Cheat!

In 2007, two Iowa-born brothers launched an artisanal chocolate company, Mast Brothers, out of an apartment in Williamsburg, Brooklyn—the hipster heart of the growing farm-to-table movement.

Mast quickly became a well-known operation, partly because their focus was on creating quality chocolate that only required two ingredients: cocoa beans and sugar. And these speciality bars—hand wrapped in expensive, beautifully designed paper—boasted a $10 price tag.

It was something people were willing to spend for a product that also came with a compelling origin story. But that all changed when customers started to question the narrative of what they had been sold.

A Somethin’ Else & Sony Music Entertainment production.

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In the US, around 700,000 gay, lesbian or bisexual people have received some form of conversion therapy. In the UK, thousands of LGBTQIA+ people have been offered or are undergoing it. But why and how do so many people end up going through this experience? And paying for it.

Chaim Levin was a 13 year old Jewish boy from an orthodox background the moment he realised he was gay. He was stood in a synagogue at his own bar mitzvah reading a passage from the Torah, that stated homosexuality was an abomination. That was the beginning of years of conversion therapy.

McRae Game spent 28 years of his life trying to convince other gay Christian folks to lead heterosexual lives. His organisation, one of the largest conversion therapy ministries in America, taught celibacy, then advised people to get married and start families with a member of the opposite sex. It wasn’t until 2019 however that McRae denounced the practice he had spent over two decades promoting and came to terms with who he was.

A Somethin’ Else Production.

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On the outside Helen Naylor had a pretty standard childhood. She had a father, a mother and roof over her head. But all was not as it seemed. In 2016, 2 years after her mother’s death, Helen discovered her diaries. And in those diaries lay not only the truth about her mother’s medical conditions. But also the truth about Helen’s upbringing.

A Somethin’ Else Production.

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The Kabbalah Centre took off when Madonna changed her name to Esther and joined their ranks. Soon enough, Ashton Kutcher, Victoria Beckham and many other celebrities were wearing the Kabbalah Centre’s signature red string bracelet.

But, the centre’s teachings were unconventional. They claimed that you could simply scan the words of the Zohar, even if you didn’t understand the Aramaic text, and reap spiritual benefits.

Journalist John Sweeney started an investigation and sent in an undercover agent to infiltrate the centre. What he found out was shocking.

A Somethin' Else production.

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In 1912, a British amateur archaeologist found fossils that would change the face of evolution. Charles Dawson claimed he had found the missing link - evidence that proved humans had evolved from apes.

The only problem? It was a complete hoax - one that went on for almost 40 years. What happens when we desperately want something to be true, even when science says it isn’t?

A Somethin’ Else & Sony Music Entertainment production.

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Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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