{"podcast":{"title":"American Hysteria","slug":"american-hysteria-830600","podcast_index_feed_id":830600,"rss_url":"https://feeds.megaphone.fm/WIZD3928139307","website_url":"http://www.americanhysteria.com/","image_url":"https://megaphone.imgix.net/podcasts/dd283f36-bc4d-11ec-ba9c-4b3957402114/image/54d8b146fe8a810cecc27923d5b482ab.jpg?ixlib=rails-4.3.1&max-w=3000&max-h=3000&fit=crop&auto=format,compress","author":"W!ZARD Studios","episode_count":305,"summary":"American Hysteria explores how fantastical thinking has shaped our culture – moral panics, urban legends, hoaxes, crazes, fringe beliefs, and national misunderstandings. Poet-turned-podcaster Chelsey Weber-Smith tells the strangest stories from American history and examines the forces that create the reality we share, and sometimes, the reality we don't.","last_synced_at":"2026-06-08T16:18:02.851094+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/american-hysteria-830600"},"episode":{"title":"The Art of (Psychological) War with Annalee Newitz","slug":"the-art-of-psychological-war-with-annalee-newitz","published_at":"2026-01-26T08:01:00+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/american-hysteria-830600/the-art-of-psychological-war-with-annalee-newitz","show_page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/american-hysteria-830600","url":"https://pscrb.fm/rss/p/traffic.megaphone.fm/AIL3624438250.mp3?updated=1769401935","audio_url":"https://pscrb.fm/rss/p/traffic.megaphone.fm/AIL3624438250.mp3?updated=1769401935","summary":"Annalee Newitz is the author of Stories Are Weapons: Psychological Warfare and the American Mind, which traces the way disinformation, propaganda, and violent threats have evolved from military weapons deployed against foreign adversaries into tools of domestic culture war. For this episode, Annalee gives us a primer on the ways psychological warfare has long propped up the American colonial project, including the many men who have been the masters of its weaponized storytelling. In addition to providing historical context, I hope this conversation can remind us that while fighting against the world we do not want, we can also hold inside ourselves the world we envision, the one we are fighting for. Get a copy of Stories Are Weapons and Automatic Noodle ⁠Become a Patron⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ to support our show and get early ad-free episodes and bonus content Or subscribe to American Hysteria on ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Apple Podcasts⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Get some of our new merch at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠americanhysteria.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠, all profits go to The Sameer Project, a Palestinian-led mutual aid group who are on the ground in Gaza delivering food and supplies to displaced families. Leave us a message on the ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Urban Legends Hotline⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Producer and Editor: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Miranda Zickler⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Associate Producer: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Riley Swedelius-Smith⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Additional editing by ⁠⁠⁠Kaylee Jasperson⁠⁠⁠ Hosted by Chelsey Weber-Smith Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices","meta_description":"Annalee Newitz is the author of Stories Are Weapons: Psychological Warfare and the American Mind, which traces the way disinformation, propaganda, and vio…","key_points":[],"chapters":[],"topics":[],"duration_seconds":4779,"processing_state":"not_requested","actions":[{"name":"request_transcript","method":"POST","url":"https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/american-hysteria-830600/episodes/the-art-of-psychological-war-with-annalee-newitz/transcription-requests","description":"Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode."},{"name":"read_markdown","method":"GET","url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/american-hysteria-830600/the-art-of-psychological-war-with-annalee-newitz.md","description":"Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource."}]}}