One broadcast. One night. And the media has never told the same story since.
Some say the War of the Worlds radio broadcast sent the country into mass hysteria, with panicked listeners convinced Earth was under attack. Others say that hysteria was nothing more than a media myth, exaggerated to discredit radio as a new, powerful medium—just as radio once challenged newspapers, and just as podcasts are now reshaping how people consume news, bypassing traditional media gatekeepers. So which is it?
In this introductory episode of Even Line, we break down what really happened that night in 1938, what the press got right (or wrong), and what it all says about how media shapes what we believe—whether in the past, the present, or the future.
This is Even Line. Let’s get started.
Feb 6 202512 mins