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Hosted by Eric Byler · 🇺🇸 US · EN · 17 episodes
Established thought leaders with verified media credentials.
How did the lowest standards for accuracy and authenticity, like those of professional wrestling, become the standards for cable news, politics, and the U.S. federal government? World leading scholars and historians offer insights and clues in this "cultural forensics" investigation into how professional wrestling and its imitators transformed media, and thus all aspects of American life that depend on media.Wrestling Darkness (available with video via https://ericbyler.substack.com) begins with cultural shift that began with the runaway success of the World Wrestling Foundation (WWF) in the 1980s. Wrestling's engrossing approach to melodrama — reflecting current political conflicts with scripted scenes and violent choreography prescribing good guys, bad guys and avenues for fan participation — was then emulated by the Fox News channel, countless reality TV programs, and TV talk shows, also with meteoric success. Social media platforms have since deployed addictive algorithms that ex
Eric Byler hosts Wrestling Darkness, a society show with 17 episodes published.
The most famous and emblematic American hero of his time, he defended us against the offenses of foreigners, fairies, and egoists. He abused illegal steroids, but denied it so he could be a good role model for generation
In part 1 of my interview with Sisonke Msimang, I brought up the phenomenon of “Black fatigue” by telling her a story about a white man who had attended a Black Lives Matter rally during the aftermath of George Floyd’s m
Attempts to address racism are fruitless unless we find paths that lead to healing. This is one of many epiphanies I found in reading Sisonke Msimang’s acclaimed memoir, Always Another Country. We talked at length about
On the evening of April 2nd, 2013, Rev. Dr. William J. Barber II proposed what would become the Moral Monday movement to an emergency gathering at a North Carolina church. Within three years, they had taken down a govern
“This molten thing about interracial sex” was always at the core of fights about integration and equality, explains historian and author Dr. Timothy B. Tyson. “The Southern Rape Complex” fueled a century of hate crimes &
Without hiding her pain or her vulnerability, Nina Jankowicz describes how hundreds of thousands of grotesquely sexual and violent online assaults have hurt her, frightened her, and impacted her life. We must “fight for
“A deluge of content sorted by incentivized algorithms and shared instantaneously among aligned believers has enabled us to immerse ourselves in environments tailored to our own beliefs and populated with our own preferr
When we buy a ticket to see a movie or a play, the worst that can happen is we’ll be bored, or disappointed, or we won’t be able to maintain our suspension of disbelief. As viewers, we do all we can to believe in worlds
A $5 billion dollar deal to stream World Wrestling Entertainment on Netflix kicked off on January 6, 2025 with 4 matches sprinkled across three hours of pageantry. But the headlines were stolen by Hulk Hogan. Boos and sc
Seasons Greetings! The holidays have snuck up on me. I have added the documentary 9500 Liberty to the Wrestling Darkness feed as a bonus episode. In the opening seconds, you’ll understand how it relates to the podcast an
My guest in episode 4 of Wrestling Darkness is Professor Lawrence Lessig who explains in his essay, The Age of the Fantasist, how and why algorithmic media came to reward narratives that lie to us. “The fantasist doesn’t
Oscar Keohan and Jacob Johns traveled from Australia to tour the U.S. in the weeks leading up to the 2024 presidential election. But an unexpectedly dark turn at a Trump rally in North Carolina overshadowed their de Tocq
Abraham Josephine Riesman, author of the best-selling biography Ringmaster: Vince McMahon and the Unmaking of America., explains how the production of cheap, addictive entertainment such as pro wrestling, cable news, and
Dr Sharon Mazer is the author of Professional Wrestling: Sport and Spectacle, and the only woman in the Netflix documentary Mr. McMahon, argues that Donald Trump’s political career and persona are direct outgrowths of hi
A woman once told me she got divorced because of a film I made. Seeing the film deepened her misgivings about her husband’s racism, and after years of questioning herself, she left him. The woman was Asian and her husban
The Headless Klansman of Selma is the story of a Confederate monument that venerates the first Grand Wizard of the Ku Klux Klan. Like the Trump political phenomenon, the statue originated as a backlash against the result
Courtney Hester-Green is a U.S. military veteran whose daughter was born with Edwards syndrome and not expected to survive a year. Today, at age 5, she has a full life thanks in large part to Medicaid. This is Courtney's
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Wrestling Darkness is hosted by Eric Byler. The show is categorised under society (culture) and has published 17 episodes.
Wrestling Darkness has published 17 episodes.
Wrestling Darkness regularly covers society, culture, news. It sits in the society category, with a culture focus.
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Episodes of Wrestling Darkness average 35 minutes. a focused format where a clear narrative arc and tight preparation matter most.
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