You're Wrong About

Cold War Santa with Sarah Archer

Host Sarah Marshall and historian Sarah Archer explore how Santa Claus and American Christmas traditions evolved from the 19th century through the Cold War, focusing on consumerism, design, and media. They trace Santa from a tiny artisan figure in Victorian illustrations to a postwar, space-age and domesticated icon wrapped in department stores, aluminum trees, and televised specials like Miracle on 34th Street, A Charlie Brown Christmas, and How the Grinch Stole Christmas. Throughout, they examine how Christmas has always been bound up with retail, nostalgia, gender roles, and changing ideas about patriotism and the future.

Nov 25, 2025

The Dictionary Wars! with Gabe Henry

Host Sarah talks with writer and lexicography enthusiast Gabe Henry about the "dictionary wars" between Samuel Johnson, Noah Webster, and rival lexicographer Joseph Worcester, and how these battles shaped modern English spelling and national identity. They trace the messy history of English, the rise of Americanisms that offended British elites, Johnson's and Webster's massive dictionary projects, and the petty, decades-long feud between Webster/Webster's heirs and Worcester. The conversation also explores why radical spelling reform failed, how small spelling changes were quietly smuggled into American English, and what these stories reveal about obsession, failure, and the politics embedded in language.

Nov 11, 2025

Introducing: The Devil You Know with Sarah Marshall

Host Sarah Marshall introduces her mini-series "The Devil You Know," exploring the 1980s satanic panic through individual stories and sociological context. This first episode focuses on "Diane," a pseudonymous photographer who became the target of satanism rumors while teaching photography in rural Kentucky, and on how a Hollywood film shoot involving black dresses in Hazard, Kentucky was misread as evidence of devil worship. With commentary from sociologist Mary de Young and local resident Patrick Balch, the episode shows how small, unusual events were amplified by anxiety, rumor, and self-appointed experts into a nationwide moral panic.

Oct 28, 2025

Midnight Ghost Shows with Chelsey Weber-Smith

Host Sarah Marshall and guest Chelsea Weber-Smith explore the forgotten history of American "midnight ghost shows" or "midnight spook shows"-live theatrical seance‑magic‑horror shows that ran in movie theaters from the 1930s to the 1960s. They trace how these shows evolved from spiritualist seances into campy, gore‑filled spectacles aimed at teenagers, centered on elaborate stage tricks and a chaotic blackout sequence where anything could "happen" in the dark. The conversation also connects ghost shows to later horror culture, including William Castle gimmicks, haunted houses, and the participatory cult around The Rocky Horror Picture Show.

Oct 14, 2025

The Auralyn with Blair Braverman

Survival correspondent Blair Braverman tells Sarah the little-known true story of Maurice and Marilyn Bailey, a British couple whose yacht Auralyn was sunk by a sperm whale in 1973, leaving them adrift on a liferaft for 118 days. Blair walks through their improvised survival strategies, the couple's contrasting mindsets, and how Marilyn's optimism, ingenuity, and traditionally "feminine" tasks became central to their endurance. Together, Blair and Sarah reflect on gender norms in survival narratives, the role of hope and realism, and what this story reveals about relationships, depression, and everyday forms of resilience.

Sep 30, 2025