Summary: This week at In The Past Lane, the history podcast, we explore the rise of hoaxes, phonies, and fake news, beginning in the early 19th century. All societies are susceptible to hoaxes and scams, but there seems to be something about America’s culture of striving and reinvention that makes people vulnerable to the wily ways of tricksters, from P.T. Barnum to Bernie Madoff. To learn why, I speak with Kevin Young, author of, Bunk: The Rise of Hoaxes, Humbug, Plagiarists, Phonies, Post-Facts, and Fake News.
