Conspiracy Clearinghouse
Episodes
Wednesday Sep 14, 2022
Pixels & Paranoia – Video Game Conspiracies
Wednesday Sep 14, 2022
Wednesday Sep 14, 2022
EPISODE 67 | Pixels & Paranoia – Video Game Conspiracies
From its humble beginnings, the video game industry has expanded from cabinet arcade games to PCs and home consoles. Two-thirds of adults in the US and three-quarters of children play them. It makes more than the film industry, which got to around $21 bn last year; and music, which made almost $26 billion in 2021. Globally, gaming hit $192 bn in 2021 and is expected to break $200 bn this year.
And it should come as no surprise that there have been rumours, urban legends, controversies and even outright conspiracy theories about video games. Games that kill, or carry a curse, or control people's minds, or contain hidden truths that some would prefer remained hidden.
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VIDEO VERSION: https://youtu.be/__bLJOkZYgw
SECTIONS
02:36 - Intruder Alert! - Berzerk kills
06:43 - Lavender Town - Pokemon kills
09:32 - The Madden Curse - Fame carries a price
15:50 - Killswitch - A legendary game from Czechslovakia
19:47 - Polybius - Mind control in Oregon
30:20 - Drowned God - Harry Horse, history and aliens
37: 37 - Omikron: The Nomad Soul - A Big Pharma/NWO playbook
40:48 - Resident Evil's Umbrella Corporation and Covid-19
42:16 - Corrupted Blood - A virus sweeps through the World of Warcraft MMORPG
Music by Fanette Ronjat
More Info:
Video Game Conspiracy Theories by TheHairyGamer (Michael Carter)
The Best Video Game Urban Legends Ever in IGN Southeast Asia
20 Video Game Myths, Conspiracy Theories, and Urban Legends to Celebrate Halloween
10 Video Game Conspiracy Theories You'll Start To Believe
10 Video Games Myths & Conspiracies to Keep You Up at Night
30 Video Game Urban Legends: Are They True Or False? on 80s Kids
How Many People Has the Berzerk Arcade Game Killed?
Berzerk: The Killer Arcade Game? on Little Bits of Gaming
Video Game Related Deaths
Pokémon: What Is Lavender Town Syndrome (& Is It Real?) on ScreenRant
Did the 'Madden' cover curse strike again?
The covers of the Madden video game on NFL.com
Secrets & Lies on GamePro
Computerspiele in der DDR (in German)
The Story Of Killswitch, The Creepy Game No-One Has Ever Played on Kotaku
Gamebusters myth 8: KILLSWITCH on GotGame
Polybius on CoinOp.org
Sinnesloschen webpage
Reinvestigating Polybius on RetroBitch
The Polybius Conspiracy on Vimeo
Polybius mockup by Rogue Synapse
Morava Academy on WWASP Survivors
Polybius Conspiracy podcast
Drowned God page on Harry Horse website
Aliens, conspiracy theories, and a forged diary inspired one of the weirdest games of the '90s on PC Gamer
Drowned God on Hardcore Gaming 101
Bandersnatch IRL: Harry Horse & "Drowned God: Conspiracy of the Ages" in /blackmirror/ Reddit forum
Gamespot interview with Harry Horse
Reality check: Microsoft, David Bowie, Bill Gates, and a creepy video game called ‘Omikron’
Fact check: 1999 'Omikron' video game has no connection to pandemic, Bill Gates
Plaguelands.. - 2005 article on Corrupted Blood Incident
'Virtual' Virus Sheds Light on Real-World Behavior on NPR
The researchers who once studied WoW's Corrupted Blood plague are now fighting the coronavirus on PC Gamer
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Other Podcasts by Derek DeWitt
DIGITAL SIGNAGE DONE RIGHT - Winner of a 2022 Gold Quill Award, the 2021 AVA Digital Award Gold, 2021 Silver Davey Award & 2020 Communicator Award of Excellence, and on numerous top 10 podcast lists.
PRAGUE TIMES - A city is more than just a location - it’s a kaleidoscope of history, places, people and trends. This podcast looks at Prague, in the center of Europe, from a number of perspectives, including what it is now, what is has been and where it’s going. It’s Prague THEN, Prague NOW, Prague LATER
Wednesday Aug 04, 2021
The Dirty Dozen - Medical Misinformation Miscreants
Wednesday Aug 04, 2021
Wednesday Aug 04, 2021
EPISODE 38 | The Dirty Dozen - Medical Misinformation Miscreants
For a more visual experience, see the video and dedicated playlist on our YouTube channel.
Just 12 people are responsible for the vast bulk of misinformation about COVID vaccines on social media. 12. Are they cuckoo banana pants true believers or just modern day snake oil hucksters endangering people to make a buck? We'll take a look at this dirty dozen and see what they say and speculate as to why they say those things.
Like what we do? Then buy us a beer or three via our page on Buy Me a Coffee. #ConspiracyClearinghouse #sharingiscaring #donations #support #buymeacoffee https://www.buymeacoffee.com/ConspiracyClear
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SECTIONS
02:15 - Pooping in our Rice Krispies
03:21 - 1. The Big Cheese - Joseph Mercola
10:26 - 2. Oh, Junior! - Robert F. Kennedy, Jr.
15:12 - 3. The Terrible Twofer - Ty & Charlene Bollinger
19:53 - 4. A Dime in the Dozen - Sherri Tenpenny
23:52 - 5. Straight Outta Compton - Rizza (Ronnie) Islam
27:37 - 6. Testing His Metal - Rashid Buttar
31:01 - 7. In It Together - Erin Elizabeth (Finn)
33:17 - 8. I'll Raise You 200 - (Ali Zeck) Sayer Ji
37:04 - 9. If It Walks Like a Quack - Kelly Brogan "M.D."
40:56 - 10. Hearts in Atlantis - Christiane Northrup
47:22 - 11. Paging Dr. Hitler - Ben Tapper
49:10 - 12. Junior's Jr. - Kevin Jenkins
Music by Fanette Ronjat
LAPSUS LINGUAE: I keep calling Charlene Bollinger "Charlane" for some reason. I must have been thinking of the word "charlatan".
More on this stuff:
CCDH - Center for Countering Digital Hate
Stop the Spread of Misinformation online petition
The Disinformation Dozen report
Disinformation Dozen: The Sequel report
Pandemic Profiteers report
The Anti-Vaxx Playbook
Quackwatch
Fraudulent Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) Products - an ongoing database from the USFDA
When bad science is a recipe for business success on .coda
Spreading Vaccine Fears. And Cashing In. on the Center for Public Integrity
Osteopathic Oath (note paragraph two especially)
Just 12 People Are Behind Most Vaccine Hoaxes On Social Media, Research Shows on NPR
Who are the ‘super-spreaders’ of medical misinformation, and how do their hoaxes spread so quickly on social media? A graphic guide. on the Globe & Mail
Debunking the Disinformation Dozen playlist on the Debunk the Funk with Dr. Wilson YouTube channel (very worthwhile!)
Follow us on social for extra goodies:
Facebook (including upcoming conspiracy-themed events)
Twitter
YouTube (extra videos on the topic, Old Time Radio shows, music playlists and more)
Other Podcasts by Derek DeWitt
DIGITAL SIGNAGE DONE RIGHT - Winner of 2021 AVA Digital Award Gold & 2020 Communicator Award of Excellence for Podcasts and on numerous top 10 podcast lists.
PRAGUE TIMES - A city is more than just a location - it’s a kaleidoscope of history, places, people and trends. This podcast looks at Prague, in the center of Europe, from a number of perspectives, including what it is now, what is has been and where it’s going. It’s Prague THEN, Prague NOW, Prague LATER.
Wednesday Feb 17, 2021
Come On Vaccine! Vaccine Hesitancy & You
Wednesday Feb 17, 2021
Wednesday Feb 17, 2021
EPISODE 26 | Come On Vaccine! Vaccine Hesitancy & You
Science marches on, eradicating debilitating diseases (among other things). However, there have always been some who are skeptical, or even downright hostile, to this. There are lots of reasons: maybe God wants your kid to get sick, the ingredients used are harmful and/or weird, or they have terrible side effects, like giving children autism; turning them into half-man, half-cow hybrids or making making males become homosexuals. Or maybe there are teeny, tiny mind control devices in them.
Or maybe all of these things are true. When you decide that science doesn't matter, and there's no such things as a fact, it's sort of a free for all of superstition and suspicion.
Like what we do? Then buy us a beer or three via our page on Buy Me a Coffee. #ConspiracyClearinghouse #sharingiscaring #donations #support #buymeacoffee https://www.buymeacoffee.com/ConspiracyClear
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SECTIONS
02:00 - A quick overview of the situation
04:03 - Don't Have a Cow! The smallpox vaccine starts it all
08:12 - The Hospital of Dr. Moreau - Benjamin Moseley & others
11:04 - DPT (diphtheria, pertussis [whooping cough] & tetanus) - Vaccine Roulette & Dravet Syndrome
15:01 - How to Make a Vaccine
18:39 - The 'Vid - How we got vaccines so fast
22:16 - MMR (measles, mumps, and rubella [German measles]) - (Former Dr.) Andrew Wakefield & the seeds of the modern anti-vax movement
25:23 - Pointing fingers at anti-vax celebrities - a not-quite-complete list
28:55 - Tweedle-dee's Logic - Some reasons for vaccine hesitancy
29:51 - Bubble, Bubble, Toil and Trouble - Ingredients - Icky, weird, deadly stuff
33:19 - Heard of Herd Immunity? - A little knowledge is a dangerous thing
36:11 - Mother Nature Knows Best - Post-modern snake oil
37:12 - Big Pharma Wants You - It's all about the Benjamins
38:39 - Cloud-Cuckoo Land - The "out there" conspiracy theories & truly spotty logic
40:47 - Repercussions - Vaccine hesitancy affects us all
45:13 - Cutting Through the Noise - 18 steps for talking to the vaccine hesitant
Music by Fanette Ronjat
More on this topic:
Vaccine Hesitancy: Causes, Consequences, and a Call to Action in the American Journal of Preventative Medicine
The golden age of anti-vaccine conspiracies in GERMS
Anti-Vaccine and COVID-19 Conspiracy Theories: A Perfect Storm in Psychology Today
The 200-Year History of the Anti-Vaxxer Movement: From 'Cowpox Face' to Autism Claims in Newsweek
What’s in a Name? Or, Will Vaccination Turn Your Children into Cows? on the History of Vaccines website
DPT: Vaccine Roulette - 1982 NBC documentary
A Shot in the Dark by H. Coulter
Dravet Syndrome entry of Vaxopedia
Coronavirus: Operation Warp Speed US Dept. of Defense website
Vaccines: The Basics on the CDC website
Making Vaccines: How Are Vaccines Made? on the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia website
How Are Vaccines Made and Why Do They Work? on PKID website
What Is the Difference Between Immunization and Vaccination? on Very Well Health
The online anti-vaccine movement in the age of COVID-19 in The Lancet
The MMR vaccine and autism: Sensation, refutation, retraction, and fraud in The Indian Journal of Psychiatry
Book review in Nature for The Doctor Who Fooled the World by Brian Deer
Callous Disregard: Autism and Vaccines--The Truth Behind a Tragedy, Andrew Wakefield's discredited book
New Zealand Immunisation Advisory Centre Information for Parents about the film "Vaxxed: From Cover-up to catastrophe
We watched the movie ‘Vaxxed’ so you don’t have to article on StatNews
7 things about vaccines and autism that the movie ‘Vaxxed’ won’t tell you in The Washington Post
Trailer for "The Pathological Optimist" 2017 documentary
The Anti-vaccination Movement: A Regression in Modern Medicine in Cureus
Anti-Vaccine Celebrities Have Inordinate Amount of Influence on the Pharmacy Times
New World Order episodes of Conspiracy Clearinghouse on YouTube
Robert F. Kennedy's Children's Health Defense website
Natural herd immunity should not be used as a means of pandemic control on The BMJ Opinion website
The false promise of herd immunity for COVID-19 in Nature
COVID-19 anti-vaxxers use the same arguments from 135 years ago on The Conversation
Seven ways to talk to anti-vaxxers (that might actually change their minds) on HealthyDebate.ca
Best practice guidance: How to respond to vocal vaccine deniers in public paper by the World Health Organization
Inside the Mind of an Anti-vaxxer in The Atlantic
Book announcement for Anti-vaxxers - How to Challenge a Misinformed Movement by Johnathan M. Berman
Follow us on social for extra goodies:
Facebook
Twitter
YouTube (extra videos on the topic, Old Time Radio shows, music playlists and more)
Other Podcasts by Derek DeWitt
DIGITAL SIGNAGE DONE RIGHT - Winner of 2020 Communicator Award of Excellence for Podcasts Series-Corporate Communications and on numerous top 10 podcast lists.
PRAGUE TIMES - A city is more than just a location - it’s a kaleidoscope of history, places, people and trends. This podcast looks at Prague, in the center of Europe, from a number of perspectives, including what it is now, what is has been and where it’s going. It’s Prague THEN, Prague NOW, Prague LATER.
Wednesday Apr 15, 2020
A Cavalcade of COVID-19 Crackpottery
Wednesday Apr 15, 2020
Wednesday Apr 15, 2020
Episode 02 | A Cavalcade of COVID-19 Crackpottery
The year 2020 has started off being defined by the global spread of the COVID-19 human coronavirus, but it's not just the illness that's spreading - misinformation, disinformation, misconceptions and outright lies are also on a worldwide tour aided and abetted by social media.
We'll take a look at some of the more pervasive ideas out there, tracing them back to their sources like good epidemiologists, and also think about ways we can inoculate ourselves and others against the noise.
Like what we do? Then buy us a beer or three via our page on Buy Me a Coffee. #ConspiracyClearinghouse #sharingiscaring #donations #support #buymeacoffee https://www.buymeacoffee.com/ConspiracyClear
You can also SUBSCRIBE to this podcast.
SECTIONS
02:27 - What is COVID-19?
03:47 - Milestones - How We Got Where We Are
05:25 - Bio-weapon (Chinese)
11:41 - Bio-weapon (American)
18:50 - Bio-weapon (Jewish)
20:57 - Population Control
21:47 - Espionage
22:37 - A Petri Dish of Other Origins
25:04 - Postmodern Snake Oil - Preventatives & Cures
29:35 - A Selfish Justification for Masks
30:34 - Fake Silver Linings
31:32 - Mis-& disinformation, both have consequences
33:36 - How to Combat the Crackpottery
40:29 - Memes Are Viruses
41:46 - Next Steps
Music by Fanette Ronjat
LAPSUS LINGUAE:
At 29:33, we may have mispronounced Jonathan Sather's name. We don't really care, but full disclosure.
Follow us on social for extra goodies:
Facebook
Twitter
YouTube (including some extra videos on the topic)
Other Podcasts by Derek DeWitt
DIGITAL SIGNAGE DONE RIGHT - Winner of 2020 Communicator Award of Excellence for Podcasts Series-Corporate Communications and on numerous top 10 podcast lists.
PRAGUE TIMES - A city is more than just a location - it’s a kaleidoscope of history, places, people and trends. This podcast looks at Prague, in the center of Europe, from a number of perspectives, including what it is now, what is has been and where it’s going. It’s Prague THEN, Prague NOW, Prague LATER.