You're Wrong About
| You're Wrong About | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Presentation | |
| Genre | Feminist, Talk, Human Interest, Culture |
| Language | English |
| Updates | Weekly (Mondays) |
| Length | 60–90 minutes (approximate) |
| Production | |
| Production | Michael Hobbes, Sarah Marshall |
| Publication | |
| Original release | 5 May 2018 – present |
| Website | yourewrongabout |
You're Wrong About is an independent American pop culture podcast hosted by Michael Hobbes and Sarah Marshall. Launched in May 2018, the show explores misunderstood media events interrogating why and how the public got things wrong. Show topics have included events like the Challenger Disaster, O. J. Simpson Trial, and the Murder of Kitty Genovese and covered people such as Anna Nicole Smith, Yoko Ono and Lorena Bobbitt.[1] It was named one of the ten best podcasts by Time in 2019.[2]
About[]
Michael Hobbes is an American journalist and a former reporter for HuffPost.[3] He is also the co-host of the podcast Maintenance Phase with Aubrey Gordon.[4] Sarah Marshall is an American writer whose work has appeared in Buzzfeed, The Believer, and The New Republic.[5] She is known for an interest in the mischaracterization of women by the mainstream media best demonstrated in her 2014 long-form profile of Tonya Harding.[5] The show began after Hobbes reached out to Marshall and proposed that they try to recreate their deep-dive research processes in audio format.[6] The pair only met in person after recording the show remotely for five months.[6]
During each episode Hobbes and Marshall trade off on researching the show's topic, with one host taking on the research and analysis of a topic and the other coming to the discussion with little-to-no knowledge about the relevant details.[6] Each episode begins with the less informed host sharing what they remember about a person or event. Together they then explore the topic in a generally chronological manner, discussing relevant public responses and discussing dominant societal trends from the era, before debunking that response and the subsequent media coverage. Witty observations and pop-culture references are woven in throughout the discussion. The discussions include references to primary resources used during the research process along with and direct quotes from media coverage interviews with relevant players.[7]
In March, 2020 the podcast began a quarantine book club in response to COVID-19 lockdowns. The related episodes differ from the regular format in that they focus on a single book with one host having read it and the other learning about it over the course of multiple episodes. Books covered include the satanic ritual abuse book Michelle Remembers, Jessica Simpson's autobiography Open Book, and Objection! by American lawyer and television personality Nancy Grace.
The podcast is a part-time effort for both hosts and relies on crowd-funding.[8] The independent nature of the show is rooted in moral concerns about critiquing the media and potential constraints inherent to sponsorship.[8]
Reception[]
In 2019, You're Wrong About was named one of the ten best podcasts by Time.[2] Writing for the Irish Times, Sarah Griffin praised the show's conversational tone noting how Hobbes and Marshall "handle incredibly dark subjects with a levity that never feels disrespectful."[9] Rachel Syme compared Hobbes and Marshall as a modern-day Statler and Waldorf, claiming their show is a history podcast that "assumes the audience is capable of complex thought."[6]
Episode list[]
 | It has been suggested that this section be split out into another article titled . (Discuss) (February 2021) |
2018[]
| No. | Episode Title | Guest | Release date | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | "The Satanic Panic" | None | May 2, 2018 | |
| In the first episode, Sarah tells Mike about why America spent a decade worried about witches running daycare centers. | ||||
| 2 | "Going Postal" | None | May 3, 2018 | |
| Mike tells Sarah about the rash of mass shootings carried out by postal workers in the 1980s and 1990s. | ||||
| 3 | "Crack Babies" | None | May 4, 2018 | |
| Sarah tells Mike about the long history of white anxiety over black motherhood. | ||||
| 4 | "After School Specials" | None | May 5, 2018 | |
| Mike tells Sarah that the TV movies of her childhood were both less and more problematic than she remembers. | ||||
| 5 | "Matthew Shepard" | Mike Owens | May 12, 2018 | |
| Special guest Mike Owens tells Sarah and Mike about the (attempted) debunking of the gay-bashing victim. Digressions include Leopold and Loeb, Basic Instinct, and Rolling Stone. | ||||
| 6 | "Stockholm Syndrome" | None | May 20, 2018 | |
| Sarah tells Mike about the convoluted history of a contested term. Digressions include James Bond, Charles Manson, and rat poison. | ||||
| 7 | "Anita Hill" | None | May 26, 2018 | |
| Mike tells Sarah about the complicated legacy of Anita Hill and the not-particularly-complicated facts of her case. Digressions include Tootsie, Garrison Keillor, and the Donner Party. | ||||
| 8 | "Monica Lewinsky" | None | June 2, 2018 | |
| Sarah and Mike talk about what America forgot – and never learned – about history's most famous intern. Digressions include generational resentments, 1990s in fashion, and off-brand colleges. | ||||
| 9 | "The Clinton Impeachment" | None | June 9, 2018 | |
| Part two of the podcast's dissection of the Clinton impeachment scandal. This week: the story breaks, the House indicts, the Senate demurs, and Mike rants more than usual about the media. Digressions include Mark Fuhrman, Broadcast News, and gay porn. | ||||
| 10 | "The Jonestown Massacre" | Rachel Monroe | June 16, 2018 | |
| Special guest Rachel Monroe tells Mike and Sarah what's really behind the phrase "drinking the Kool Aid." Digressions include David Koresh, East Germany, and how flower children were the first Millennials. | ||||
| 11 | "Snuff Films" | None | June 25, 2018 | |
| Sarah tells Mike about how snuff films don't exist but lots of near-snuff films do. Digressions include Basic Instinct, gymnastics, and YouTube's righthand bar. | ||||
| 12 | "The Exxon Valdez Oil Spill" | None | June 30, 2018 | |
| Mike tells Sarah that America's most devastating oil spill was not, in fact, a DUI. Digressions include Titanic, the Cuyahoga River, Jennifer Lopez, and marshmallows. Punitive damages make a triumphant return. | ||||
| 13 | "10th Episode Spectacular!" | None | July 14, 2018 | |
| Sarah and Mike take a break from debunking to reflect on the first 10 episodes and tell the secret history of how they met. Digressions include Portlandia, Snapchat, and The New York Post. | ||||
| 14 | "The Godfather" | None | July 21, 2018 | |
| Sarah tells Mike about how America's favorite gangster movie is really its favorite killing-the-American-Dream movie. Digressions include the Mona Lisa, Bruce Springsteen, and the tyranny of height-ism. | ||||
| 15 | "Kurt Cobain and Copycat suicide" | Candace Opper | July 28, 2018 | |
| Special guest Candace Opper tells Mike and Sarah about how the death of a rock star changed the field of suicidology. Digressions include eating disorders, car crashes, and the insane grimness of the term family annihilation. | ||||
| 16 | "Alpha Males" | None | August 4, 2018 | |
| Sarah tells Mike that animal behavior is an imperfect template for human society. Digressions include rabbits, Bob's Burgers, and online dating. | ||||
| 17 | "D.A.R.E." | None | August 18, 2018 | |
| Mike tells Sarah that the D.A.R.E. program did not, in fact, keep kids off drugs. But that's just the beginning of the debunking. Digressions include Martin Scorsese, Iceland, and control groups. | ||||
| 18 | "Jeffrey Dahmer" | None | September 1, 2018 | |
| Sarah tells Mike that shoddy policing (and Milwaukee generally) are responsible for one of America's most prolific serial killers. Digressions include panel vans, Anita Bryant, early man, and Hannibal Lecter. | ||||
| 19 | "Iran-Contra" | None | September 10, 2018 | |
| Mike tells Sarah why the biggest scandal of Reagan's presidency provides more (depressing) lessons about current politics than Watergate. Digressions include Mormons, Top Gun, and The X-Files. | ||||
| 20 | "Columbine" | Rachel Monroe | September 17, 2018 | |
| Special guest Rachel Monroe (re-)joins Mike and Sarah to talk about all the myths surrounding the second-biggest news event of the 1990s. Digressions include car crashes, September 11, Diane Sawyer, and the terrors of teenage journaling. | ||||
| 21 | "The Obesity Epidemic" | None | September 19, 2018 | |
| Mike tells Sarah that America has sent the wrong messages and done the wrong things about obesity for more than half a century. Digressions include height (again), sweatshops, and Julianne Moore. | ||||
| 22 | "Multiple Personality Disorder" | None | October 1, 2018 | |
| Sarah tells Mike how pop culture created a two-decade-long obsession with multiple personality disorder and repressed memories. Digressions include Dead Poets Society, restless legs syndrome, and the low editorial standards of the American publishing industry. The Satanic panic makes a cameo appearance. | ||||
| 23 | "Shaken Baby Syndrome" | None | October 8, 2018 | |
| Mike tells Sarah how an over-simplified diagnosis, over-confident doctors, and over-zealous prosecutors combined to get thousands of innocent parents thrown in prison. Digressions include food poisoning, Sherlock Holmes, and 1950s medical ethics. | ||||
| 24 | "Halloween Special! Ed Gein and Slasher Movies" | None | October 17, 2018 | |
| Sarah tells Mike how Ed Gein became one of America's most famous serial killers despite not actually being one. Plus, the cinematic villains Gein inspired and what the slasher movies of the 1980s were really about. Digressions include Freud, summer camp logistics, and the T-1000. | ||||
| 25 | "Urban Legends Spectacular!" | None | October 24, 2018 | |
| Razorblades in apples, babysitters on acid, killers in backseats, and "rainbow parties": in this episode, Mike and Sarah investigate the scary stories Americans tell each other and discover the actual anxieties behind them. | ||||
| 26 | "Stranger Danger" | None | October 31, 2018 | |
| How inflated statistics, cultural anxieties, and moral crusaders turned a tiny number of missing children into a decade-long political project. Digressions include 1870s parenting, E.T., and the lack of parks in Los Angeles. | ||||
| 27 | "Lorena Bobbitt" | None | November 7, 2018 | |
| Sarah tells Mike how a case of marital rape and spontaneous mutilation became a national punchline. Digressions include Ron Jeremy, Alan Dershowitz, Motörhead, and the tortures of self-reflection. Sarah reviews John Wayne Bobbitt's later works. | ||||
| 28 | "The Duke Lacrosse Rape Case" | None | November 14, 2018 | |
| Mike tells Sarah how a false rape allegation became a right-wing rallying cry and a left-wing conspiracy theory. Digressions include JonBenet Ramsey, 24, and The Vagina Monologues. | ||||
| 29 | "Roe v. Wade" | Megan Burbank | November 21, 2018 | |
| Special guest Megan Burbank tells Mike and Sarah about the history, limitations, and loopholes of a landmark court ruling. Digressions include Betty Ford, Maude, and naming conventions for anonymous defendants. The glories of Washington State politics are examined in depth. | ||||
| 30 | "Amy Fisher" | None | December 3, 2018 | |
| Sarah tells Mike about the sad reality – and the terrible man – behind the infamous Long Island Lolita. Digressions include software terms of service, the rise of beepers, and Monica Lewinsky's LinkedIn profile. | ||||
| 31 | "The 2000 Election" | None | December 12, 2018 | |
| Mike tells Sarah how a close election and an even closer Supreme Court decision established the political template we're still living with today. Digressions include quarks, Ouija Boards, and moral philosophy. | ||||
| 32 | "A Dingo's Got My Baby" | None | December 19, 2018 | |
| Sarah tells Mike how a tragic story became a hacky catchphrase. Digressions include raccoon anarchists, flu remedies, and late-night Arby's. | ||||
2019[]
| No. | Episode Title | Guest | Release date | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 33 | "The Challenger Disaster" | None | January 3, 2019 | |
| It wasn't an accident. Mike tells Sarah how the infamous space shuttle disaster came to be seen as a white-collar crime. Digressions include the Donner Party, George Lucas, and Jurassic Park. | ||||
| 34 | "Enron" | None | January 16, 2019 | |
| Mike tells Sarah how a "bad apples" explanation kept us from seeing the real scandal at the heart of America's largest corporate bankruptcy. Digressions include Casino, Thanksgiving economics, and corruption catchphrases. | ||||
| 35 | "Tammy Faye Baker and Jessica Hahn" | None | January 25, 2019 | |
| "She only said one thing her whole life": Sarah tells Mike how two decent women became scapegoats for the actions of one terrible man. Digressions include Larry Flynt, NPR tote bags, and Playboy back issues. | ||||
| 36 | "Gary Hart" | None | February 7, 2019 | |
| Sarah tells Mike how a sex scandal ruined a rising star and established a new template for American elections. Digressions include Good Will Hunting, People magazine, Linda Ronstadt, and Michael Dukakis. | ||||
| 37 | "Acid Rain" | None | February 15, 2019 | |
| Mike tells Sarah how an environmental problem became a national rallying cry, a sticky diplomatic issue, and eventually, a conspiracy theory. Digressions include Alien, Field & Stream, and NRA public service announcements. | ||||
| 38 | "Anna Nicole Smith" | None | February 20, 2019 | |
| Sarah tells Mike how a poor Texas girl made herself into an icon and America made her into a punchline. Digressions include massage technique, Death Becomes Her, and The Godfather. | ||||
| 39 | "Terri Schiavo" | None | March 5, 2019 | |
| Mike tells Sarah how the media, the President, and the Pope turned a simple medical story into a complicated legal one. Digressions include canine loyalty, unionized space-workers, and polyamory logistics. | ||||
| 40 | "The "Ebonics" Controversy" | None | April 4, 2019 | |
| Mike tells Sarah how a simple idea in a single school district became a nationwide racial panic. Digressions include slasher movies, Space Invaders, and homeschooling. | ||||
| 41 | "The Preppy Murder" | None | April 18, 2019 | |
| Sarah tells Mike how an aspiring rich kid became an emblem of a world he didn't belong to. Digressions include drill teams, prep schools, and eating disorders. | ||||
| 42 | "Elián González" | None | April 25, 2019 | |
| Mike tells Sarah how a 5-year-old kid transformed a city, divided a political party, and (maybe) determined a presidential election. Digressions include World War II, Clarence Darrow, and something called "Like News with Skeeter." Both co-hosts conclude that this episode is somehow an equal-parts mixture of Satanic panic and Terri Schiavo. | ||||
| 43 | "Dan Quayle v. Murphy Brown" | None | May 9, 2019 | |
| "Why did we make fun of Dan Quayle for misspelling the word 'potato' when we should have made fun of him for arguments like this?" Mike tells Sarah how a real vice president blamed a fictional single mom for causing one of the most divisive events of the 1990s. Digressions include Designing Women, Alien, and The Brady Bunch. | ||||
| 44 | "Homelessness" | None | May 16, 2019 | |
| "We want stories that don't exist in systems." Mike tells Sarah what happened when Utah set out to solve one of America's most intractable problems. Digressions include the Paleo diet, the planet Mars, and the inadequacy of the term "up the river." Jimmy Carter makes an extended cameo appearance. | ||||
| 45 | "Exorcism" | None | May 28, 2019 | |
| "It just seems like capitalism masquerading as religion." Sarah tells Mike how a horror movie resurrected a ritual and established an industry. Digressions include Avatar, the NFL, and the ethics of book publishing. | ||||
| 46 | "The American Taliban" | None | June 5, 2019 | |
| "He's been punished even more than the American prison system can aspire to punish anyone." Mike tells Sarah how John Walker Lindh became a terrorist in the media, a freedom fighter in his own mind, and something between the two in reality. Digressions include Newsies, Bruce Willis, Candide, and Howard Stern. | ||||
| 47 | "Sexting" | Amy Hasinoff | June 11, 2019 | |
| "We're uncomfortable with the evidence that teen girls have sexual agency." Special guest Amy Hasinoff tells Mike and Sarah how a moral panic became a legal nightmare. Digressions include Cosmo advice columns, Grindr etiquette, and the revolutionary hugging of the Avengers movies. | ||||
| 48 | "Kitty Genovese and "Bystander Apathy"" | None | June 20, 2019 | |
| "Once you tell a story incorrectly once, you can't control where it goes." Sarah tells Mike how The New York Times turned a suburban murder into an urban legend. Digressions include Billy Joel, the World's Fair, FernGully, Long Island, and Pride Month. | ||||
| 49 | "The Stonewall Uprising" | None | June 27, 2019 | |
| "Humans aren't good at remembering what got us where we are." Mike tells Sarah how a turning point in the gay rights movement became an immediate controversy, a lasting inspiration, and a never-ending debate. Digressions include Newsies, True Romance, and Norma Rae. | ||||
| 50 | "Tonya Harding Part 1" | None | July 18, 2019 | |
| Sarah tells Mike the story of a world-class figure skater who worked at a mall potato restaurant. Digressions include Sleepless in Seattle, mall walkers, synchronized diving, and the difficulty of skating a perfect pentagram. This episode unfortunately contains descriptions of physical, emotional, and sexual abuse. | ||||
| 51 | "Tonya Harding Part 2" | None | July 26, 2019 | |
| "The story that did the most damage to the people in it was the one that made the most money." Sarah tells Mike about the low-rent conspiracy that sparked a ratings bonanza. Digressions include Out of Sight, Robert De Niro, and the ancient sexting technology known as landlines. | ||||
| 52 | "Sex Offenders" | None | August 7, 2019 | |
| "Things are not going to get better if we make the people who scare us seem more powerful." Mike tells Sarah about the myths of sex crimes, the reality of child abuse, and the importance of unsympathetic protagonists. Digressions include frozen pizza, Millennials, vaccination rates, and Nevada. | ||||
| 53 | "The Victims' Rights Movement" | Rachel Monroe | August 16, 2019 | |
| "When you allow emotion into the courtroom, bias rushes in alongside it." Special guest Rachel Monroe tells Mike and Sarah how a good-faith critique of the justice system led to a decades-long crackdown. Digressions include Charles Manson, Ronald Reagan, and a billionaire mugshot. | ||||
| 54 | "Gangs" | None | August 22, 2019 | |
| "Isn't it amazing how we can only imagine our monsters capitalistically?" Mike tells Sarah how police, prosecutors, and journalists accidentally conspired to invent the perfect suburban menace. Digressions include IKEA, the Godfather trilogy, and Fleetwood Mac. | ||||
| 55 | "Yoko Ono Broke Up The Beatles" | None | September 10, 2019 | |
| Mike tells Sarah how the myth of meddling wives serves to exonerate terrible husbands. Digressions include 50 Shades of Grey, Marie Antoinette, and the end of the 1960s. This episode contains descriptions of domestic abuse. | ||||
| 56 | "The Wardrobe Malfunction" | None | September 19, 2019 | |
| The podcast's first live show! Mike tells Sarah about Janet Jackson, the 2004 Super Bowl Halftime show, and the 9/16ths of a second that destroyed her career. Digressions include Puff Daddy, Jessica Simpson, and Edward James Olmos. | ||||
| 57 | "The O. J. Simpson Trial: Nicole Brown Simpson Part 1" | None | October 3, 2019 | |
| Mike and Sarah begin their epic journey into O. J. Simpson's trial for the murders of Nicole Brown Simpson and Ron Goldman, beginning with the story of Nicole's life with O. J. until their marriage in 1985. This episode contains descriptions of violence and domestic abuse. | ||||
| 58 | "The O. J. Simpson Trial: Nicole Brown Simpson Part 2" | None | October 17, 2019 | |
| "You can't expect people to know the exact kind of help they need." Mike and Sarah continue their deep dive into the O. J. Simpson case with the history of Nicole Brown Simpson's marriage to O. J., their 1992 divorce, and the last weeks of Nicole's life. Digressions include Julia Roberts, Malibu real estate, and Madonna's Erotica. This episode contains even greater detail on the violence and domestic abuse Nicole suffered. Plus, a correction: Sarah forgot to mention that O. J. Simpson received two years of probation for the 1989 incident. | ||||
| 59 | "The O. J. Simpson Trial: Paula Barbieri Part 1" | None | November 1, 2019 | |
| "Centering conversations around blame is not the most useful thing for us to be doing." Sarah tells Mike about the woman who broke up with O. J. Simpson on the morning of the murders - then stayed by his side through the trial. Michael Bolton makes an extended cameo appearance. | ||||
| 60 | "The O. J. Simpson Trial: Marcia Clark Part 1" | None | November 14, 2019 | |
| Sarah tells Mike how Marcia Clark got the slam-dunk case that ended her career as a trial lawyer. Digressions include string cheese, Inception, and what calling women "difficult" means in 2019. | ||||
| 61 | "Human Trafficking" | None | November 25, 2019 | |
| Mike tells Sarah how NGOs, activists, and George W. Bush resurrected the stranger danger panic for the modern era. Digressions include Reply All, muffins, and Yelp for massage parlors. | ||||
| 62 | "The O. J. Simpson Trial: Paula Barbieri Part 2" | None | December 2, 2019 | |
| "There's no precedent for women in the family being treated like they matter." | ||||
| 63 | "The O. J. Simpson Trial: Kato Kaelin Part 1" | None | December 16, 2019 | |
| Sarah tells Mike how an aspiring actor protected and then betrayed Nicole Brown Simpson without knowing he was doing either. Digressions include '80s movie tropes, ski-resort etiquette, and the need for a process of "un-faming." This episode contains graphic descriptions of violence and abuse. | ||||
2020[]
| No. | Episode title | Guest | Release date | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 64 | "D.C. Snipers Part 1" | None | January 6, 2020 | |
| "If you're black, you can't get work as a serial killer even if you're manifestly qualified." Mike tells Sarah how a military veteran became an abuser, a murderer, and eventually a footnote in his own crime spree. Digressions include Jim Jones, The Addams Family, and "The Gillooly Gang." The episode gets super dark about two-thirds in, but brightens just before the big twist. Domestic abuse is described in great detail. | ||||
| 65 | "The O. J. Simpson Trial: Kato Kaelin Part 2" | None | January 20, 2020 | |
| Sarah tells Mike the ending to the story of the mimbo and the alibi. Digressions include O. Henry, Nigerian email scams, Dave Coulier, and Brexit. | ||||
| 66 | "D.C. Snipers Part 2" | None | February 3, 2020 | |
| Mike tells Sarah how a nice Jamaican kid became the disciple of a mean American adult. Digressions include Tonya Harding, Sliding Doors, and Anne of Green Gables. Mike and Sarah are unable to conceive of a content warning comprehensive enough for all the horrors contained in this episode. | ||||
| 67 | "Why Didn't Anyone Go to Prison for the Financial Crisis?" | None | February 10, 2020 | |
| "Every big fish you catch, you end up with a hole in the net." Mike tells Sarah how America's white-collar crime spree got so bad. Digressions include self-checkout kiosks, Barbie dolls, and moonshine. Homeless shelters and teacher pay feature prominently. | ||||
| 68 | "D.C. Snipers Part 3" | None | February 24, 2020 | |
| Mike tells Sarah about the indoctrination of Lee Boyd Malvo and the beginning of the sniper attacks. Digressions include Jonestown, Greek tragedy, and something called "creepy crawling." The episodes begins with a lengthy meta-discussion of true-crime tropes and whether the podcast hosts are playing into them. The final section includes a detailed description of a suicide attempt. | ||||
| 69 | "The O. J. Simpson Trial: Marcia Clark Part 2" | None | March 9, 2020 | |
| Sarah tells Mike about a week in the life of Marcia Clark, who became America's most famous prosecutor on June 13, 1994. Digressions include car phones, college group work, and Titanic. This episode contains descriptions of murder and sexual violence. | ||||
| 70 | "D.C. Snipers Part 4" | None | March 23, 2020 | |
| In the final chapter of the podcast's series on the D.C. sniper attacks, Mike finally tells Sarah about the D.C. sniper attacks. Digressions include The Abyss, Ed Rooney, and Jack the Ripper. | ||||
| 71 | "Quarantine Book Club: Michelle Remembers (Week 1)" | None | March 26, 2020 | |
| Sarah describes the spark that ignited the Satanic Panic. Our setting is a therapist's office in 1976 Victoria, B.C., and our digressions include Sybil, scary paperbacks from the 80s, and shouting "Fire!" in a crowded theatre. This episode describes child abuse. | ||||
| 72 | "The Exploding Ford Pinto" | None | April 2, 2020 | |
| Mike tells Sarah about a dying industry, a dangerous car, and the Pulitzer Prize-winning article that misrepresented them both. Digressions include Mission: Impossible, Friday the 13th, the naming conventions of academic articles, and Johnny Carson. | ||||
| 73 | "Quarantine Book Club: Michelle Remembers (Week 2)" | None | April 6, 2020 | |
| Sarah and Mike continue their journey into the book that launched a thousand lawsuits. Michelle and Dr. Pazder's relationship grows more troubling by the chapter. Digressions include orgy etiquette, sheepskin jackets, and Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom. Neither co-host believes anything depicted in this book happened as described, but still want to warn you that it contains scenes of torture and sexual abuse. | ||||
| 74 | "Marie Antoinette" | Dana Schwartz | April 13, 2020 | |
| "What's sad about her has nothing to do with the content of her character." Special guest Dana Schwartz tells Mike and Sarah how an Austrian princess became a French scapegoat. Digressions include Rubik's Cubes, Taylor Swift, and Tom Stoppard. | ||||
| 75 | "Quarantine Book Club: Michelle Remembers (Week 3)" | None | April 16, 2020 | |
| Sarah and Mike continue into the depths. With Dr. Pazder home from Mexico, he and Michelle continue their journey into her subconscious, and the stories continue to get weirder. This episode contains kitten sacrifice, and the first - but not the last - dead baby of the Satanic panic. | ||||
| 76 | "Quarantine Book Club: Michelle Remembers (Week 4)" | None | April 23, 2020 | |
| This week, our lithe psychiatrist takes his favorite patient hiking, a priest burns some furniture, and Michelle tries to escape her remembering. This episode contains descriptions of kitten sacrifice, sexual abuse, and three more dead babies. | ||||
| 77 | "The O. J. Simpson Trial: When Kato Met Marcia" | None | April 27, 2020 | |
| Sarah tells Mike about the clash of the titans, the fury at the grand jury. We follow Kato, the wise fool of the kingdom, for the week between the murders and the Bronco chase. Digressions include John Travolta, French kickboxing movies, and The Mummy. | ||||
| 78 | "Quarantine Book Club: Michelle Remembers (Week 5)" | None | April 30, 2020 | |
| Sarah and Mike conclude the book club with Michelle's escape from the dungeon. The dead baby trend continues; Jesus, the Virgin Mary, and Satan's fingernails make brief appearances. Digressions include Dustin Hoffman, Total Eclipse of the Heart, and things that rhyme with Beelzebub. This episode contains references to child abuse and sexual assault. | ||||
| 79 | "The Y2K Bug" | None | May 4, 2020 | |
| Mike tells Sarah how an obscure technical glitch became a nationwide mobilization. Digressions include Twitter beefs, The Net, and VHS pricing. Correction: women in Britain didn't terminate their pregnancies due to the false positive test results. | ||||
| 80 | "Quarantine Deep Dive: Jessica Simpson's Open Book (Week 1)" | None | May 7, 2020 | |
| Mike and Sarah's journey through late-'90s pop stardom begins with an intervention and ends with an audition. Digressions include Willie Nelson, Ozzy Osbourne, Jane Fonda, and the cast of The Mickey Mouse Club. This episode contains descriptions of sexual abuse. | ||||
| 81 | "Quarantine Deep Dive: Jessica Simpson's Open Book (Week 2)" | None | May 14, 2020 | |
| "Her parents' financial success is dependent on her abdomen." This week, Jessica moves to L.A., records a video, and meets a boy. The celebrity cameos escalate. Digressions include overalls, werewolves, and Judy Garland. This episode contains detailed descriptions of disordered eating. | ||||
| 82 | "The Disappearance of Chandra Levy" | None | May 25, 2020 | |
| "It's a mess and a nightmare and maybe it's disingenuous to think you can turn the story of someone being murdered into anything else." Mike tells Sarah about a missing intern, a shady politician, and a nationwide obsession. Digressions include speed dial, La La Land, and Perry Mason. The Summer of the Shark gets a bonus debunking. | ||||
| 83 | "Quarantine Deep Dive: Jessica Simpson's Open Book (Week 3)" | None | May 28, 2020 | |
| Mike and Sarah discuss Jessica's reality-show marriage and its painfully ordinary end. Digressions include Showgirls, The Notebook, and Adam Levine. "Hamlet" makes an appearance; Willie Nelson and Lynda Carter give sage advice. | ||||
| 84 | "Anastasia" | Dana Schwartz | June 1, 2020 | |
| Special guest Dana Schwartz tells Mike and Sarah how a short, brutal story became an enduring myth. Digressions include Titanic nostalgia, Princess Jasmine, Dr. Phil, and Rasputin. | ||||
| 85 | "Quarantine Deep Dive: Jessica Simpson's Open Book (The Conclusion!)" | None | June 8, 2020 | |
| This week, Mike and Sarah complete their Jessica Simpson book club with the appearance of a new man who triggers some old anxieties. Digressions include Dolly Parton, mom jeans, a forgotten Hollywood power couple, and Garden State. | ||||
| 86 | "The O. J. Simpson Trial: The Bronco Chase" | None | June 17, 2020 | |
| On June 17, 1994, the world screeched to a halt so 95 million Americans could watch a white SUV crawl through L.A. Mike and Sarah finally talk about the infamous Bronco chase, the men inside the car, and the myth they left behind. Digressions include The Fugitive, Larry King, and Jack Nicholson. This episode discusses suicidal ideation. | ||||
| 87 | "Deep Dive: Nancy Grace's Objection! (Week 1)" | None | June 18, 2020 | |
| Sarah tells Mike how a superhero's genesis was a supervillain's origin story all along. In the podcast's new deep dive, Mike and Sarah tackle Nancy Grace's Objection! and debate how defendants should behave at trial, why prosecutors seem to make good daytime TV stars, and whether Nancy really came to New York City with a curling iron and a dream. | ||||
| 88 | "The Prom Mom" | None | June 25, 2020 | |
| Sarah tells Mike about Melissa Drexler, the New Jersey teenager who (according to George F. Will) killed her newborn baby due to the influence of Metallica and the United States Supreme Court. Digressions include Robin Williams, Citizen Ruth, and Ted Bundy's political leanings. This episode contains detailed descriptions of neonaticide. | ||||
| 89 | "Courtney Love" | Candace Opper | June 29, 2020 | |
| Special guest Candace Opper tells Mike and Sarah how a grunge star became the protagonist in one of America's most persistent conspiracy theories. Digressions include Neil Young, protest songs, and the coolest baby of the 1990s. This episode contains detailed descriptions of suicide. | ||||
| 90 | "Koko the Gorilla" | None | July 6, 2020 | |
| "It's interesting that we became enthusiastic about ASL in the process of teaching it to a population that couldn't benefit from it." Mike tells Sarah about a very special ape and the very problematic humans around her. Digressions include video dating, "Biography," and the terrible terrible inventor of the telephone. | ||||
| 91 | "Deep Dive: Nancy Grace's Objection! (Week 2)" | None | July 13, 2020 | |
| This week, Nancy Grace makes her case against defense attorneys in general and Scott Peterson’s lawyer in particular. Digressions include Batman, tough on crime mixtapes, and the Iraq War. After two and a half years, Sarah finds her first Satanic cult — but maybe the real Satanic cults are the friends we made along the way. This episode summarizes the cases in Nancy Grace’s Objection!, which include two child molestation and murder cases and a lengthy description of the autopsy report on the deaths of Laci and Connor Peterson. | ||||
| N–A | "Bonus Episode! Sarah and Mike on The Feminist Present Podcast" | Adrian Daub and Laura Goode | July 16, 2020 | |
| Sarah and Mike tell Laura and Adrian about how they met, how they research, and what they would say to Jessica Simpson if they ever met her. | ||||
| 92 | "Deep Dive: Nancy Grace's Objection! (Week 3)" | None | July 20, 2020 | |
| This week, Sarah walks Mike through Nancy Grace’s prosecution of American juries. Cameos include Mark Geragos (again), O. J. Simpson (inevitably) and Jessica Hahn (thank God). Gus Van Sant’s masterpiece To Die For is discussed at length. | ||||
| 93 | "Murder" | None | July 27, 2020 | |
| Mike tells Sarah about the most common forms of violence in America and how they differ (twist!) from what gets shown on TV. Digressions include Perry Mason, It’s A Wonderful Life and fruit-toting strategies. This episode contains descriptions of police violence; the last 15 minutes are just a huge bummer generally. | ||||
| 94 | "Disco Demolition Night" | None | August 3, 2020 | |
| Mike tells Sarah how a silly sports promotion galvanized a reactionary movement. Digressions include Charlotte’s Web, Jane Fonda, German-language musicals, David Bowie and late-night salad bars. Huge thanks to historians Tavia Nyong'o, Eric Gonzaba, Luis-Manuel Garcia, and Gillian Frank for helping Mike with this episode! | ||||
| 95 | "Wayfair and Human Trafficking Statistics" | None | August 10, 2020 | |
| In another "mini" episode that accidentally turned mega, Mike tells Sarah about the Wayfair conspiracy theory and the sketchy statistical screenshots that have shown up in its wake. Digressions include Inside Llewyn Davis, Miranda Priestly, and (sigh) Jeffrey Epstein. This episode contains detailed descriptions of child abuse. | ||||
| 96 | "The Stepford Wives" | None | August 24, 2020 | |
| Sarah tells Mike about the real-life conspiracy written between the lines of a 1970s horror novel. Digressions include Rosemary's Baby (again), Disney World (of course), a brief history of the American pharmaceutical industry, and a long recipe for stew. | ||||
| N–A | "Bonus Episode! Sarah's New Podcast Why Are Dads" | None | August 27, 2020 | |
| Sarah tells Mike about her new foray into Dad Studies and, for the second time this week, discusses a horror movie about families from 1975 and sings a little. | ||||
| 97 | "Deep Dive Week 4: Nancy Grace v. The Constitution" | None | August 31, 2020 | |
| This week, Sarah makes a Nancy Grace-style argument against the prosecution. Digressions include '90s romantic comedies, Betty Broderick, and flat screen TVs. | ||||
| 98 | "Tuskegee Syphilis Study Part 1: The Lie" | None | September 8, 2020 | |
| Mike tells Sarah about the longest "non-therapeutic" experiment in medical history. Digressions include deep fried ice cream, Kato Kaelin, and a hot-yoga cabinet. As a warning, this episode contains long quotes from eugenic memos and detailed descriptions of medical racism. Huge thanks to Susan Reverby, Vanessa Northington Gamble, and Lillian Head for helping Mike with the research for this episode! | ||||
| 99 | "Tuskegee Syphilis Study Part 2: The Truth" | None | September 14, 2020 | |
| “It’s like these men are being held in a bubble as science marches forward.” Mike tells Sarah how one of history's most unethical experiments came crashing down. Digressions include the history of penicillin, the power of TV movies, and the mysterious diagnosis of "Satan's crabs." This episode is happier than the last one, but still contains a lot of racist language and some grisly Nazi examples toward the beginning. | ||||
| 100 | "Killer Clowns" | Chelsey Weber-Smith | September 21, 2020 | |
| For their 100th episode, Mike and Sarah invite special guest and American Hysteria host Chelsey Weber-Smith to tell them about the time America was besieged by a killer clown panic...and then the time it happened all over again. Digressions include Jon Stewart, The Blair Witch Project, John Wayne Gacy, and the Hartford circus fire. | ||||
| 101 | "Princess Diana Part 1: The Courtship" | None | September 28, 2020 | |
| Mike and Sarah start their new series with the story of a girl, a prince, and the society that convinced them they liked each other. Digressions include camels, Beyoncé, and the idiosyncrasies of British place names. This episode has detailed descriptions of disordered eating. | ||||
| 102 | "Princess Diana Part 2: The Wedding" | None | October 5, 2020 | |
| This week, Diana gets married, joins her new family, and meets the press. Digressions include Judy Garland, Edward Cullen, and the AITA subreddit. This episode includes detailed descriptions of suicide attempts and eating disorders. | ||||
| 103 | "Princess Diana Part 3: The Affairs" | None | October 12, 2020 | |
| This week, Diana swaps out her husband for a Horse Dude and Mike and Sarah act out other people's PG-13 dirty talk. Digressions include shoulder pads, Billy Joel, and Seinfeld (twice!). There's a moment 55 minutes in that is going to make you feel very weird. As with previous installments, this episode contains detailed descriptions of disordered eating. | ||||
| 104 | "Halloween Special: Creepy Encounters" | None | October 19, 2020 | |
| This week, Mike and Sarah dissect the Creepy Encounters subreddit and how to handle our creepy feelings in an unsafe time and place. Digressions include Carol Kane, McDonald's, and Uber. | ||||
| N–A | "Bonus: The President's Physical Fitness Test" | Aubrey Gordon | October 22, 2020 | |
| Mike has a new podcast! Here's the first episode, in which he debunks the absurd Cold War trauma factory that was once administered to 75% of American children. | ||||
| N–A | "Bonus: Why Are Dads on Terminator 2" | Alex Steed | October 29, 2020 | |
| Mike comes on Sarah’s new show to talk about robots, dads, the little metal hands guys, and Terminator 2: Judgment Day. | ||||
| 105 | "Princess Diana Part 4: The Divorce" | None | November 2, 2020 | |
| This week, Diana leaves the royal family with her reputation intact and her title slightly edited. Digressions include Love Actually, Pride and Prejudice, and Marie Antoinette. This episode includes descriptions of self-harm. | ||||
| 106 | "Princess Diana Part 5: The Crash" | None | November 9, 2020 | |
| “You can be a hot mess express and still leave the world better than you found it.” In the final episode of this series, Mike and Sarah talk about Diana’s untimely death and the everlasting conspiracy theories surrounding it. Digressions include RPGs, Madonna, and Tickle Me Elmo. This episode contains spoilers for the movie The Queen. | ||||
| 107 | "The Electoral College" | Jamelle Bouie | November 16, 2020 | |
| Topical episode! Special guest Jamelle Bouie tells Sarah and Mike about his problematic Founding Father faves and the bewildering institution they handed down to us. Digressions include '70s lapels, Reversal of Fortune, and the Eurovision Song Contest. The filibuster rule and the Three-fifths Compromise receive bonus debunkings. | ||||
| N–A | "Bonus: The Twinkie Defense" | Aubrey Gordon | November 19, 2020 | |
| Was Harvey Milk's killer really given a light sentence after claiming that junk food made him do it? Mike's spinoff podcast, Maintenance Phase, dives into the rumor and finds a very You're Wrong About twist. | ||||
| 108 | "The Newsboys' Strike of 1899" | None | November 23, 2020 | |
| Sarah tells Mike about media history, labor organizing, century-old moral panics — and the unlikely Disney musical that introduced her to all three. Digressions include Sting, The Princess Bride, and 19th century graphic design. | ||||
| 109 | "The Newsboys' Strike of 1899 (Part 2)" | None | November 30, 2020 | |
| Sarah tells Mike about the thrilling conclusion to a children's labor action and an overlooked Disney musical. Digressions include cronuts, carrier pigeons, and Sylvester Graham’s crackers. Most of the information in this episode comes from Sarah's two new favorite books, Vincent DiGirolamo’s Crying the News and David Nasaw’s Children of the City. | ||||
| 110 | "Losing Relatives to Fox News" | None | December 7, 2020 | |
| Mike tells Sarah what makes older Americans more vulnerable to misinformation — and who is delivering it to them. Digressions include Supernatural, the Rachel, and a fake university in Pennsylvania. This episode was recorded before the 2020 United States presidential election. | ||||
| 111 | "The Stanford Prison Experiment" | None | December 21, 2020 | |
| Mike tells Sarah the complicated story of an over-simplified study. Digressions include Tonya Harding, The Meg, and Kitty Genovese. The Milgram obedience studies and the broken windows theory of policing receive bonus debunkings. Thibault Le Texier helped with this episode. | ||||
| 112 | "The O. J. Simpson Trial: Paula Escapes From L.A." | None | December 28, 2020 | |
| This week Mike and Sarah return to the O. J. Simpson trial and learn what Paula Barbieri did after the Bronco chase. Digressions include fish, beef, and grocery shopping while conventionally attractive. | ||||
2021[]
| No. | Episode title | Guest | Release date | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 113 | "The O. J. Simpson Trial: My Fair Paula" | None | January 11, 2021 | |
| This week Mike and Sarah talk about the early days of Paula and O. J.’s relationship and the celebrity cameos reach either a high or a low point. Digressions include date etiquette, cat scams, and room-temperature Diet Coke. This episode discusses domestic abuse, including the violence Nicole Brown Simpson experienced and the circumstances of her 911 calls. | ||||
| 114 | "Shannon Faulkner & Sex Discrimination at The Citadel" | None | January 18, 2021 | |
| Mike tells Sarah how a troll-ish experiment turned a South Carolina teenager into one of the most maligned women of the 1990s. Digressions include Sally Ride, Anne Hathaway, and, as usual, Newsies. | ||||
| 115 | "The O. J. Simpson Trial: The Arraignmaker" | None | January 25, 2021 | |
| This week Mike and Sarah put on their suits and head back to the courtroom. O. J. Simpson pleads not guilty, Marcia Clark finishes questioning Kato Kaelin, and Bob Shapiro continues to furrow his brow. Digressions include Speed, the Kuleshov effect, and the intentional boringness of American law. In the final ten minutes, Mike and Sarah talk briefly about the crime scene and Marcia's reaction to it. | ||||
| 116 | "The Anti-Vaccine Movement" | Eric Michael Garcia | February 1, 2021 | |
| Special guest Eric Michael Garcia tells Mike and Sarah about the deep roots of a pernicious modern myth. Digressions include Mary Tyler Moore, British place names, and supermodel dating habits. Mike finally gets to talk about Swedish statistical methods. | ||||
| 117 | "Tipper Gore vs. Heavy Metal: The Case Against "Porn Rock"" | None | February 8, 2021 | |
| Mike tells Sarah how a congressional wife started a moral crusade. Digressions include Sheena Easton, Satanic rhymes, and teen homicide statistics. Ozzy Osbourne's bat story is recounted in full. | ||||
| 118 | "Tipper Gore vs. Heavy Metal: The Hearing" | None | February 15, 2021 | |
| Mike tells Sarah the real reason Congress called a bunch of rockers to Washington D.C. Digressions include cartoon violence, sleeveless tees, and Trixie Mattel. Van Halen's "Hot for Teacher" and Twisted Sister's "We're Not Gonna Take It" are dissected at length. | ||||
| 119 | "The O. J. Simpson Trial: The DeLorean Detour" | None | February 22, 2021 | |
| To tell the story of the "dream team" we must begin by going back to the future. This week we learn why O. J. Simpson fired the man who defended John DeLorean and why a briefcase of cocaine isn’t always a smoking gun. Digressions include Bob's Big Boy, Margaret Thatcher, and the Fonz. | ||||
| 120 | "Vanessa Williams Part 1: Becoming Miss America" | None | March 8, 2021 | |
| Mike tells Sarah how a 20-year-old singer, actress, and French horn player became Miss America with less than six months of practice. Digressions include Ted Bundy, Stephen King’s “It” and a bonus debunking of the "bra-burning feminist" trope. This episode includes a description of child sexual abuse. | ||||
| 121 | "Vanessa Williams Part 2: Saving The Best For Last" | Cassie da Costa | March 22, 2021 | |
| Special guest Cassie da Costa tells Mike and Sarah how Vanessa fell from grace and picked herself back up. Digressions include Stephen Sondheim, Rush Limbaugh, and Joan Rivers. The tyranny of abs is discussed at length. | ||||
| 122 | "The O. J. Simpson Trial: From the Mixed-Up Files of Mr. F. Lee Bailey" | None | April 5, 2021 | |
| Bob Shapiro is on a mission from God, F. Lee Bailey joins the Dream Team, and Sarah and Mike get in their DeLorean to meet two of the most notorious Florida Men of the '60s: Carl Coppolino and Murph the Surf. Digressions include Linda Evangelista, Patty Hearst, The Commitments, and the upside of peaking in your 50s. | ||||
| 123 | "Political Correctness" | None | April 19, 2021 | |
| Mike tells Sarah how liberal magazines turned a "kids these days" moral panic into a national crisis. Digressions include Law & Order, Dave Foley, and swimming pool etiquette. This episode contains detailed descriptions of sexual assault, mass shootings, and suicides. | ||||
| 124 | "The Chicks vs. The Iraq War" | None | May 3, 2021 | |
| Mike tells Sarah about an impending conflict, a dissident singer, and America's first internet-enabled cancellation. Digressions include Freedom Fries and 1990s record company shenanigans. The co-hosts harmonize for the first time; Mike struggles not to call the Chicks by their former name. | ||||
| 125 | "Cancel culture" | None | June 7, 2021 | |
| Mike and Sarah have big feelings about an enduring debate. Digressions include Carrie, party planning etiquette, and Whole Foods cafeterias. | ||||
| 126 | "Summer Book Club: "The Satan Seller" (Part 1)" | None | June 28, 2021 | |
| Sarah and Mike return to Camp You're Wrong About for another Satanic Panic story hour. This time they're talking about Mike Warnke's 1972 "memoir" about joining a demonic cult and the California hedonism that made him do it. Digressions include thrift stores, "Firestarter," and unjust Best Picture winners. | ||||
| 127 | "Summer Book Club: "The Satan Seller" (Part 2)" | None | July 12, 2021 | |
| Sarah and Mike continue their journey through Mike Warnke's 1972 "memoir" about his rise through the ranks of Satan Inc. This week, Mike Warnke gets a promotion, attends a regional conference, and dabbles in some light human trafficking. Despite filling this book with his wildest imaginings, he cannot conceive of a non-patriarchal institution. | ||||
| 128 | "Summer Book Club: "The Satan Seller" (Part 3)" | None | July 26, 2021 | |
| 129 | "Summer Book Club: "The Satan Seller" (The Debunking!)" | None | August 9, 2021 | |
| 130 | "The O. J. Simpson Trial: Runaway Grand Jury" | None | August 23, 2021 | |
References[]
- ^ "You're Wrong About". Stitcher. Retrieved 3 January 2021.
- ^ Jump up to: a b Dockterman, Eliana (30 November 2019). "The 10 Best Podcasts of 2019". Time. Retrieved 3 January 2021.
- ^ Sawyer, Miranda (29 August 2020). "The week in radio and podcasts: You're Wrong About…, Futile Attempts (At Surviving Tomorrow) and more". the Guardian. Retrieved 3 January 2021.
- ^ Mason, Isabella (22 October 2020). "Body positivy podcast takes scientific approach". Old Gold & Black. Retrieved 3 January 2021.
- ^ Jump up to: a b Moss-Horwitz, Benjamin (2 December 2020). "Host of 'You're Wrong About' podcast talks how the media misconstrues scandals at KWH". www.thedp.com. Retrieved 3 January 2021.
- ^ Jump up to: a b c d Syme, Rachel (12 October 2020). "How We Lie to Ourselves About History". The New Yorker. Retrieved 3 January 2021.
- ^ Shure, Marnie; Nateras, Jose; Lindsey, Craig D. "You're Wrong About looks back at Princess Di and her awful marriage". AUX. Retrieved 3 January 2021.
- ^ Jump up to: a b Touros, Cyrena (22 October 2019). "Can a 'nobody' make a popular, financially stable podcast?". Columbia Journalism Review. Retrieved 3 January 2021.
- ^ Griffin, Sarah (26 January 2019). "Podcast of the week: You're Wrong About". The Irish Times. Retrieved 3 January 2021.
External links[]
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