Endless Thread

4.4 (128)
TECHNOLOGY
UPDATED WEEKLY

Hosts Ben Brock Johnson and Amory Sivertson dig into the internet's vast and curious ecosystem of online communities to find untold histories, unsolved mysteries, and other jaw-dropping stories online and IRL.

6 DAYS AGO

Bridezillas and Quiz Traps

Ben and Amory share stories about potential pettiness from Reddit. Ben shares a post from r/weddinshaming post about a bride who changed her wedding to a weekday in another state. Amory counters with a teacher who used AI to foil his student's cheating. Petty or just? You be the judge. Credits: This episode was produced by Frannie Monahan. It was co-hosted by Amory Sivertson and Ben Brock Johnson. Mix and sound design by Emily Jankowski.

28 min
19 SEPT

Losing Our Marbles

In 2020, Jenna Marbles — one of the most popular YouTube creators of all time —posted her last video. Five years later, her devoted fanbase still wonders: where is she, and is she okay? We investigate the mystery behind one of YouTube's biggest disappearances, and why people still care so much. Show notes: r/JennaMarbles (Reddit) The Best, Fakest, and Most Teary Influencer Apologies of 2020 (Vulture) How to trick people into thinking you're good looking (YouTube) An Authentic Guide to Meaningful Work This episode was written and produced by Grace Tatter, edited by Meg Cramer, and hosted by Ben Brock Johnson and Amory Sivertson. Mix and sound design by Emily Jankowski.

37 min
12 SEPT

Message In A Laptop

What is your relationship with the trash heap of digital history? Can you still connect your old hard drives? Still sifting through your old photos in the cloud? Do you ever low key snoop in the old electronics of other people, searching for treasure? That's what Noah Simmons was doing a while back when he discovered something compelling in its simplicity: a homework assignment document, on an old laptop picked up at an estate sale. The title of the essay? "My Secret Place." From there, the mystery of the author, and the meaning it had for so many people who got hit right in the feels by a nostalgic description of childhood, played out on TikTok. Like hundreds of thousands of people online, Team Endless Thread had to know more. Credits: Co-hosted by Ben Brock Johnson and Amory Sivertson, produced by Frannie Monahan, Edited by Meg Cramer, and sound designed by Emily Jankowski. The rest of our team is Managing Producer Paul Vaitkus, Dean Russell, and Grace Tatter.

24 min
5 SEPT

Encore: The Internet's Most Hated Bird

As summer fades away, we bring you an encore episode about you shoreline companions and occasional bullies — gulls. Gulls are not beloved creatures. Consult social media, where they are deemed relentless, dirty pests who steal our food and crowd our beaches. As one TikTok user puts it, "Seagulls are the worst animals to ever exist." Such hatred overlooks truths about this intelligent, charismatic animal, and it is masking a big problem: While gulls may seem like they are everywhere, many species are dying. Endless Thread goes on a journey to reconsider the seagull. You can learn more and see photos of the gulls of Appledore here. Credits: This episode was written and produced by Dean Russell. Mix and sound design by Emily Jankowski. The hosts are Ben Brock Johnson and Amory Sivertson. It was edited by managing producer, Samata Joshi.

40 min
29 AUG

Introducing "Jaws Island"

Dun dun... This week, on Endless Thread... dun dun... something new is here... dun dun dun dun... a podcast mini-series about the 50th anniversary of the cinematic classic... DUN dun dun dun DUN dun dun dun..."Jaws!" Part 1 of this mini-series, Jaws Island, is right here, right now, and it's all about the "finatics" (yes, that's what they call themselves). WBUR arts and culture correspondent Andrea Shea takes us to Martha's Vineyard — AKA "Amity Island," where Jaws was filmed — for the 50th anniversary celebration of the film. Through conversations with "finatics," collectors, and cast members, Andrea learns how Steven Spielberg's enduring monster movie sank its teeth into us. Parts 2 and 3 are right around the corner, so follow Jaws Island in your podcast app! ("You're gonna need a bigger podcast library!")

32 min
22 AUG

AI and Relationships, Part 2: AI Therapists and Bot Boyfriends

What happens when we outsource aspects of our most personal moments to machines? In the second installment of our two-part series on AI and relationships, we hear from Rhiannon Williams, a reporter for MIT Technology Review who spoke to people all over the world about how they're using AI to relate to their loved ones, including a man who turns to it during marital disputes, a French mother who uses it to craft nightly tales for her son, and a nursing student who calls her AI companion her "boyfriend." Credits: This episode was produced by Grace Tatter and edited by Meg Cramer. It was co-hosted by Amory Sivertson and Ben Brock Johnson. Mix and sound design by Emily Jankowski.

30 min
15 AUG

AI and Relationships, Part 1: Into the Woods

Amir Mizroch spent years deconstructing fairy tales for his children — and thinking that maybe, he could create something out of his analysis and storytelling for a wider audience. In the first episode of our two-part series on AI and relationships, we hear what Amir finally created, and explore the questions it raises about connection in the digital age. Credits: This episode was produced by Grace Tatter, and edited by Meg Cramer. It was co-hosted by Amory Sivertson and Ben Brock Johnson. Mix and sound design by Emily Jankowski.

28 min
8 AUG

Bootcamp for Men: from betas to alphas

In the past few years, videos from a new kind of camp have begun circulating the internet. They feature men participating in a variety of bizarre activities: from aggressively digging holes under floodlights, to collectively wailing in a pool of water. These are man camps, where men can pay up to $18,000 to undergo extreme boot-camp-like conditioning in the name of reclaiming their masculinity. This week on Endless Thread, host Ben Brock Johnson and senior producer Dean Russell, dive into the past, present and future of man camps. Show notes: Learning 'how to be a man' in the Californian desert: Man Camp (The Guardian)

27 min

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Amory Sivertson

Host
Ben Brock Johnson

Host
Amir Mizroch

Guest

4.4

out of 5

128 Ratings

Thought Leaders

30 Jan

Part of history

Ben and Amory are great, they make me listen to and enjoy random subjects I have no interest in and then actually enjoy . Don't be fooled by the great rapport of these two or the silliness that sometimes ensues, these two really do bring deep thought and intelligence to their subjects . Entertaining but also educational . I keep coming back to endless thread .
Fun and absorbing

03/11/2022

Invisiblecity!

As a chronically online I enjoy new takes on “internet phenomena” but I also think it’s engaging as storytelling for newcomers. One issue however is the background music it can be distracting and annoying. Suggest toning that down!
My favourite podcast

10/05/2022

Rociwiththenewthrusters

I drive around a lot for work and listen to podcasts all day, this is by far my favourite podcast and I actually get a little jolt of excitement when I see a new ep is up.
Good times

08/05/2022

1357n

Kind of feels like Endless Thread picked up where Reply All fell off the ledge - internet weird with thoughtful journalism. Like it :)

Hosts Ben Brock Johnson and Amory Sivertson dig into the internet's vast and curious ecosystem of online communities to find untold histories, unsolved mysteries, and other jaw-dropping stories online and IRL.