🎙️ Get the ad-free version and exclusive bonus segments here:
/ https://www.patreon.com/c/MADWarfare

We turned serial killers into celebrities.
Then we made documentaries about them.
Then we watched them… to relax.

Cool cool cool.

But why do we binge murder before bed?

In this episode of Mad Warfare, we sit down with criminologist Dr. Scott Bonn to unpack our collective obsession with true crime—and what it reveals about how attention, fear, and storytelling really work.

From Jack the Ripper to Netflix-era "celebrity monsters," we break down how killers become brands… and why they keep winning the attention economy.

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IG: (@docbonn25)
Website: https://www.docbonn.com/

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Want To Support MAD?

Sponsor us.
We'll make you a weird, wonderful custom video.

Email: madwarfarepodcast@gmail.com

(Or send snacks. Still counts.)

⸻

MAD Warfare™ is hosted by Jocelyn Brady and Sean Anthony Guillory.
Edited and produced by Amine el Filali.

Visit madwarfare.com for more.
Send dream guests, wild ideas, and sponsorship inquiries (yes, again) to madwarfarepodcast@gmail.com

⸻

Fair Use

This show includes short clips and references used for commentary, education, and transformation under Fair Use.
If we missed attribution or you'd like to collaborate, reach out—we're happy to chat.

🎙️ Get the ad-free version and exclusive bonus segments here:
https://www.patreon.com/cw/MADWarfare

What if a huge chunk of American politics is basically melodrama with better lighting?

In this episode, we talk with Dr. Shan — professor, pop culture decoder, and creator of Pop Smart Media — about the stories that script how we see power, morality, identity, and each other. We get into melodrama, dystopia, Christianity, climate storytelling, radical imagination, and why so many of us are trapped in narratives built around heroes, villains, and victims.

Dr. Shan breaks down how melodrama became the default language of Hollywood, how it shapes political rhetoric, and why it can make compromise feel like surrendering to evil. We also talk about values-based communication, the limits of facts when identity is on the line, and why better futures require more than just warning people about collapse.

If you've ever wondered why everything feels like a battle between pure good and pure evil — or how we tell better stories that make room for complexity, collective action, and actual change — this one's for you.

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Popsmart Substack
https://popsmartmedia.substack.com/

Popsmart YT
https://www.youtube.com/@UCwLvuH8rBlVOjeQNSfVtJsA

Pleasure is Political YT
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL3UM07LnM750nxkAkPKC3twPNmNhSClNx
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Timestamps (approx)

• 00:00 Heroes, villains, victims, and the politics of scripted identity
• 02:00 How Dr. Shan found her way from theater to politics and pop culture
• 03:00 What melodrama actually is: the six tropes
• 08:00 Christianity, suffering, and why melodrama feels so familiar in America
• 10:00 French theater loopholes, silent film, and how melodrama became Hollywood's native language
• 15:00 Redemption arcs, moral certainty, and why politics gets stuck in good-vs-evil thinking
• 19:00 Climate change as melodrama — and why "be the hero" can backfire
• 24:00 Genre as shortcut: how tiny signals trigger huge narrative assumptions
• 26:00 Complexity, cognitive dissonance, and why facts alone often fail
• 28:00 Values-based communication and finding common ground without collapsing your convictions
• 31:00 Radical imagination, agency, and building better worlds from fragments
• 36:00 Why dystopias are useful — and why too much dystopia can become paralyzing
• 40:00 Individual heroes vs. collective action in storytelling
• 44:00 Star Wars, Star Trek, Soviet cinema, and alternatives to the lone savior
• 49:00 Conspiracy thinking, certainty, and the paranoid style of politics
• 53:00 Cognitive flexibility, moral clarity, and living with nuance
• 55:00 Wargaming, immersive theater, and rehearsing futures together
• 58:00 Pleasure Is Political + where to find Dr. Shan
• 59:00 End

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Mentioned / Themes

• Melodrama as a political framework
• Hero / victim / villain storytelling
• Suffering as virtue
• Redemption arcs and moral rigidity
• Hollywood, silent film, and French theater history
• Climate storytelling and individual vs. systemic action
• Dystopia and cognitive estrangement
• Values-based communication
• Radical imagination
• Collective action vs. lone heroes
• Conspiracy thinking and certainty addiction
• Cognitive flexibility and nuance
• Wargaming / immersive futures
• Pop Smart Media
• Pleasure Is Political

⸻

Want To Support MAD?

Sponsor us.
We'll make you a weird, wonderful custom video.

Email: madwarfarepodcast@gmail.com

(Or send snacks. Still counts.)

⸻

MAD Warfare™ is hosted by narrative strategist Jocelyn Brady and cognitive neuroscientist Sean Anthony Guillory.
Edited and produced by Amine el Filali.

Visit madwarfare.com for extra giggles.
Send dream guests, weird ideas, wishes, and sponsorship inquiries (yes, again) to madwarfarepodcast@gmail.com.

⸻

Fair Use

This show is MAD enough to include homages, short clips, and references that provide vital context and/or moments of joy. We deeply respect every creator's work and use these moments for educational, artistic, and transformative purposes under Fair Use. If we missed an attribution or you'd like to collaborate, reach out—we're happy to chat.

🎙️ Get the ad-free version and exclusive bonus segments here:
/ madwarfare

What do foreign intelligence services and your social media feed have in common?

More than most people want to admit.

In this episode, we talk with Jennifer Ewbank — former CIA officer and former head of digital technology at the Agency — about cognitive freedom, manipulation, trust, and what espionage teaches you about the way influence actually works.

We get into the overlap between spycraft and algorithmic persuasion, why hostile actors and commercial platforms often pull the same psychological levers, and how outrage, distraction, and confirmation bias can quietly trap us in what Jennifer calls a comfortable cage. We also talk about deepfakes, the erosion of trust, cognitive liberty, and the practical habits people can build to protect their own minds.

If you've ever wondered whether your feed is informing you, influencing you, or just farming your nervous system for engagement… this one's for you.

⸻

Want To Support MAD?
Sponsor us.
We'll make you a weird, wonderful custom video.
Email: madwarfarepodcast@gmail.com
(Or send snacks. Still counts.)

⸻

MAD Warfare™ is hosted by narrative strategist Jocelyn Brady and cognitive neuroscientist Sean Anthony Guillory.
Edited and produced by Amine el Filali.

Visit madwarfare.com for extra giggles.
Send dream guests, weird ideas, wishes, and sponsorship inquiries (yes, again) to madwarfarepodcast@gmail.com.

⸻

Fair Use
This show is MAD enough to include homages, short clips, and references that provide vital context and/or moments of joy. We deeply respect every creator's work and use these moments for educational, artistic, and transformative purposes under Fair Use. If we missed an attribution or you'd like to collaborate, reach out—we're happy to chat.