In this special Halloween edition of Close All Tabs, we’re diving into creepypastas: horror stories that spread online until they become urban legends on their own. What happened to the girl who fell into a mirror in 2001? Did Ted the Caver ever come back to the surface? Was the Momo challenge real? And finally, we venture into eBay’s haunted doll marketplace … where we may have ended up with a spirit wreaking havoc on the production of this episode. It’s a ghoulish good time.
Guests:
Hallie Tut, visual effects artist, and digital content creator
Craig Groshek, horror author and founder of Chilling Tales for Dark Nights
Ted Hegemann, author of "Ted the Caver”
Rena Lee, social media manager
Sophia Bruno, educational nonprofit coordinator
Paranormal Teej, haunted doll collector & paranormal investigator
Further Reading/Listening:
How She Creates VFX Shots That Break Your Brain — Hallie Tut, Youtube
Ted the Caver — Ted Hegemann
Momo (Creepypasta) — Villains Wiki
Momo Challenge Is Everything That’s Wrong with the Internet — Lance Ulanoff, Medium
Ubume — Yokai.com
How 'Momo', a global social media hoax about a paranormal threat to kids, morphed into a U.S. viral phenomenon — Ben Collins and Shoshana Wodinsky, NBC News
Finally, the truth behind the 'haunted' Dybbuk Box can be revealed — Inverse
The witches of eBay: Inside the industry selling haunted items online — Daniella Scott, Cosmopolitan
The Backrooms: How Kane Parsons turned creepypasta into cinema — Jack Mills, Dazed
The Eerie Backstory Behind Backrooms — Nadira Goffe, Slate
Revisiting Creepypasta, the Social Horror Craze That Launched Slenderman — Zac Thompson, VICE
Read the Transcript here
Email us at CloseAllTabs@KQED.org
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Credits: Close All Tabs is hosted by Morgan Sung. Our team includes producer Maya Cueva, editor Chris Hambrick and senior editor Chris Egusa who also composed our theme song and credits music. Additional production by Cayla Mihalovich. Our intern is Lauren Yoon. Additional music from APM. Audio engineering by Brendan Willard and Chris Egusa. Audience engagement support from Maha Sanad. Jen Chien is our Director of Podcasts. Ethan Toven-Lindsey is our Editor in Chief.
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