Podcast Corner: Excitement mounts as Reply All gets ready to release new episode
Reply All podcast.
Following an “online reckoning” on the release of the Test Kitchen mini-series in February, Reply All, one of the biggest podcast series of the decade, returns on Thursday with a new episode. The show focuses on different aspects of people's interaction with the digital world.
Long-term host PJ Vogt has left so it will be interesting to see where Reply All goes from here. Here are five of our favourite episodes, in no particular order, from the long-running show:
You know when you get a song stuck in your head but you can’t for the life of yourself remember what it is? Well that’s what happened to Tyler Gillet, who finds himself singing a track he’s sure was a huge hit in the ‘90s except he can’t find it anywhere - it’s like he found a hole in the world, PJ Vogt says. What follows includes acapella and full-band reimaginings of the song in Gillett’s head - can they figure out if this song even existed?
Lizzie has had her Snapchat account hacked and feels so nervous and exposed as a result of ensuing threats. What unfolds is an investigation into the world of young hackers and the market of ‘OG usernames’ which *spoiler alert* ends with Lizzie talking to her hacker, who ultimately sends her $100 in bitcoin because he feels bad. A jaw-dropping expose.
A 2006 photo of a college guy sitting on a bed, sipping a beer, with two women sitting beside him in conversation goes viral, as message-board theorising goes wild trying to figure out the story behind the picture. Initial appreciation for the internet sleuths turns to questions of invasions of privacy as we wonder just what happened to ‘Wayne’/Tommy, the guy in the photo.
If you’ve come across tweets joking about feral hogs (a more regular occurrence than you’d think) and wondering what they’re talking about, this is the episode for you. It’s actually related to gun control, invasive species, and rural America. The original tweet: “Legit question for rural Americans - How do I kill the 30-50 feral hogs that run into my yard within 3-5 mins while my small kids play?” The short answer? There’s no easy solution.
The far-right, Trump-endorsed conspiracy theory Qanon began on the internet cesspit of 8chan, whose founder talks to Vogt about why he fought to correct his mistake of setting it up. He also claims he’s figured out who Q is.
