 1980s, a moral panic swept across America. Parents, prosecutors, and talk show hosts became convinced that devil worshippers were hiding in plain sight, abusing children at daycares, performing ritualistic sacrifices, and corrupting the innocent.

Sarah Marshall of You're Wrong About has a new podcast about this period of Satanic Panic called The Devil You Know. She talks to Ben and Amory about the cultural forces that turned unfounded fears into a nationwide hysteria, and how would the Satanic Panic might have unfolded differently in today's age of social media.

Credits: This episode was produced by Amory Sivertson with assistance from 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.

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You're Wrong About the Satanic Panic

What temperature do you like your fruit? What is the correct way to peel a banana? This week on Endless Thread, Ben and Amory cherry pick a couple of the hottest fruit debates taking place on Reddit.

Show notes:

 My husband is mildly infuriated that I open a banana from the antenna side! • (Reddit)

 CMV: The only correct way to peel and eat a banana is from the bottom. • (Reddit)

 Microwaving fruit is the way to go • (Reddit)

 I believe that fruit is better microwaved. • (Reddit)

This content was originally created for audio. An auto-generated transcript is available on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Heads up that some elements (i.e. music, sound effects, tone) are harder to translate to text.

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Hot (and not) fruit takes

In 1970, a young biologist named David Mech published what could be the most consequential book on wolves ever written. At the time, The Wolf: The Ecology and Behavior of an Endangered Species, was the most complete collection of scientific knowledge on wolves money could buy, and it became best seller for Dave's publishers. But outside of the world of wolf biology, the book is also credited with unleashing a certain idea into our popular lexicon: The Alpha.

The thing is, Dave made a mistake – and the alpha wolf, doesn't exist.

This week on Endless Thread, Ben and Amory track down the origins of "the alpha," and whether this idea – which has been recanted by the very scientist who popularized it – has any legitimacy when talking about people.

Show notes:

 The Myth of the Alpha Wolf • (The New Yorker)*

 Do alpha males even exist? • (The Guardian)

 Elon Musk Shares Theory That Only ‘Alpha Males’ Should Vote • (Newsweek)

This content was originally created for audio. An auto-generated transcript is available on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Heads up that some elements (i.e. music, sound effects, tone) are harder to translate to text.

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The Alpha Male Myth

Fast-and-cheap shipping is now foundational to the American way of life, thanks in large part to Amazon Prime. Still, when producer Grace Tatter sees a video of a man claiming that he's continuously ordering and returning an 110-pound anvil from Amazon with no repercussions from the tech giant, she has questions. Is this legit, or is it a Wile E. Coyote-level scheme? Unlike an anvil, the answer can't be found online.

Show notes:

 • "this guy has been buying and returning 110lb anvils on Amazon for 8 months now" (
Reddit • )

 • This man keeps buying and returning 110- anvils on Amazon (
Fast Company • )

 • Johnbo's 
TikTok

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

 

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The Anvillain

Adam Aleksic's Roman Empire is language, particularly how algorithms are changing the way we all use words. This week, Endless Thread gets algospeak-pilled and learns how "unalive" spread from a kids' Spider-Man cartoon to TikTok mental health communities trying to avoid censorship; what we're really saying when we say we're "goblin-core," and whether this all means we're "cooked."

Show notes:

Algospeak: How Social Media Is Transforming the Future of Language 

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

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Algospeak

10 years ago, Justin found himself on the side of the road with a blown out tire. Hours went by and no one stopped to help. But just as he was about to give up, something happened that changed Justin forever.

This episode was originally published on Nov. 13, 2020.

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Rewind: Today You, Tomorrow Me: Why A Decade-Old Reddit Comment Still Resonates Today

In the summer of 2018, Brent Underwood got a text in the middle of the night from a friend saying, "Look at this ghost town for sale!" Within a month, Brent had purchased Cerro Gordo, California, an abandoned silver mining town, with the help of friends and investors. He wants to revive the town for visitors while preserving its history. He's already faced some major setbacks -- from the lack of running water, to getting snowed in there during a global pandemic. But he calls Cerro Gordo his "life's work."

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Encore: Ghost Town

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