Panic World

With the second and maybe probably last 2024 presidential debate now in our rearview, we’re taking a look back at Americans’ relationship with misinformation. Ryan is joined by reporter Kat Abughazaleh to talk about the surprising origin of “fake news” and how it has only gotten more deranged since 2016. All of that brings us to where we are now, where a presidential candidate claims that Haitian immigrants in Springfield, Ohio are stealing and then eating cats, dogs, geese, and ducks. How did we get here? How did Trump get there? And are conservatives or liberals doing “better” at being online in this election cycle? Our guest Kat Abughazaleh is a contributor for Zateo News. You can follow her everywhere at https://linktr.ee/katmabu, and her cat’s Patreon at https://www.patreon.com/katmabu.  Want even more Panic World content? Like ad-free episodes, bonus episodes, and access to the Garbage Day Discord? Sign up for a membership at https://www.patreon.com/PanicWorld. Want to sponsor Panic World? Ad sales & marketing support by Multitude ⁠http://multitude.productions⁠. Credits - Host: Ryan Broderick - Producer: Grant Irving - Researcher: Adam Bumas - Business Manager: Josh Fjelstad

Welcome to Panic World. For our premiere, we're going back a few years to explore the panic that grew around "Sleepytime Chicken" aka NyQuil Chicken. Along with friend of the pod Katie Notopoulos, Ryan will explore the origins of the recipe on 4chan back in 2017 and chart its start as a joke to ultimately causing everyone from CNN to the FDA to issue warnings against it. But were the nation's youth really cooking — and eating — this cough syrup-soaked fowl? And what does the spread of the trend from 4chan to the mainstream tell us about our relationship with the internet and social media these days? You can follow Katie Notopoulos's work at Business Insider, or @katienotopoulos. And give us a follow wherever you listen to podcasts to help Panic World go viral. Want even more content? Like ad-free episodes, bonus episodes, and access to the Garbage Day Discord? Sign up for a membership at ⁠Patreon.com/PanicWorld⁠. Want to sponsor Panic World? Ad sales & marketing support by Multitude http://multitude.productions. 00:00 - Background on Sleepytime Chicken 01:25 - Introduction to Katie Notopoulos 03:18 - 4chan history 06:23 - Gatorade Broccoli 08:01 - Gorilla Food 11:10 - DinoTendies 16:54 - Sleepytime Chicken origin story and recipe 22:23 - Reemergence in 2020 as “NyQuil Chicken” 28:39 - TikTok “challenges” and trend culture 31:35 - Butter Board 34:20 - 2022 return with a new viral video that makes it into the mainstream news 38:00 - Jimmy Fallon mentions NyQuil Chicken 41:07 - FDA issues a warning against eating NyQuil Chicken 47:38 - US Government investigates TikTok’s influence on children 52:16 - Did anyone ever actually try eating NyQuil Chicken? 1:04:00 - Trolling vs. baiting content

Remember NyQuil Chicken? Or when Kate Middleton mysteriously “disappeared”? How about when teens were eating Tide Pods? These sorts of internet phenomena lead to news segments, investigations, and lots of hysteria. But how do they start and what actually comes of them? Panic World is a new podcast from journalist and creator of the Garbage Day newsletter, Ryan Broderick. Each week, he’ll be joined by a guest to tackle a different online witch hunt or moral panic, old and new. They’ll delve into the weirdest and most confusing corners of the internet to find out just how these trends bubbled up and broke out into the mainstream — so you don’t have to. Join us here, or wherever you listen to podcasts, for Panic World’s first episode next Wednesday, September 11. You can also join us at Patreon.com/PanicWorld for ad-free episodes, exclusive bonus content, and access to the Garbage Day Discord community.

This is an audio version of the Garbage Day newsletter. Listen to the end for a funny little man enjoying a snack.

This is an audio version of the Garbage Day newsletter. Listen to the end for a truly mortifying Glastonbury clip.