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| Skeptoid | |
|---|---|
| Genre | Skepticism |
| Cast and voices | |
| Hosted by | Brian Dunning |
| Publication | |
| Original release | 2006 |
| Updates | Weekly |
Skeptoid is a weekly podcast created and hosted by American skeptic and author Brian Dunning.
The podcast is broadcast by WPRR Michigan, WIDE Wisconsin, and WXPI Pennsylvania. [1] [2] [3] In May 2012, Skeptoid Media became a 501(c)(3) educational nonprofit. [4] From 2022, the show is distributed by public media organization PRX's Dovetail publishing platform; PRX also provides sponsorship and promotional support. [5]
In celebration of the 300th episode of the podcast, Brian Dunning, composer Lee Sanders, singer Rachel Bloom, artist Jesse Horn, director Ryan Johnson and sound mixer Bill Simpkins produced the animated musical short, The Gypsy Queen. It is the story of a young girl who challenged the Queen and her rats who sold everyone in the village a uber-scarf which when worn across the eyes blinds the wearer to all unpleasantness. The villagers, once the uber-scarf was removed discovered they had been scammed, and while blind the rats had emptied the homes of food and valuables. The premier was released at the University of Irvine March 3, 2012. Entertainment that evening featured comedians Penny Chan and Matt Kirshen. Mentalism by Mark Edward, emceed by Emery Emery. [6]
Each roughly ten-minute Skeptoid episode focuses on a single issue that is generally pseudoscientific in nature. [7] Transcriptions of the episodes are available on line, [8] and usually fall into one of four categories:
In May 2007, Skeptoid was announced as a qualifying media outlet for the James Randi Educational Foundation's "One Million Dollar Paranormal Challenge". [9] Applicants to the challenge must have a presence in popular broadcast media in order to qualify. By passing a simple test of their paranormal ability and having it reported on the Skeptoid podcast, applicants can satisfy that primary requirement and then proceed to apply for the Challenge. [10]
Approximately 1500 websites link to the podcasts, and the website ranks in the top 168,000 websites in the world. [11]
In 2013, along with similarly themed Point of Inquiry , Skepticality: The Official Podcast of Skeptic Magazine , and The Skeptics' Guide to the Universe , it was listed on an iTunes (US) web page of popular science and medicine podcasts. [12] In May 2014, Skeptoid's website reported that the podcast had a weekly average of 161,000 downloads. [13]
Skeptoid was a 2009 Podcast Awards finalist in the Education category. [14]
In 2010, Skeptoid won the Parsec Award for "Best Fact Behind the Fiction" podcast. [15] [16]
Skeptoid was recognized for "Outstanding Contribution to Science and Skepticism" by the Independent Investigations Group (IIG) [17]
Beginning in 2007, Dunning authored a series of books based upon the Skeptoid podcast episodes. [18] [19] [20] [21] [22] [23] By 2012, four books have been published based on the podcast. [24]
