The Alarmist

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...

Who’s to blame for the War of the Bucket? This week, The Alarmist (Rebecca Delgado Smith) speaks with good friend James Bladon about who’s to blame for the War of the Bucket. Not only is James well versed on this medieval nightmare, he’s actually been to Modena and seen The Bucket! They’re joined by Fact Checker Chris Smith and Producer Clayton Early. Could poor neighborly etiquette be at fault fo...

On May 4, 2001, Bonny Lee Bakley was found fatally shot in a car on a dark North Hollywood street. The prime suspect was her husband, famed actor Robert Blake. But Bonny, a longtime con artist, had plenty of enemies. She left behind a trail of men she’d scammed, and she had a volatile relationship with Christian Brando, the troubled son of movie star Marlon Brando. Not since the O.J. Simpson case...

New Mailbag! On this episode, The Alarmist (Rebecca Delgado Smith) catches up on some Alarmy mail with Fact Checker Chris Smith and Producer Clayton Early. Hear about a guitarist on a sinking cruise liner who was forced to take responsibility for hundreds of passengers onboard. Click here to see what happened. And if you’ve ever wanted to see Rebecca in action on the silver screen, check out the p...

Written and narrated by award-winning author and Professor of African American Studies at Princeton University, Dr. Eddie S. Glaude, “History is US” is a 6-part audio documentary produced and developed by C13Originals that asks questions about who we are as a nation, and what race might reveal about our current crisis. Through the voices of distinguished historians and scholars, this limited serie...

Who’s to blame for the Sinking of General Slocum? This week, The Alarmist (Rebecca Delgado Smith) speaks with old friend Ptolemy Slocum about who’s to blame for the tragic sinking of General Slocum. Ptolemy may know plenty about this event given his namesake. But the question remains: given the magnitude of this horrible accident, why don’t more people know about it? Especially New Yorkers! Could...

New Guest Expert! On this week’s Aftermath, Rebecca speaks with Dr. J Stephan Edwards about the death (and life!) of Lady Jane Grey. Dr. Edwards Ph. D. in early modern European history, with an emphasis on Tudor-Stuart England, has led to a great fascination with the infamous Nine Day Queen. And his extensive research highlights some of the ways in which the history books might not be telling the...

Introducing the true crime podcast Persona: The French Deception— the story of Gilbert Chikli, one of the greatest con artists of all time. What does it feel like to pick up the phone and scam someone out of $50 million? Host and award-winning journalist, Evan Ratliff, investigates how Chikli successfully duped some of the world’s most powerful people into handing over their fortunes. He explores...

Who’s to blame for the death of Lady Jane Grey? This week, The Alarmist (Rebecca Delgado Smith) speaks with Tod Perry and Alison Rosen, co-hosts of the podcast Upworthy Weekly, about who's to blame for the untimely death of Lady Jane Grey. They’re joined by Fact Checker Chris Smith and Producer Clayton Early. Did Lady Jane Grey’s intellect make her a target? Could a religious power struggle be to...

New Guest Expert! On this week’s Aftermath, Rebecca speaks with Dave Casker about the Johnstown, PA Flood of 1889. Not only is Dave a current resident of Johnstown, but he’s also a member and longtime tour guide at the Johnstown Flood Museum. With new details about the construction of the dam and the days and months that followed the actual flooding, there’s more to consider about the verdict. Aft...

Who’s to blame for the Johnstown, PA Flood? This week, The Alarmist (Rebecca Delgado Smith) speaks with Producer Clayton Early and Fact Checker Chris Smith about the tragic Johnstown, PA Flood of 1889. With residents  aware of the poor state of the dam and often wondering, “when their worst fears would be transcended by the horror of the actual occurrence,” it begs the question: why was nothi...

New Guest Expert! On this week’s Aftermath, Rebecca speaks with Rick Pulos about the Philippines Pepsi Number Fever fiasco. Rick is an artist, an educator, and current doctoral student at Texas A&M. He shares some new information about Pepsi’s poor handling of this disaster and reiterates the personal effects this had on the lives of so many Filipino families. After, Producer Clayton Early and...

Who’s to blame for The Philippines Pepsi Number Fever? This week, it’s an all in-house affair! The Alarmist (Rebecca Delgado Smith) speaks with Producer Clayton Early, Fact Checker Chris Smith and Associate Producer Alex Paul about who’s to blame for The Philippines Pepsi Number Fever. With all its oversight, how could a major corporation like Pepsi mistakenly manufacture over 800,000 of the same...

On this week’s Aftermath, Rebecca speaks with media and legal expert Lonnie Soury about who’s to blame for the exonerated Central Park Five. Lonnie has testified before the New York State Assembly Codes Committee and is a co-founder of Families and Friends of the Wrongfully Convicted. He reminds us of the importance of knowing our rights and the immense persistence it takes overturning these diffi...

Who’s to blame for the Central Park Five? This week, The Alarmist (Rebecca Delgado Smith) welcomes back old friend Maggie Marion to discuss the Central Park Five and who is ultimately to blame for this horrific injustice. They’re joined by Fact Checker Chris Smith and Producer Clayton Early. After considering all the egregious aspects of this tragic moment in history, it’s hard to decide what NOT...