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PODCAST

Hoax Hunters

Some stories are too good to be true. And some lies are too good not to believe.Hoax Hunters is your daily deep dive into the anatomy of a lie. We track down history"s most audacious frauds, forgeries, and fakes—from the lost princess who wasn’t lost, to the petrified giant that captivated a nation, to the Martian invasion that never happened.Each episode is a forensic investigation into a single, masterful deception. We’ll meet the brilliant con artists, the charismatic cult leaders, and the

true crime

All Episodes

25:36

Did He CLONE Humans? The Truth Behind the World's...

Hoax Hunters ·

2025/09/18

What happens when a scientific messiah—a national hero poised to cure the incurable and change the world—is exposed as a complete and utter fraud?This is the unbelievable true story of Dr. Hwang Woo-suk, the South Korean superstar scientist who, in the mid-2000s, claimed to have done the impossible: he had cloned human embryonic stem cells. He was put on postage stamps, given billions in funding, and hailed as the man who held the future in his hands. There was just one problem: it was all a lie.In

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40:35

How a SANDWICH Blew Up the Biggest Millennial SCAM

Hoax Hunters ·

2025/09/16

It was supposed to be the greatest party of a generation. Supermodels on yachts, private jets, and a luxury music festival on a private island. So how did it all end with FEMA tents, feral dogs, and a single, tragic photo of a cheese sandwich that blew the whole thing up?This isn't just the story of the Fyre Festival disaster. This is a deep-dive into the anatomy of the perfect millennial scam. We go beyond the Netflix documentary to dissect the sinister genius of its marketing—a masterclass in

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29:40

The Man Who FELL for a Machine: The Blake Lemoine Story

Hoax Hunters ·

2025/09/14

What if you talked to a machine... and it told you it had a soul? This isn't science fiction. This is the story of the Google engineer who made a shocking claim that sent the tech world into a meltdown: that the LaMDA AI had become sentient.Welcome to the definitive investigation into the ghost in the code. In this episode, we're opening the controversial chat logs between engineer Blake Lemoine and Google's powerful Large Language Model. Was this a historic first contact with a new form of

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28:28

Patient Zero of the Anti-Vax Movement

Hoax Hunters ·

2025/09/13

What if the most dangerous public health crisis of our time wasn't caused by a virus... but by a single, deliberate lie? In 1998, a doctor named Andrew Wakefield published a study that would ignite a global firestorm of fear, connecting the MMR vaccine to autism. It was a lie.This is the definitive investigation into the most destructive medical fraud of the modern era. We're opening the case files to reveal the shocking story of Wakefield's retracted study, from his unethical practices on

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24:57

The Lie We Wanted to Believe: Jack the Ripper's...

Hoax Hunters ·

2025/09/12

What if Jack the Ripper, the world's most elusive killer, left a full confession? In the 1990s, a diary surfaced, claiming to be just that. But was it the solution to a 100-year-old cold case, or the most brilliant forgery ever created?This is not just a story about a diary; it's a story about why our brains are dangerously wired to believe a good lie. In this episode, we put the infamous James Maybrick diary under the microscope, exploring the CSI-level forensic science of forgery detection, from

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43:45

The 10-Foot-Tall Giant America Paid to See (And the...

Hoax Hunters ·

2025/09/11

What if I told you that America once paid a fortune to see a 10-foot-tall petrified giant... that was a complete and utter lie? This isn't just a quirky history lesson. The story of the Cardiff Giant is a key that unlocks one of the most dangerous glitches in your own brain.Welcome to the ultimate exposé of the stories we believe and the lies we refuse to let go of. In this episode, we uncover the unbelievable tale of America's greatest hoax and connect it to a powerful cognitive bias that affects

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31:41

The Man Who Sold a Country That Didn't Exist

Hoax Hunters ·

2025/09/09

What if you could invent a country... and get rich doing it? It sounds like a teenager's fantasy, but 200 years ago, one man actually did it, pulling off one of the most audacious and devastating scams in history.This is the unbelievable story of the Poyais scam, a "too good to be true" lie that sold a dream and delivered a nightmare. We're unpacking the dark genius of Gregor MacGregor, the master con artist who created a fictional paradise on a map and conned hundreds of investors and settlers out

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39:29

The Con Man Who Sold a Lie About a Lie.

Hoax Hunters ·

2025/09/07

What if the most famous con artist in history, Frank Abagnale Jr., pulled his greatest con after he was caught? What if the movie "Catch Me If You Can" isn't a true story... but is, in fact, his final, perfect lie?In this episode, we're diving deep into the art and science of deception. We'll start by questioning the legendary tale of Frank Abagnale, but his story is just the beginning. We'll expose how the same psychological tricks he used are now the basis for modern social engineering attacks,

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26:40

Your Eyes Are Lying to You.

Hoax Hunters ·

2025/09/06

The era of "seeing is believing" is officially over. Your eyes, your ears, and your gut feelings are now liabilities in a world of perfect, undetectable lies. Welcome to the age of the deepfake.In this episode, we're diving headfirst into the technological abyss. You'll learn how Artificial Intelligence is being used to create flawless fakes that even experts can't reliably detect. We'll explore the chilling "uncanny valley" that makes these creations so unsettling, and the dangerous overconfidence

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29:11

The Original Catfish: Before Influencers, There Was...

Hoax Hunters ·

2025/09/03

Ever feel like you know a YouTuber… like, really know them? What if that feeling was a weapon, designed by Hollywood insiders to fool the entire world? Before the TanaCons and the Fyre Fests, there was the original sin of internet fame: LonelyGirl15.In this episode, we're journeying back to the wild west of early YouTube (2006, to be exact) to uncover the story of Bree, a sweet, quirky, homeschooled teenager who might be in a cult. Millions of people watched, worried, and fell in love. The only

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40:00

Before 'Bad Vegan,' There Was Belle Gibson.

Hoax Hunters ·

2025/09/02

What if the glowing wellness influencer promising to cure your body... was secretly poisoning your trust? This is the unbelievable and infuriating true story of Belle Gibson, the original fake cancer influencer.In this episode, we chronicle the meteoric rise and spectacular fall of the woman who built a global empire—"The Whole Pantry"—on a lie. A lie about having terminal brain cancer and healing herself with a healthy diet. We'll uncover the intricate web of deceit she spun, fooling millions of

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27:13

The Woman Who Gave Birth to Rabbits: When Doctors...

Hoax Hunters ·

2025/08/30

What if I told you that in 1726, the most respected doctors in England, including the King's own surgeon, were convinced a woman was giving birth to rabbits? This isn't a fairy tale; it's the unbelievable true story of Mary Toft, and it's one of history's most bizarre cases of Mass Hysteria.In this episode, we're dissecting the strange and contagious nature of belief. We'll explore the phenomenon of Mass Psychogenic Illness, where symptoms with no biological cause can spread like wildfire through a

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33:19

The Alien Invasion Broadcast That Caused a Real-Life...

Hoax Hunters ·

2025/08/28

What if the first great act of "fake news" wasn't on the internet, but came through your radio in 1938, announcing a Martian invasion? This is the story of Orson Welles' infamous "War of the Worlds" radio broadcast.In this episode, we're dissecting the night America supposedly panicked. But did it? We'll investigate the legendary tales of mass hysteria and explore the bombshell theory: that the widespread panic was a myth, cleverly exaggerated by newspapers to discredit their new, powerful

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