The Alarmist

Who’s to blame for The Stolen Ruby Red Slippers? This week, The Alarmist (Rebecca Delgado Smith) welcomes Comedian DarylJim to discuss the fascinating case of the Stolen Ruby Red Slippers famously worn by the legendary Judy Garland in the MGM juggernaut The Wizard of Oz . Will the Fashion Industry finally take the fall for this one? Or did some “Local Dirtbags” have something to do with it? Fact C...

New Guest Expert! On this week’s Aftermath, Rebecca speaks with Dr. Robert Fatton Jr. about the many complexities of the Haitian Revolution and the difficulties the nation faced with their newly won independence. Professor Fatton works in the Department of Politics at the University of Virginia. He’s published numerous books and articles on the subject and is the recipient of the 2011 Award for Ex...

Who’s to blame for The Haitian Revolution? This week, The Alarmist (Rebecca Delgado Smith) welcomes writer Alicia Carroll to discuss the circumstances and injustices that led to The Haitian Revolution. This historic revolution allowed Haiti to emerge as the first black republic in the world and the first country to abolish slavery in the Western hemisphere. They’re joined by Fact Checker Chris Smi...

New Mailbag! This week, The Alarmist (Rebecca Delgado Smith) is kickin’ it Mailbag style and sharing some of your recent ponderings and suggestions with Producer Clayton Early and Fact Checker Chris Smith. Want to know what’s been alarming The Alarmist crew lately? Better yet, why don’t you write in and tell us what’s been alarming you! Write in, rate, review and you could be included in our futur...

Who’s to blame for the Sewol Ferry Disaster? This week, The Alarmist (Rebecca Delgado Smith) welcomes podcaster and writer Ben Acker to discuss the tragic sinking of the Sewol Ferry in South Korea. They’re joined by Fact Checker Chris Smith and Producer Clayton Early. Is this horror the result of capitalism, corruption, or negligence? Or perhaps it’s a combination of all 3. Up on the board: Ilegal...

New Guest Expert! On this week’s Aftermath, Rebecca speaks with Professor Philip Dray about the The Great Railroad Strike of 1877 and the unique circumstances in American history which made it possible, at the time. Author of There is Power in a Union: The Epic Story of Labor in America , Professor Dray reminds us of the dreary state of American life leading up to the strikes and the complete lack...

Who’s to blame for The Great Railroad Strike of 1877? This week, The Alarmist (Rebecca Delgado Smith) speaks with actor and writer Ali Vingiano about the events leading up to The Great Railroad Strike of 1877. A Union rep for the WGA herself, Ali knows all about the importance of organizing. They’re joined by Fact Checker Chris Smith and Producer Clayton Early. Was this another byproduct of The Gi...

New Mailbag Episode! Hey Alarmy! You’ve sent us some mail and boy do we love hearing from you. Our mailbag runneth over! Tune in and listen as The Alarmist (Rebecca Delgado Smith), Fact Checker Chris Smith and Producer Clayton Early sort through your insightful comments, suggestions and thoughts on our most recent episodes. Plus, you’ll get to hear what has The Alarmist crew alarmed these days. Ha...

Who’s to blame for Grey Gardens? This week, The Alarmist (Rebecca Delgado Smith) welcomes back Kristen Meinzer and her podcasting partner Jolenta Greenberg to discuss the tragic tale of the infamous Grey Gardens Estate and the colorful characters who once owned it. They’re joined by Fact Checker Chris Smith and Producer Clayton Early. Were Big Edie and Little Edie trapped in a codependent relation...

New Guest Expert! On this week’s Aftermath, Rebecca speaks with Sarah Barringer Gordon about the Mountain Meadows Massacre. Sally, as she’s more commonly known, is a Professor of Constitutional Law and History at the University of Pennsylvania. Having recently published an award winning article about the Mountain Meadows Massacre in the Journal of the Early Republic with co-author Jan Shipps, Sall...

Who’s to blame for the Mountain Meadows Massacre? This week, The Alarmist (Rebecca Delgado Smith) keeps it all in the family to discuss the Mountain Meadows Massacre. Could this tragedy be the result of religious persecution or religious radicalism? Or perhaps both? Associate Producer & Researcher Alex Paul stops by to lend her expertise on the subject as someone who was raised in the Mormon C...

New Guest Expert! On this week’s Aftermath, Rebecca speaks with Dr. Phyllis Chesler about the women's movement of the 60’s & 70’s and how the writings of Valerie Solanas and her attempted assassination of Andy Warhol fit into the legacy of the American feminist movement. Dr. Phyllis is a pioneer of Second Wave Feminism and a best-selling author of over 20 books, including the landmark feminist...

Who’s to blame for the attempted assassination of Andy Warhol? This week, The Alarmist (Rebecca Delgado Smith) speaks with fellow podcaster Anna Stoecklein Lau about Valerie Solanas and her attempted assassination of Andy Warhol. Host of the podcast The Story of Woman , Anna is the perfect guest to help explore the broader context of this incident. They’re joined by Fact Checker Chris Smith and Pr...

New Guest Expert! On this week’s Aftermath, Rebecca speaks with Granby, CO resident Patrick Bower about the destructive bulldozer rampage by Marvin Heemeyer on June 4, 2004. Former editor and publisher of The Sky-Hi News and author of Killdozer: The True Story of the Colorado Bulldozer Rampage , Patrick knew Marvin from his early days in Granby and shares first hand information about the reality o...

Who’s to blame for Marvin Heemeyer’s Bulldozer Rampage? This week, The Alarmist (Rebecca Delgado Smith) speaks with friend and special guest Jason Mayland about Marvin Heemeyer’s destructive rampage through the small mountain town of Granby, CO on June 4, 2004. They’re joined by Producer Clayton Early and Fact Checker Alex Paul. It might be a small town, but they still had some big problems. Was t...

New Guest Expert! On this week’s Aftermath, Rebecca speaks with professor and historian Dr. Kealani Cook about the dense history of Hawaii and its monarchy before its eventual annexation in 1898. Author of Return to Kahiki: Native Hawaiians in Oceania, Dr. Cook lends some much needed context to the many moving parts around this unique moment in history. Afterward, Producer Clayton Early and Fact C...

Who’s to blame for the Overthrow of the Hawaiian Kingdom? This week, The Alarmist (Rebecca Delgado Smith) speaks with Producer Clayton Early and Fact Checker Chris Smith about America’s 50th state, Hawaii. More specifically, they discuss the topics which are a little less popular in the history books, the events around its annexation in 1898 and the overthrow of the Hawaiian Kingdom. What’s The Co...

New Guest Expert! On this week’s Aftermath, Rebecca speaks with the producer of the HBOMax docuseries The Way Down , Gina Scarlata. Gina details the somewhat elusive hierarchy of the Fellowships leadership, describes her experience working with former members of the church, and lends her insight into what might be the future of the Remnant Fellowship. Afterward, producer Clayton Early stops by to...

When a car bomb kills Daphne Caruana Galizia on the beautiful Mediterranean island of Malta, the hunt for her killers exposes secrets with consequences that go far beyond its shores. In the aftermath of her death an international team of journalists comes together to continue her work. Along the way they start to uncover clues that might lead to her killers. From Wondery, comes a new story about p...

Who’s to blame for the Gwen Shamblin Lara Diet Cult? This week, The Alarmist (Rebecca Delgado Smith) speaks with the Emmy and Latin Grammy Award winning writer and performer Alisha Gaddis about the notorious Gwen Shamblin and who’s to blame for her diet turned cult. They’re joined by Producer Clayton Early and Fact Checker Chris Smith. Who knew God and food were so intertwined? Why are we so devou...

New Guest Expert! For this week’s Aftermath, Rebecca digs a little deeper into the Aberfan Mine Disaster with Professor Iain McLean. Iain is Professor of Politics at Oxford University and co-author of the book Aberfan: Government and Disasters. He helps us understand the culture and dynamics playing out in these mining villages at the time and reiterates the blatant denial and negligence by those...

Who’s to blame for the Aberfan Mine Disaster?  This week, The Alarmist (Rebecca Delgado Smith) speaks with comedian, writer and podcaster Chris Mancini about the tragic Aberfan Mine disaster. They’re joined by Fact Checker Chris Smith and Producer Clayton Early. Could poor foresight be to blame? Or was it the fault of chummy regulators neglecting their duties? Find out what else is on the boa...

Firework Safety PSA! Hey Alarmy! This week, The Alarmist (Rebecca Delgado Smith) is bringing you a special safety reminder for the upcoming 4th of July holiday weekend. She’s joined by Fact Checker Chris Smith and Producer Clayton Early. Learn about the origin and history of fireworks. Listen to some important safety precautions you can take if you’re purchasing LEGAL fireworks. And most important...

Who’s to blame for the South LA Firework Explosion? This week, The Alarmist (Rebecca Delgado Smith) speaks with Producer Clayton Early and Fact Checker Chris Smith about the South LA Firework Explosion in June of 2021 and who’s to blame for this major miscalculation. What’s our obsession with fireworks and homemade bombs? Could the National Anthem have something to do with it? And was detonating t...

New Guest Expert! For this week’s Aftermath, Rebecca speaks with Dr. Eduardo Fabbro about who’s to blame for the War of the Bucket. Author of Warfare and the Making of Early Medieval Italy (568–652), Eduardo does an incredible job of helping us understand this ancient grudge with a modern point of view. This little bucket represents some big themes! After, Fact Checker Chris Smith and Producer Cla...