Annie Kelly brings Jake, Julian, and Travis tales of the lesser known figures of the European witch hunts during the early modern period: the skeptics who openly doubted that every accused woman was actually a witch.

At the time, it was common for village communities in England, Spain, and France to accuse local women of cursing cows and similar satanic mischief. But a handful of men didn’t believe the mainstream belief that witchcraft was widespread. Doubts were raised by the Spanish royal physician Andrés Fernández de Laguna, the English gentleman Reginald Scot, and the inquisitor Alonso de Salazar Frías. Salazar even established rules on investigating witchcraft that set a high standard of proof. This subsequently saved an untold number of accused witches from being hanged or burned at the stake.

What can all of this tell us about the modern right’s use of the language of demonology to describe their enemies? Listen to get exclusive analysis from the National Baby.

To get a better background on the history of witch hunting, Annie interviewed Professor Marion Gibson from the University of Exeter, and author of the book Witchcraft: A History in 13 Trials.


Subscribe for $5 a month to get all the premium episodes:
https://patreon.com/qaa


Annie Kelly
https://bsky.app/profile/annieknk.bsky.social

Witchcraft: A History in 13 Trials by Marion Gibson
https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/Witchcraft/Marion-Gibson/9781668002438


Editing by Corey Klotz. Theme by Nick Sena. Additional music by Pontus Berghe. Theme Vocals by THEY/LIVE (https://instagram.com/theyylivve / https://sptfy.com/QrDm). Cover Art by Pedro Correa: (https://pedrocorrea.com)

https://qaapodcast.com

QAA was known as the QAnon Anonymous podcast.


Witchcraft Skeptics And The Spanish Inquisition (E306)

Andy, Tim and Charles take a look at the Jane Doe lawsuit for sexual assault against Diddy, and more importantly for this episode, Jay-Z. The litigation tactics of Jay-Z's attorney came under scrutiny both by the judge in the case and the pundits online. Crazy, or crazy like a fox? By the time we got this episode edited the case had been dropped by the plaintiff, so ... spoiler warning.

Andy: https://bsky.app/profile/wyattprivilege.bsky.social
Tim: https://bsky.app/profile/garliccorgi.bsky.social
Charles: https://bsky.app/profile/ugarles.bsky.social
David (music): https://bsky.app/profile/gloomfather.bsky.social

Thanks to David Shaw for the music, which you can find at https://orlandogloom.bandcamp.com/ and thank you to Snxwyfish for the sound engineering, which you can find at https://snxwyfish.bandcamp.com/.

Episode 30: Do Not Sue Us

Jake goes to Mexico City to learn the story of Mexico's anarchist past. He meets a dog and a cat.

NYC CUOMO ROAST
https://bit.ly/Cuomoroast

MERCH
poddamnamerica.bigcartel.com

PATREON
patreon.com/poddamnamerica

Son of a Water Dog

Dog trainers Zacky Limble (Andrew), Houndmaster Chengis (Branson), and Jazz Palmetto (Charles) discuss their idiosyncratic training styles. E1 on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/e1podcast

380 - Man’s Best Friend

Hundreds of people have been arrested in Los Angeles after days of protests, which are in response to aggressive immigration raids ordered by President Trump. When people took to social media to make sense of the events, they were confronted with fake, AI-generated videos of the protests and real photos that were labelled as out-of-context by AI. Thus breaking new ground in worthless, deceitful slop.

Plus, we speak to Anna Merlan at Mother Jones about her recent reporting on the RFK Jr.-connected “MAHA Institute.” That organization’s head, Leland Lehrman, has pushed extremist ideas for decades, including endorsing the conspiracist fraudulent text "Protocols of the Elders of Zion.” RFK Jr. himself is evidently embracing a genuinely anti-vax agenda in his role as Health Secretary by firing and replacing the Advisory Committee for Immunization Practices (ACIP).
We've seen the future. And the future is an AI chatbot telling you to treat your latest typhus infection with apple cider vinegar.

We've seen the future. And the future is an AI chatbot telling you to treat your latest typhus infection with apple cider vinegar.

Subscribe for $5 a month to get all the premium episodes:

https://patreon.com/qaa

///

Anna Merlan on Bluesky

https://bsky.app/profile/annamerlan.bsky.social

The Head of a New RFK-Backing Group Promoted 9/11 Conspiracy Theories and the Protocols of the Elders of Zion

https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2025/06/leland-lehrman-make-america-healthy-again-institute-antisemitism-september-11/

Flaming Hydra

https://flaminghydra.com/



//


Editing by Corey Klotz. Theme by Nick Sena. Additional music by Pontus Berghe. Theme Vocals by THEY/LIVE (https://instagram.com/theyylivve / https://sptfy.com/QrDm). Cover Art by Pedro Correa: (https://pedrocorrea.com)

https://qaapodcast.com

QAA was known as the QAnon Anonymous podcast.


REFERENCES

Bricks from Malaysia and New Jersey misrepresented amid LA unrest
https://factcheck.afp.com/doc.afp.com.49XW2T2

FACT FOCUS: A Craigslist ad is not proof of paid protesters in LA. It was posted as a prank
https://apnews.com/article/fact-check-los-angeles-paid-protesters-prank-48792aa47dcc2d8eeb9547d79d530037

Fake videos and conspiracies fuel falsehoods about Los Angeles protests
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/fake-videos-conspiracies-falsehoods-los-angeles-protests/

Los Angeles protests: How AI and chatbots are feeding fake news
https://www.france24.com/en/tv-shows/truth-or-fake/20250610-meet-bob-the-ai-generated-national-guard-soldier-sparking-misinformation

AI Chatbots Are Making LA Protest Disinformation Worse
https://www.wired.com/story/grok-chatgpt-ai-los-angeles-protest-disinformation/



New Disinformation and Old Diseases feat. Anna Merlan (E328)

A Mom’s For Liberty ‘Legislator of the Year” winner arrested for sexually abusing children and distributing CSAM. A horrifying politically motivated assassination. Julian dives into the disturbing details in charges filed against State Representative RJ May III and Travis debunks right wing claims that shooter Vance Luther Boelter is a Democrat.


Subscribe for $5 a month to get all the premium episodes:
https://patreon.com/qaa


Editing by Corey Klotz. Theme by Nick Sena. Additional music by Pontus Berghe. Theme Vocals by THEY/LIVE (https://instagram.com/theyylivve / https://sptfy.com/QrDm). Cover Art by Pedro Correa: (https://pedrocorrea.com)

https://qaapodcast.com




QAA was known as the QAnon Anonymous podcast.


A Time For Assassins and Pedophiles (E329)

Our old pal Steve Sladkowski from the band Pup stops by to talk tariffs, Canadian politics, TikTok, Drake's abs, and what peak performance looks like

Go see Pup on tour soon: https://www.puptheband.com/, and be sure to check out their new album

And support us on Patreon: www.patreon.com/trillbillyworkersparty

Episode 399: Venetian Polymath Diet (w/ special guest Steve Sladkowski)


The QAA crew is excited to announce the launch of a new podcast series network: Cursed Media. We hope you’ll also be excited for this expansion of our editorial line and support it by subscribing!

The very first Cursed Media podcast series is Science in Transition, an investigation into the intellectual origins of the contemporary right wing backlash against transgender acceptance. Through six deeply-researched episodes, hosts Liv Agar and Spencer Barrows unearth a bizarre coalition of well-meaning clinicians, aristocratic sexologists, militant feminists, right-wing culture warriors, headline-chasing journalists, and conservative politicians.

On this episode of QAA we are joined by Liv and Spencer to chat about what they found by digging through FOIA documents, interviewing experts, and diving into dense medical journals. 

Get access to Science in Transition plus all other Cursed Media content by following this link: 

https://www.cursedmedia.net/

Subscribers to Cursed Media get access to three new podcast series per year, plus every episode of QAA’s existing mini-series (properly organized!) 

Manclan by Julian Feeld and Annie Kelly, 
Trickle Down by Travis View
The Spectral Voyager by Jake Rockatansky and Brad Abrahams
Perverts by Julian Feeld and Liv Agar

Cursed Media logo by https://dayoff.ltd

What is "Science in Transition" feat Liv Agar & Spencer Barrows (E331)

We managed to catch up with actor and environmentalist Ed Begley Jr. while he was in town for Harry Dean Stanton Fest. We talked about a number of things like, of course, Harry Dean Stanton, as well as demonic possession, our favorite movies, and why a hot pot of magma will make you well-liked among all your friends. Also, happy birthday to our dearly departed Harry Dean Stanton.

Support us on Patreon: www.patreon.com/trillbillyworkersparty

BONUS: Six Degrees Of Ed Begley Jr. (w/ special guest Ed Begley Jr.)

This week we're talking "toxic empathy," more Epstein-Trump news, and finally the new Democratic formula for success: saying more curse words

Support us on Patreon: www.patreon.com/trillbillyworkersparty

Episode 401: Gotta Have Them Libs

This week we are joined by Dr.  Olivier Jutel, a lecturer in the Department of Media, Film & Communication at the University of Otago in Dunedin, New Zealand. His scholarly focus is in communication studies and media theory, particularly around populism, digital media, political economy, and critical theory.

Travis and Julian chat with Olivier about his iconoclastic take on the paradigms that have dominated U.S. technology and communications policy since 2016. 

Olivier argues that fear of foreign influence has been leveraged by a coalition of Silicon Valley firms, national‑security agencies and allied think‑tanks to deflect structural reform of platforms. Drawing on Cold‑War communication theory, this coalition frames all online conflict as “information warfare,” treating citizens as passive targets for behavioral manipulation while ignoring deeper political‑economic drivers of democratic decay. Jutel retraces the military origins of mass‑communication research, critiques Shoshana Zuboff’s “surveillance capitalism” thesis, and dissects the role of high‑profile disinfo professionals whose methods, he contends, don’t question the core assumptions of tech industry platforms and national‑security priorities. 

Olivier concludes that while this disinformation framework is past its heyday, its war‑like view of social life persists, empowering actors such as Palantir while sidelining antitrust and public‑interest remedies. The solution? A shift toward true democratic governance of digital infrastructure. 

Dr Olivier Jutel at University of Otago
https://www.otago.ac.nz/mfco/staff/olivier-jutel


Thanks for subscribing to QAA on patreon.

Editing by Corey Klotz. Theme by Nick Sena. Additional music by Pontus Berghe. Theme Vocals by THEY/LIVE (https://instagram.com/theyylivve / https://sptfy.com/QrDm). Cover Art by Pedro Correa: (https://pedrocorrea.com)

https://qaapodcast.com

QAA was known as the QAnon Anonymous podcast.

///

We’ve launched a new podcast miniseries network: Cursed Media. The very first Cursed Media miniseries is Science in Transition. 

Science in Transition is an investigation into the intellectual origins of the contemporary right wing backlash against transgender acceptance. Through six deeply-researched episodes, hosts Liv Agar and Spencer Barrows unearth a bizarre coalition of well-meaning clinicians, aristocratic sexologists, militant feminists, right-wing culture warriors, headline-chasing journalists, and conservative politicians.

Listen to the first five episodes of Science In Transition right now and all episodes after the sixth one is released by subscribing through this link.

www.cursedmedia.net/

Subscribers to Cursed Media get access to three new podcast series per year, plus every episode of QAA’s existing mini-series (properly organized!)


The Problem of Disinformation (E334)

Conspiracy theories, melted online communities and cursed media — we pry open the cracks in consensus reality and journey into the hidden worlds below. The QAA Podcast is a mix of reporting, comedy, and history hosted by Jake Rockatansky, Travis View, and Julian Feeld along with co-hosts Annie Kelly, Liv Agar and Brad Abrahams. Formerly known as the QAnon Anonymous podcast.

Witchcraft Skeptics And The Spanish Inquisition (E306)

QAA Podcast

Related tracks