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Panic World

Panic World

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Panic World posts

We are living in a casino [Ad-free]

First they came for our mobile apps, then they came for our videogames, and now, it seems pretty much every aspect of our lives is being re-oriented around gambling. Who are the players — inside ...

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Why were cops fainting from fentanyl? [Ad-free]

Some urban legends are just for fun, like the “Pacific Northwest Tree Octopus,” while others are not. Today we’re inv...

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Your conspiracy families [Ad-free]

When Grant talked to his friend whose dad had become a Holocaust denier, we got a huge response from folks who had family members with other… interesting ideas. Today, we’re answering some of y...

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The man behind Trump's Salvadoran gulags [Ad-free]

This week we’re asking an important question: Who is really inspiring the “vibe” of Trump 2.0? No, it's not Elon Musk. We’re talking about President Nayib Bukele of El Salvador. Jo...

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What happened to Kanye? [Ad-free]

America’s not doing so hot right now. Kanye West, on the other hand, hasn’t been well for quite some time. Akilah Hughes joins us again to discuss the idea that Kanye has always been a mirror f...

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AI therapy slop [Ad-free] [Extended]

Dr. ChatGPT will see you now.

Ryan wrote about using ChatGPT for therapy, and a lot of responses to that announcement involved calling him an idiot. This week, he sits down with Grant to talk...

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How long will Trump's base support him? [Ad-free]

Last time we had Charlie Warzel on, it was to determine whether the insurrection had been a political success. Now, 100+ days into Trump 2.0, he joins us again to answer some simple questions: Shou...

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The effects of true crime brain rot [Extended] [Ad-free]

What is it about true crime that's fueled its rise to one of the most popular genres in entertainment?

In the past decade, true crime has gone from a niche and somewhat disparaged genre to on...

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That time a 4chan user got thrown in a Taliban prison [Ad-free]

Arturo Castro joins us to tell the story of Miles Rutledge — your regular 4chan guy who got himself locked up in a Taliban prison.

Today, we’re telling a story of human ingenuity. Except,...

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Netflix's "Adolescence" and the masculinity crisis [Ad-free]

On March 13, 2025, Netflix released “Adolescence,” and ever since, parents have been learning that Andrew Tate is bad. What are we to do?

On March 13, 2025, Netflix released “Adolescenc...

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Has China already won the internet? [Ad-free]

Today we’re talking about a panic that’s been simmering for a while but has, in the past couple of years, become a full-blown panic. And that’s the technological Cold War that the US is wagin...

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My friend's dad is a Holocaust denier now [Ad-free]

Today, we’re doing something a little different. Grant asks Ryan to step back from being host, and instead to step in as a social worker for people who fall for conspiracy theories. The person in...

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Here's who killed the #MeToo movement (with Kat Tenbarge) [Extended] [Ad-free]

If we're in the post-MeToo era, who killed it?

Are we in the post-MeToo era? In this episode, we’re reconciling with not only how society at large has adapted to its rise and fall, but also...

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Who turned Gen Z fascist? (With Felix Biederman) [Extended] [Ad-free]

In 2024 many of the youngest voters started finding the newest generation of right-wing freaks appealing. What gives?

Every four years America suffers through a national election, with its ow...

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Who orders hitmen online? (With Carl Miller) [Ad-free]

Right now, you might be thinking someone, somewhere, is on the internet doing something for money that’s really awful. That’s probably true, and has been in the past. Although, plenty of times ...

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You’re panicking wrong about AI (with Casey Newton) [Ad-free]

On the bad side, we have copyright infringement, exploitation, and misinformation; on the good side, we have its uses for brainstorming, editing work, and combating loneliness. On both sides, every...

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Here's why everyone's fighting about delivery apps (with Allegra Rosenberg) [Ad-free]

Perhaps you’ve seen someone pop off online about a delivery order going wrong, or it being too expensive. Maybe you’ve been one of those people. Some call them “Treatlerites” — “treat...

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One month of DOGE shit [Exclusive]

Ryan and Grant discuss what we've seen one month into the second Trump Administration, and what it means.

Credits

- Host: Ryan Broderick
- Producer: Grant Irving
- Researcher: Ada...

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Is dating worse than ever? (With Magdalene Taylor) [Ad-free]

When it comes to modern relationships, most reporting has three main points: Gen Z is sexless and puritan, Millennials are scared about their inevitable doom, and Boomers are boozers who are going ...

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The secret plan to outlaw porn in the US (with Junlper) [Ad-free]

As of this recording, 17 states don’t have access to PornHub. You might assume that’s because of very normal people like Speaker of the House Mike Johnson needing to monitor his son’s masturb...

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What Area 51 can teach us about the drones in NJ (with Dylan Thuras) [Ad-free] [Extended]

Americans love not believing anything the government tells us, and it seems likely we’ll just keep coming up with stories to explain what is probably really boring in real life. The latest of the...

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Sergei Khazov-Cassia on the Blue Whale Challenge [Exclusive]

Expanding upon the conversation in this week's Panic World, Grant talks to Sergei Khazov-Cassia about his role in and the implications of the Blue Whale Challenge in Russia, where it originated. View Post

Are online "suicide games" real? (With Alex Goldman) [Ad-free]

Momo and the Blue Whale Challenge are two trends that targeted young social media users, supposedly challenging them to an escalating series of dares. Were these viral “challenges” actually cau...

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How bin Laden killed TikTok (with Rachel Gilmore) [Ad-free]

America is in a “will they or won’t they” situation with TikTok, but it’s not cute. As of last week, the app was finally set to get banned, but over the weekend Trump stayed its execution. ...

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Meta doesn't care anymore [Exclusive]

Producer Grant joins Ryan to talk about how Mark Zuckerberg went from looking and acting like “Every Guy Walking Down the Street in Boston in the Mid-2000s” to his current era, “I Work in the...

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Click here to join the Garbage Day Discord

It's a great place to hang out!

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How Facebook caused January 6th (with Charlie Warzel) [Ad-free] [Extended]

On January 7, 2021, did you think the storming of the capitol would be politically successful? Charlie Warzel joins us on the eve of Donald Trump retaking the White House to weigh that question as ...

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Does the left really need a Kyle Rittenhouse? [Exclusive]

Ryan and Grant talk about the fallout from Luigi Mangione's alleged assassination of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, and whether or not it will have ripple effects in this political climate. View Post

The Top 10 Panics of 2024 (with Katie Notopoulos, Luke Bailey, & Adam Bumas) [Ad-free]

It’s the end of the year episode. We’re talking about some of the best, and worst, things on the internet for 2024. Joining us are friends of the pod Katie Notopoulos and Luke Bailey, plus our ...

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Did gender influencers doom Gen Z? (With Rebecca Jennings & Luke Winkie) [Ad-free] [Extended]

Despite society’s progress on gender norms, the historic divide on the "boy-girl internet" has started to reemerge due to Gen Z influencers.

Despite society’s progress on gender norms, th...

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