Smoke Screen is an investigative documentary series on people with complex motives and morals. Follow characters on the fringes of society — con artists, cult leaders, corrupt politicians — as they seduce their marks and bend communities to their will. Join us as we unravel their stories and bring justice to the people they’ve deceived. SEASON 4: Puppy Kingpin Americans are used to being on the lookout for a scam, but authorities are warning of a new kind of fraud. Puppy Kingpin shines a spotlight on Jolyn Noethe, a secretive businesswoman from Iowa who is accused of laundering puppies much like drug money. Investigative reporter Alex Schuman exposes the scheme and an underground part of the industry bringing us the pets we love. From Neon Hum Media and Sony Music Entertainment. Smoke Screen: Puppy Kingpin is available June 16th. Subscribe on apple podcasts to binge all episodes or listen weekly wherever you get your podcasts. Smokescreen: Puppy Kingpin is part of The Binge - a new podcast channel from Sony Music Entertainment. The Binge: All Episodes, All at Once. Coming Soon. SEASON 3: The Sellout Councilperson Jose Huizar grew up in Boyle Heights – a working-class Latinx neighborhood in L.A. For the most part, people trusted Huizar... until the day the FBI raided his home and offices, looking for evidence of a criminal enterprise. He stands accused of taking bribes from luxury developers as his constituents were displaced from their homes. Produced in collaboration with LA Taco, journalist and host Mariah Castañeda investigates how Huizar got the power to do what he did, and how the community that raised him paid the price. SEASON 2: I Am Rama To some he was an enlightened master, and to others a dangerous cult leader. One thing’s for sure, the spiritual leader Rama was a product of the 80s: designer clothes, a rock band, sports cars and a modern message were only some of the things that made Rama a fascinating and complex teacher. Host Jonathan Hirsch explores his life and untimely death. SEASON 1: Fake Priest Ryan Scott, known to some as “Father Ryan,” was no ordinary con man. He’d been accused of abusing followers and enriching himself with their money. He's left a wake of angry people across multiple states. And that’s not all. There are questions surrounding the brutal deaths of two priests he associated with. Investigative reporter Alex Schuman explores Scott's bizarre, quizzical, and sometimes dangerous world.
Introducing: Denise Didn't Come Home
Smoke Screen is now The Binge Cases - new name, same home for thrilling true crime stories. Catch the new season, Denise Didn’t Come Home, on October 1st.
Karen Falasca last saw her 15 year old sister Denise on July 14, 1969, when they parted ways not far from their Bergen County home. The next day, Denise’s body was found strangled next to a cemetery. For almost 50 years, Karen searched for her sister's killer. In Denise Didn’t Come Home, host Anthony Scalia gets pulled into the search and discovers a shocking and unexpected truth.
Subscribe to The Binge to get all episodes, all at once, all ad-free as soon as they drop.
Visit The Binge channel on Apple Podcasts and hit ‘subscribe’ or visit GetTheBinge.com to get access.
The Binge – feed your true crime obsession.
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9/24/2024 • 3 minutes, 10 seconds
Introducing: The Greatest Scam Ever Written
What would you do if one handwritten letter promised to change your life forever?
All of us want magic, to feel like there is some sort of exterior force guiding our next steps, to believe our fate is written in the stars. This is the story of 1 million hopeful Americans, the global scam that took $200m from them, and the mastermind who managed it all by sending out thousands of letters a week.
Investigative journalist Rachel Browne takes us through the facts of the fraud, from its brilliantly simple conception to the revelation and imprisonment of the fraudster themselves. Speaking through letters from behind bars, the con artist maintains their innocence, saying: ‘Maybe it's not moral, maybe it's bullshit, but it doesn’t mean it's fraud.’
And that is the question at the heart of The Greatest Scam Ever Written: What happens if you want to believe that sending $50 to a psychic will change the course of your destiny? Are you a victim, or a willing participant?
Unlock all episodes of The Greatest Scam Ever Written, ad-free as soon as they drop on August 1st by subscribing to The Binge. Plus, you'll get binge access to brand new stories dropping on the first of every month, every month - thats all episodes, all at once, all ad-free.
Just click subscribe on the top of the Smoke Screen show page on Apple Podcasts or visit GetTheBinge.com to get access.
An ITN Productions & Sony Music Entertainment production.
Find out more about The Binge and other podcasts from Sony Music Entertainment at sonymusic.com/podcasts and follow us @sonypodcasts.
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7/25/2024 • 3 minutes, 34 seconds
Introducing: My Friend, the Serial Killer
What would you do if someone you knew turned out to be a serial killer?
In the 1970s, Steve Fishman was an intern at his local newspaper, when one day he hitched a ride back from Boston with Robert Carr III, better known as “Red.” Red seemed trustworthy enough, but he was hiding a secret: by the time he had picked up Steve, he had already killed three people—and all of his prior victims were hitchhikers themselves.
This narrow brush with death is only the beginning of Steve’s relationship with Red. When Red is eventually arrested by the police and confesses to a slew of gruesome murders, Steve sees the journalistic opportunity of a lifetime. It’s exactly the career break that Steve has been looking for—but is it too good to be true?
Featuring exclusive interviews and never-before-heard tape, Steve goes inside a serial killer’s mind. He examines not only the details of Red’s crimes, but turns the scrutiny on his own coverage to ask: did he get the story right? And if not, what can he do now to set the record straight?
Subscribe now to unlock all shows on The Binge and you'll be the first to access Smoke Screen: My Friend, the Serial Killer as soon as it drops on June 1st.
An Orbit Media & Sony Music Entertainment production in association with Rhyme Media.
Find out more about The Binge and other podcasts from Sony Music Entertainment at sonymusic.com/podcasts and follow us @sonypodcasts
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5/28/2024 • 2 minutes, 55 seconds
The Most Dangerous Man You've Never Heard Of - Who is John Todd?
In the 1970s, John Todd exploded onto the evangelical scene with a shocking claim: a secret group of devil-worshiping elites called the Illuminati were planning a violent world takeover, and Christians needed to arm themselves against them to protect their families and way of life. But none of it was true—so why did the idea spread so quickly?
Dive into John Todd’s dark and distorted world with journalist Paul Murphy on Cover Up: The Conspiracy Tapes. Featuring sensational tales of witchcraft and human sacrifice from recorded tape of John Todd’s original testimony, this story unravels the threads of Todd’s deceptions, and traces his legacy as an originator of modern day conspiracy theories.
Available now wherever you get your podcasts. Subscribers to The Binge can listen to all episodes of Cover Up: The Conspiracy Tapes right now, completely ad-free.
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5/6/2024 • 3 minutes, 54 seconds
Behind Poisoned Letters - The Untold Story of the Anthrax Attacks
In 2001, a series of letters laced with a deadly powder called anthrax appeared on the desks of prominent journalists and politicians in New York City and Washington D.C causing a national panic. But what started as an unprecedented case soon turned into an unsettling mystery. Who had sent these letters? And why? Join us as we trace the FBI’s costly investigation into the attacks, all with an eye toward the question that remains today: Did the FBI identify the true killer, or is this case still unresolved? Unravel the story the played out behind closed doors on Cover Up: The Anthrax Threat, listen now wherever you get your podcasts
Subscribers to The Binge can listen to all episodes of Cover Up: The Anthrax Threat right now, completely ad-free.
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3/5/2024 • 2 minutes, 43 seconds
Introducing The Runaway Princesses from In The Dark and The New Yorker
The wives and daughters of Dubai’s ruler live in unbelievable luxury. So why do the women in Sheikh Mohammed’s family keep trying to run away? The New Yorker staff writer Heidi Blake joins In the Dark’s Madeleine Baran to tell the story of the royal women who risked everything to flee the brutality of one of the world’s most powerful men. In four episodes, drawing on thousands of pages of secret correspondence and never-before-heard audio recordings, “The Runaway Princesses” takes listeners behind palace walls, revealing a story of astonishing courage and cruelty.
“The Runaway Princesses” is a four-part narrative series from In the Dark and The New Yorker. To keep listening, follow In the Dark wherever you get your podcasts.
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2/1/2024 • 14 minutes, 12 seconds
Introducing: My Fugitive Dad
Ashley’s Dad was her favorite person in the world. He drove fast cars and sold them for a living. He was a scratch golfer and the love of her Mum’s life. Ashley thought she knew him better than anyone. But at 38, she found out he wasn’t who he said he was. Inspired by his favorite movie the Thomas Crown Affair, he had pulled off a robbery in Cleveland then disappeared. It turns out he evaded the authorities for half a century, living in their sleepy Massachusetts town.
His secret upended his family’s life, but another family’s too. Because from the moment this 20-year-old vault teller escaped with $215,000 in 1969, Deputy U.S. Marshal John Elliott made it his life’s mission to bring him to justice. After he retired, his son even took up his mantle. For this six episode podcast, host Jonathan Hirsch teams up with Ashley Randele to unravel the mystery of how her Dad got away with it, and ultimately, why he left behind everyone and everything to start over.
Subscribe now to unlock all shows on The Binge and you’ll be the first to access Smoke Screen: My Fugitive Dad as soon as it drops on December 1st.
A Neon Hum Media & Sony Music Entertainment production.
Find out more about The Binge and other podcasts from Sony Music Entertainment at sonymusic.com/podcasts and follow us @sonypodcasts.
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11/17/2023 • 2 minutes, 19 seconds
Introducing *Crime Waves: Cold Truth*
How far would you go to save the world from itself?
Dr. Eugene Mallove believed that a new form of world-changing free energy — cold fusion — was just around the corner. Even when his work was pushed to the fringes, he dreamed of a brighter future. But before Dr. Mallove could usher in that future, he was found dead in the driveway of his childhood home. Everyone had their own ideas of who killed him, and investigators were looking in all the wrong places.
From QCODE and Faceplant, in association with No Smiling, Crime Waves: Cold Truth is a story about one man's quest to expose the truth, the lengths he would go to save the world, and how his dream caught up with him.
Visit qcodemedia.com for more information.
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11/8/2023 • 3 minutes
'Betrayal in Dixon, IL - Secrets Behind "The Horse Queen" Scammer That Ruined Her Hometown
It's the 1990's and in the world of show horses - Rita Crundwell was the name on everyone's lips. Known as "The Horse Queen," she was the proud owner of hundreds of champion quarter horses on her ranch outside the small city of Dixon, Illinois. But something wasn't adding up with Crundwell's equestrian empire. A shocking FBI investigation revealed a decades long scam that Rita was running from inside the halls of Dixon City Hall, a scam that drained the town completely dry. How did this horse crazed criminal get away with the largest municipal embezzlement in American history? Reveal the secrets of The Horse Queen on the new season of Crooked City: Dixon IL.
Subscribers to The Binge can listen to all episodes of Crooked City: Dixon, IL right now, completely ad-free.
Catch new episodes of Crooked City: Dixon, IL every week wherever you get your podcasts or subscribe to The Binge and unlock all episodes ad-free today.
Just click ‘Subscribe’ on the top of the Crooked City show page on Apple Podcasts or visit GetTheBinge.com to get access wherever you listen.
A Truth Media & Sony Music Entertainment production.
Find out more about The Binge and other podcasts from Sony Music Entertainment at sonymusic.com/podcasts and follow us @sonypodcasts
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10/2/2023 • 10 minutes, 3 seconds
Introducing: Betrayal on the Bayou
For almost two decades, DEA Special Agent Chad Scott ruled the streets just North of New Orleans. He controlled a network of snitches by convincing people he arrested to work for him as informants. Chad would stop at nothing to put drug dealers behind bars. His successes won awards at the DEA, but his willingness to bend the rules earned him a terrifying reputation on the streets. Some called him the Golden Boy. Others called him the White Devil. But when one of guys on Chad's team is caught dealing drugs, Chad’s life is overturned. His right-hand men betray him and confess everything to the FBI. Investigators go over his career with a fine-toothed comb, asking the question: is Chad Scott the greatest DEA Agent in the South, or is he a criminal?
Smoke Screen: Betrayal on the Bayou is part of The Binge – a channel on Apple Podcasts. Browse all the shows included in your subscription here: apple.co/thebinge
The Binge – All Episodes. All at Once. New binge-drops every month. Don’t miss a thing, follow us @sonypodcasts
A Neon Hum Media & Sony Music Entertainment production.
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7/18/2023 • 3 minutes, 10 seconds
Assassins, Heists, & Nazis: The Untold Story of the Abortion Pill in America
You may have heard of the abortion pill, especially in the wake of the overturning of Roe v. Wade last year. But the story of how the pill became legal in America is closer to an action film than to a courtroom drama—with covert operations, heists, and even murder. On the new season of Cover Up: The Pill Plot, travel back to the ‘90s and join the ragtag group that plotted an international drug smuggling scheme and set up a secret lab to get the abortion pill to America. Get a front row seat to the epic struggle facing activists who battled presidents, the Supreme Court, militant anti-abortionists and so much more.
Subscribers to The Binge can listen to all episodes of Cover Up: The Pill Plot right now, completely ad-free.
Catch new episodes of Cover Up: The Pill Plot every week wherever you get your podcasts or subscribe to The Binge and unlock all episodes ad-free today.
Just click ‘Subscribe’ on the top of the Cover Up show page on Apple Podcasts or visit GetTheBinge.com to get access wherever you listen.
A Sony Music Entertainment production.
Find out more about The Binge and other podcasts from Sony Music Entertainment at sonymusic.com/podcasts and follow us @sonypodcasts
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7/10/2023 • 7 minutes, 50 seconds
Introducing: Just Say You're Sorry
Texas Ranger James Holland is celebrated as the ‘serial killer whisperer’, solving dozens of murders through his legendary interrogation skills. But how far does he go to get confessions? And has he put innocent people in prison along the way? Smoke Screen: Just Say You're Sorry uses shocking police tapes to reveal the psychological drama behind one murder case, and uncovers something rotten at the heart of the justice system.
Smoke Screen: Just Say You’re Sorry is part of The Binge – a channel on Apple Podcasts. Browse all the shows included in your subscription here: apple.co/thebinge
The Binge – All Episodes. All at Once. New binge-drops every month. Don’t miss a thing, follow us @sonypodcasts
A Sony Music Entertainment production.
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4/24/2023 • 2 minutes, 31 seconds
Coming Soon: Deadly Cure
Smoke Screen: Deadly Cure is a podcast about a family on the fringe who convinced tens of thousands of people across the globe to buy a miracle liquid made of poison, the international conspiracy they ignited, and the people who fought to take them down. Subscribe now to unlock all shows on The Binge - All Episodes. All at once… and you’ll be the first to access Smoke Screen: Deadly Cure as soon as it drops on February 1.
A Neon Hum Media, Bloomberg & Sony Music Entertainment production.
Find out more about The Binge and other podcasts from Sony Music Entertainment at sonymusic.com/podcasts and follow us @sonypodcasts
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1/18/2023 • 3 minutes, 23 seconds
A New Investigation: The Last Days of the NXIVM Sex Cult
Behind every infamous news story is a journalist trying to hold power to account. Join reporters Vanessa Grigoriadis and Gabriel Sherman as they take an in-depth look at the most explosive scandals of this century. From high-profile divorces to sex cults to the lies that started a war, they’ll guide you through the juiciest, most outrageous, celeb-filled stories of the last two decades, and give you a behind-the-scenes look at what it takes to shine an unflattering light on the world’s most powerful people.
A Campside Media & Sony Music Entertainment production.
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1/5/2023 • 6 minutes, 27 seconds
A New Case: The Criminal Empire of Scam Calls
Chameleon: Scam Likely host, Yudhijit Bhattacharjee, sits down with Alex Schuman to chat about the newest season of the blockbuster Chameleon franchise. The duo dig into another scam you should be wary of - telefraud. Ordinary citizens all around the U.S. have lost their life savings to scam callers, many originating from India. These fraudsters often target especially vulnerable populations, including immigrants and the elderly. Listen as Yudhijit shares the jaw-dropping story of how a small team of investigators went on the hunt to dismantle the shadowy multinational mob behind the con in what became the biggest telefraud case in U.S. history.
From Neon Hum Media and Sony Music Entertainment, listen to Smoke Screen: Puppy Kingpin and other seasons wherever you get your podcasts.
Chameleon is a Campside Media & Sony Music Entertainment production.
Subscribe to The Binge to get all episodes of Chameleon: Scam Likely ad-free right now. Click ‘try free’ at the top of the Chameleon: Scam Likely show page on Apple Podcasts to start your free trial or visit GetTheBinge.com to get access wherever you get your podcasts.
Find more great podcasts from Sony Music Entertainment at sonymusic.com/podcasts
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8/1/2022 • 15 minutes, 32 seconds
Coming Soon: Puppy Kingpin
Americans are used to being on the lookout for a scam, but authorities are warning of a new kind of fraud. Puppy Kingpin shines a spotlight on Jolyn Noethe, a secretive businesswoman from Iowa who is accused of laundering puppies like drug money. Over the course of 7 episodes, investigative reporter and host Alex Schuman exposes the scheme and an underground part of the industry bringing us the pets we love.
From Neon Hum Media and Sony Music Entertainment. Smoke Screen: Puppy Kingpin is available June 16th. Subscribe on Apple Podcasts to binge all episodes or listen weekly wherever you get your podcasts.
Smokescreen: Puppy Kingpin is part of The Binge - a new podcast channel from Sony Music Entertainment.
The Binge: All Episodes, All at Once. Coming Soon.
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5/25/2022 • 2 minutes, 51 seconds
Introducing The Sellout and Smoke Screen Plus
Jonathan Hirsch, Neon Hum CEO and host of I Am Rama, introduces this season of Smoke Screen (it's called The Sellout!) and our new paid subscription service, Smoke Screen Plus.
If you buy a paid subscription on Apple Podcasts, you’ll get three episodes of bonus content throughout the season. You’ll also get each episode without ads, and 24 hours early. And, if you don’t subscribe… that’s fine! You’ll still get access to all the episodes, free.
The first two episodes of The Sellout drop on October 26th. It's the story of a politician dogged by allegations of corruption, harassment and pathological pettiness.
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10/22/2021 • 1 minute, 40 seconds
Coming Soon: The Sellout
Jose Huizar grew up in Boyle Heights – a working-class Latinx neighborhood in L.A. Eventually, he became their councilperson.
And, for the most part, people trusted Huizar... until the day the FBI raided his home and offices, looking for evidence of corruption. The Feds would go on to say that Huizar led a criminal enterprise based in city hall. He stands accused of taking bribes from luxury developers as his constituents were displaced from their homes.
This season of Smoke Screen is a collaboration with grassroots media organization L.A. TACO. In this 9-part investigative series, journalist and host Mariah Castañeda investigates how Huizar got the power to do what he did, and how the community that raised him paid the price.
A Neon Hum Media and Sony Music Entertainment production.
Coming October 26th. Listen & follow on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music, Stitcher or wherever you get your podcasts.
Find more great podcasts from Sony Music Entertainment at sonymusic.com/podcasts
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10/12/2021 • 3 minutes, 10 seconds
Coming Soon: I Am Rama
Rama was a spiritual teacher in the 80s and 90s who inspired many of his students while helming what many of his detractors would describe as a cult. He defied society’s archetypal vision of a New Age leader, eschewing minimalism for wealth and celebrity. He was also a man ahead of his time, encouraging his students to develop careers in computer science before that was mainstream.
For some, following Rama's lead worked out spiritually, and financially too. But for others, Rama's actions contradicted his cool persona; some eventually came forward with accusations of abuse, others vanished, whistleblowers went to the media, and the group began to shrink and splinter.
In this 10-part investigative series, Jonathan Hirsch explores the life, death and impact of Rama. "I Am Rama" drops June 22.
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6/8/2021 • 3 minutes, 38 seconds
Introducing Smoke Screen: Fake Priest
For 30 years, a man claimed to be a priest. He performed baptisms and took confession. Every time he ran into trouble, Father Ryan would move on to another small Midwestern town and start his scheme all over again. Followers who once worshiped him, now accuse him of exploitation, fraud and abuse. In season one of Smoke Screen, join Alex Schuman as he unravels this con and gets answers from this white-collar criminal himself.
A Neon Hum Media and Sony Music Entertainment production.
Coming August 13th. Listen & follow on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music, Stitcher or wherever you get your podcasts.
Find more great podcasts from Sony Music Entertainment at sonymusic.com/podcasts
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