When America’s Next Top Model premiered in the early 2000s, it looked like a golden ticket: a glamorous TV show that could catapult aspiring models into fame. But two decades later, many contestants describe its aftermath as a curse. Hosted by pop-culture journalist Bridget Armstrong, Curse of: America’s Next Top Model is a deep investigation into the hidden costs of reality television, and what the show’s legacy reveals about beauty, power, and the culture that cheered it on.  Through conversations with dozens of former contestants, producers and crew members, Curse of: America’s Next Top Model explores what happened behind the scenes on one of the most iconic and problematic reality shows of our generation.   The series starts off by exploring how ANTM almost didn’t get made. You’ll get the real story behind the show’s most infamous controversies. Then, the models and producers pull back the curtain and talk about how the most outrageous photoshoots and runaways came together. You’ll hear from contestants who say ANTM saved their lives and from those who say it ruined theirs. The contestants also talk about how the body shaming they experienced on the show caused lifelong scars. Finally, we try to answer the question, is Tyra Banks the ultimate reality television villain?   Curse of: America’s Next Top Model takes you on an investigative journey to figure out if the so-called curse is real? And if so, what was the toll on the models, and us, the audience?  

Maybe it’s just a quiet annoyance you’ve grudgingly learned to put up with, or a life defining issue that makes it hard to move forward. Whatever it is, Alex Goldman — reporter, radio producer, and overconfident idiot — will get to the bottom of it (if there’s a bottom to be found. Results may vary). Follow Alex as he figures out not only the vast hidden mechanisms that create these problems, but works with you, the listener, to find a solution. Or at least enough of an explanation that you’re ok with the annoyance. He’s not perfect. Hyperfixed is a proud member of Radiotopia from PRX, a network of independent and listener-supported podcasts. Discover audio with vision at radiotopia.fm.  Submit your problems and sign up for bonus episodes and much more at hyperfixedpod.com

Freakonomics co-author Stephen J. Dubner uncovers the hidden side of everything. Why is it safer to fly in an airplane than drive a car? How do we decide whom to marry? Why is the media so full of bad news? Also: things you never knew you wanted to know about wolves, bananas, pollution, search engines, and the quirks of human behavior. To get every show in the Freakonomics Radio Network without ads and a monthly bonus episode of Freakonomics Radio, start a free trial for SiriusXM Podcasts+ on Apple Podcasts or by visiting siriusxm.com/podcastsplus.

Witness is the home of investigative podcasts for news.com.au Witness Season 3: Sex, Lies and Streaming OnlyFans promised to change the game and give power back to creators. The reality? Most earn less than $100 a month, while a select few make millions. When news.com.au journalist James Weir set out to interview Bonnie Blue - the controversial British creator who claimed to have slept with over 1,000 men in 12 hours - he expected a straightforward story about viral fame. Instead, he uncovered an industry built on carefully constructed fantasies, bitter feuds, and inequality that mirrors the broader gig economy. From private jets and designer shopping sprees to creators struggling to pay rent, Sex, Lies and Streaming exposes the stark reality behind the glossiest success stories. Through unprecedented access to performers, agents, publicists and industry insiders, Weir follows the money trail from Australia to the neon-soaked halls of a Vegas porn convention and finds out who is really winning in the cutthroat world of subscription porn.  What starts as a hunt for one missing internet celebrity becomes an investigation into the true cost of the creator subscription model - where viral stunts generate headlines, public feuds fuel fortunes, and the line between performance and reality becomes increasingly blurred. This series contains mature themes and adult content. Read more and watch exclusive video content here Follow us on socials: Instagram: @newscomauhqFacebook: News.com.au TikTok: @news.com.au   Witness Season 2: William Tyrrell It’s 10.56am. A family home in Kendall, on the Mid North Coast of New South Wales. Three-year-old William Tyrrell is reported missing. Last seen wearing his favourite Spider-Man suit. Ten years after his disappearance on 12 September 2014, there is still no sign of William. The police believe his foster mother knows something. She denies it. Only one of them can be telling the truth. Witness: William Tyrrell is the new, landmark investigation from news.com.au. Read more and watch exclusive video content here Follow us on socials: Instagram: @newscomauhqFacebook: News.com.au TikTok: @news.com.au Subscribe to Crime X+ and listen to this podcast ad-free If you know anything about what happened to William, please call CrimeStoppers on 1800 333 000 Contact us confidentially at witness@news.com.au   Witness season 1: The Missing 49 Million The story of one Aussie man, the secret code he claimed to find buried in the Bible and 49 million dollars of investors' money that's gone missing. Gold Coast businessman Alan Metcalfe said his tech company had found the secret to artificial intelligence. He convinced hundreds of people to part with their life-savings but when Alan died, no one knew what had happened to their money.  Join Alex Turner-Cohen as she tries to find the missing millions, uncovering the wild story behind the company Alan promised would one day be “bigger than Google”.    

What makes you a heretic? Journalist Andrew Gold believes that, in an age of group-think and tribes, we need heretics - those who use unconventional wisdom to speak out against their own groups, from cancelled comedians and radical feminists to cult defectors and vigilantes hunting deviants. Learn from my guests how to rebel, think differently and resist social contagion. From Triggernometry's Konstantin Kisin and the world's most cancelled man Graham Linehan to Robbie Williams and atheist Richard Dawkins. These are the people living with the weight of their own community's disappointment on their shoulders.

Criminal is the first of its kind. A show about people who’ve done wrong, been wronged, or gotten caught somewhere in the middle. Hosted by Phoebe Judge. Named a Best Podcast of 2023 by the New York Times. Part of the Vox Media Podcast Network.

Danny’s quest to get smarter.

Yes, there's actually a Vagina Museum. Located in East London, the Vagina Museum is the world's first brick-and-mortar museum dedicated to vaginas, vulvas, and gynecological anatomy. We have a vision of a world where no one is ashamed of their bodies, everyone has bodily autonomy, and all of humanity works together to build a society that is free and equal. This is our podcast. Spoiler alert, it's about vaginas. Follow us on social media and visit the museum website, vaginamuseum.co.uk to learn more, get involved as a member, and support our work.

Tired of political headlines that feel like déjà vu? Wondering if you actually need to care about every controversy? This season, Katie’s asking those same questions—and talking to the people who have real answers. From political insiders to sharp-eyed journalists, she’s breaking down what’s worth your attention (and what’s not), with smarts, sanity, and even a little humor. Because none of us can be tuned in 24/7—but we can stay informed without losing our minds.  Tune in every Thursday and join Katie Couric and her guests for a conversation on NEXT QUESTION.

Have you ever walked past a mysterious stranger on a park bench and wondered about their lives? Tom Rosenthal (singer-songwriter by trade) has spent the last 6 months walking the many parks of London, approaching random bench-dwellers and asking if he can sit next to them and record their conversation. Every stranger remains anonymous, neither name or place of work is ever revealed (even to Tom himself), leading to greater openness, intimacy, and surprising revelations from the participants. 

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Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Sword and Scale is a weekly true crime podcast covering the dark underworld of crime and the criminal justice system’s response to it. The first episode launched January 1st, 2014 and feature stories of murder, abduction, rape, and even more bizarre forms of crime. It’s the purest form of true-crime where the raw uncensored audio tells the story. Everything from 911 calls to court testimony, interviews with victims and sometimes with perpetrators give listeners a 360 degree look at the seedy underbelly of human nature and so-called civilized society. Sword and scale proves that the worst monsters are real.

Four famous monsters, thousands of miles apart, share an impossible connection: they all appear above identical underground electrical grids. As scientists map these expanding tunnel networks, they've discovered these creatures might be working toward something bigger than anyone imagined.

Exes. We’ve all had one and we’ve all been one. And while breakups can be painful and heart-breaking, a complete surprise or a total relief, there’s always a story to be told.  This documentary-style series, narrated by Georgia Love, brings you a collection of unconventional stories about relationships past, through the eyes and the hearts of the very people who lived them. Tales of public humiliation and prison to forbidden love and funerals; we bring you the good, the bad and all the juicy details in between. Everyone Has An Ex explores the deep intricacies of relationships, the curve-balls life throws at you and overcoming adversity through resilience, honesty and a few glasses of wine. Submit your story: podcast@mamamia.com.au

Flightless Bird follows journalist David Farrier as he learns about what makes America special from his unique perspective as a Kiwi accidentally marooned in the Land of the Free. Infinitely curious but never judgmental, each week, David (along with cohost and American Rob) seeks to understand what makes America so unique, strange, and wonderful.

Decoder Ring is the show about cracking cultural mysteries. In each episode, host Willa Paskin takes a cultural question, object, or habit; examines its history; and tries to figure out what it means and why it matters. Get more of Decoder Ring with Slate Plus! Join for exclusive bonus episodes of Decoder Ring and ad-free listening on all your favorite Slate podcasts. Subscribe from the Decoder Ring show page on Apple Podcasts or Spotify. Or, visit slate.com/decoderplus for access wherever you listen.