Conspiracy Theories

The fate of the ten tribes of Israel has been a mystery for thousands of years. Some legends say they are trapped in a mythical land. One mysterious traveler in the 9th century CE claimed differently. All we know for sure is that the members of the ten tribes suffered invasion and exile before seemingly disappearing from history. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In November 2018, equipment from the largest utility provider in America sparked a fire that killed 86 people and destroyed thousands of homes. The devastation was unprecedented, but the Camp Fire is far from the only disaster caused by Pacific Gas & Electric. Are their political donations protecting them from stricter regulation? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In March 2011, the worst nuclear meltdown since Chernobyl took place in northern Japan. The incident was triggered by a natural disaster, but it was decisions made by the facility’s operators that led to such catastrophic damage.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

An emergency plan to cut costs in Flint, Michigan resulted in a contaminated water supply for the city’s residents. The water looked, tasted, and smelled foul – because it was tainted with toxic chemicals, harmful bacteria and lead from old pipes. But government officials repeatedly dismissed the community’s concerns. So today, we’re tracing what officials knew about the burgeoning crisis, and when — and how they’re paying for their negligence now. This is the second episode in our four-part series, “They Knew,” covering four times corporations and government officials knew their actions could cause harm, and forged ahead anyway.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The Love Canal was supposed to be a suburban idyll. Instead, it became a dumping ground for chemical waste. After the land changed hands in the 1950s — from the Hooker Electrochemical Company to the Niagara Falls Board of Education — a school and 900 homes were built atop the toxic landfill. Decades later, residents are still battling adverse health outcomes and government negligence.This is the first episode in our four-part series, “They Knew,” covering four times corporations and government officials knew their actions could cause harm, and forged ahead anyway. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

After the Civil War, multiple caches of Confederate gold were discovered around the country. Were they buried by the Knights of the Golden Circle? Was the pro-slavery organization behind multiple assassination attempts on Abraham Lincoln’s life? And did Lincoln’s eventual assassin, John Wilkes Booth, take orders from the KGC? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In 1854, as tensions between the American North and South were brewing, a physician named George Bickley called his closest friends to a secret meeting. His agenda: form a fraternity that would aid Southern states and protect the institution of slavery. Their first plot: invade Mexico. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

After a dozen major campaigns and thousands of planted bugs and wiretaps, COINTELPRO was finally exposed to the public. But the job of untangling its impact would take decades. Was J. Edgar Hoover’s belief that Communists instigated the civil rights movement true? And how far did the FBI go to sabotage the leaders of the movement? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

A secret intelligence project led by the FBI used illegal methods to spy on organizations and people from the mid-1950s to the early 1970s. It claimed to be acting in the name of U.S. security — but was it really?  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Finding Beale’s treasure would be the thrill — and payout — of a lifetime. Without the key to the ciphers, it doesn’t seem likely. But there could be other reasons the riches are never recovered… Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices