For our landmark 150th episode, we explore one of humanity's most enduring questions: What is a witch? Far from being about broomsticks and cauldrons, the witch serves as a cultural mirror, reflecting society's deepest anxieties about power, gender, and the unknown. A witch is a designation that reveals more about the society doing the naming than about the accused. Throughout history, this label has been weaponized against the vulnerable, marginalized, and powerless as a means of social control...
Jul 09, 2025•42 min•Ep. 150
Come explore a forgotten witch panic that happened before Salem. This episode visits Springfield, Massachusetts to discuss a groundbreaking museum exhibit that brings the 1650-1652 Hugh and Mary Parsons witchcraft case to life. Curator Elizabeth Kapp explains how "Witch Panic: Massachusetts Before Salem" immerses visitors in this early witch panic through interactive elements that put visitors in the role of jury members. The exhibit reveals how this case influenced the more famous Salem trials ...
Jul 02, 2025•41 min•Ep. 149
Dig into the Salem witch trials with playwright Matt Cox, whose play Witches?! In Salem!? offers a fresh perspective on one of history's most tragic episodes. This isn't your typical historical drama – Cox has crafted something that's both rigorously researched and surprisingly funny, managing to honor the victims while illuminating the very human motivations behind the 1692 tragedy. Matt spent eight years developing this play, transforming it from a simple comedy about fantasy witches into a nu...
Jun 25, 2025•40 min•Ep. 148
Why does a 72-year-old play about 333-year-old witch trials still feel urgently relevant today? Arthur Miller's The Crucible has become theater's ultimate evergreen story, because it captures something timeless and terrifying about human nature—our willingness to destroy each other when fear takes hold. When Miller's play premiered on January 10, 1953, audiences immediately understood it wasn't really about Salem. This was Miller's bold response to McCarthyism, a thinly veiled critique of Senato...
Jun 18, 2025•45 min•Ep. 147
Join Josh and Sarah as they explore one of Scotland's most notorious witch trials - the Paisley Witch Trials of 1697 (also known as the Bargarran or Renfrewshire Witch Trials). This case represents a major witch hunt and mass execution in late 17th century Europe, where seven people lost their lives in Paisley after being accused by eleven-year-old Christian Shaw. What You'll Learn: • How eleven-year-old Christian Shaw's accusations against 35 people spiraled into Scotland's last major witch hun...
Jun 11, 2025•53 min•Ep. 146
Hosts Josh and Sarah welcome back author Beth Caruso to discuss Alice Young, New England's first documented witch trial victim, executed in Hartford, Connecticut in 1647. Beth shares her groundbreaking research that led to Alice's official exoneration by the Connecticut legislature in May 2023, after centuries of her story being nearly lost to history. The conversation explores how Beth pieced together Alice's life through limited historical records, neighborhood land documents, and epidemiologi...
Jun 04, 2025•49 min•Ep. 145
Welcome back to the Witch Hunt Podcast. This is the final episode in the four part series: The Evolution of Diabolical Witchcraft Belief . If you're just joining us, we recommend checking out the previous series episodes first, though this episode can certainly stand on its own. This completes our Evolution of Diabolical Witchcraft conversation with Professor Richard Raiswell of the University of Prince Edward Island, expert on Devil lore. In Part 1, we began examining the critical relationship ...
May 28, 2025•50 min•Ep. 144
Today we conclude our series: The Evolution of Diabolical Witchcraft Belief with Professor Raiswell of the University of Prince Edward Island, an expert in medieval devil lore, with another double episode release. If you're just joining us, we recommend checking out the previous series episodes first, though this episode can certainly stand on its own. In this episode, part 3 of the series, Dr. Raiswell takes us into the minds and lives of Heinrich Kramer, aka Institoris, and Jacob Sprenger, the...
May 28, 2025•49 min•Ep. 143
Welcome back to the Witch Hunt Podcast. This is episode 2 in The Evolution of Diabolical Witchcraft Belief . If you're just joining us, we recommend checking out Part 1 first , though this episode can certainly stand on its own. This marks the continuation of our conversation with Professor Richard Raiswell of the University of Prince Edward Island, who previously joined us for our fascinating "Speak of the Devil" episode where we explored Satan as one of history's most enduring and complex figu...
May 21, 2025•29 min•Ep. 142
We have a special treat for our listeners this week - not one but two new episodes dropping simultaneously! Today marks the return of Professor Richard Raiswell of the University of Prince Edward Island, who previously joined us for our fascinating "Speak of the Devil" episode where we explored Satan as one of history's most enduring and complex figures. In this two-part special The Evolution of Diabolical Witchcraft Belief Professor Raiswell takes us deeper into the dark intersection where demo...
May 21, 2025•50 min•Ep. 141
Are you curious about the Salem Witch Trials? Fascinated? Intrigued? Maybe even fully obsessed? Josh and Sarah from Witch Hunt podcast bring you The Thing About Salem , a podcast dedicated to uncovering all things about the Salem Witch Trials. Each week, in 15 minutes or less, we go through all the feels as we share a story and a discussion. Together, we will cry, rage, and even laugh a little about some of the silliness, like the witch cake baked with the urine of the afflicted girls. Early top...
May 17, 2025•2 min
In his return to Witch Hunt Podcast, Antonio Stuckey joins hosts Josh Hutchinson and Sarah Jack to discuss his research and book "Sober and Civil," chronicling the remarkable life of Salem witch trials survivor Sarah Cloyse. As the younger sister of executed victims Rebecca Nurse and Mary Esty, Sarah Cloyse's nine-month imprisonment represents a powerful chapter in Massachusetts witch trial history—one with personal significance to both hosts, who count her among their ancestors. Antonio shares ...
May 14, 2025•58 min•Ep. 140
Anthropologist Dr. Nora Groce from University College London discusses the troubling connection between disability and witchcraft accusations. Dr. Groce shares her research on why people with disabilities are targeted, including her study on the experience of persons with albinism in East Africa. We explore how traditional beliefs create stigma, discuss the global disability rights movement, and examine community-based solutions to protect vulnerable populations. This conversation will inform yo...
May 07, 2025•44 min•Ep. 139
In this scholarly episode of Witch Hunt Podcast, hosts Josh Hutchinson and Sarah Jack welcome historian Dr. Michael Ostling to examine one of witchcraft history's most persistent legends: the hallucinogenic flying ointment. Dr. Ostling carefully separates historical evidence from modern misconceptions, revealing how contemporary interpretations often reflect our own misogynistic projections rather than the experiences of those accused of witchcraft. Through thoughtful analysis, this episode resp...
Apr 30, 2025•55 min•Ep. 138
In this powerful episode, Josh and Sarah welcome Peter Ogik, Executive Director of Source of the Nile Union of Persons with Albinism in Uganda, who shares his personal story and advocacy work. About our guest: Peter Ogik was born and raised on an island in Lake Victoria, Uganda. As the first person with albinism in his community of about 600 people, Peter faced discrimination from birth but was fortunate to have supportive parents who advocated for him, especially in school settings where he ini...
Apr 23, 2025•55 min•Ep. 137
Discover the once-overlooked story of Elizabeth Johnson Jr., the Salem witch trial victim finally exonerated after 330 years. At just 22, this young Andover woman was pressured into falsely confessing to witchcraft in 1692. She narrowly escaped execution when Governor Phips ended the Salem witch trials. However, she was unjustly left out of the 1711 mass exoneration that cleared many others' names. Our guest, podcast regular Mary Bingham, reveals Elizabeth's remarkable life through court records...
Apr 16, 2025•54 min•Ep. 136
En el episodio de esta semana del podcast Witch Hunt, Josh y Sarah traducen al inglés cuando el invitado habla en español. Disfruten de esta nueva experiencia como nosotros. Damos la bienvenida a la fotógrafa documental y cineasta española Judith Prat. Con formación en derecho de los derechos humanos, Judith examina con contundencia la persecución de las mujeres acusadas de brujería en los Pirineos durante la Edad Moderna. Judith habla de su documental "Decian Que Era Bruja", que rinde homenaje ...
Apr 14, 2025•33 min
In this week's episode of Witch Hunt podcast, Josh and Sarah translate to English when the guest speaks in Spanish. Please enjoy this new experience like we have.. We welcome Spanish documentary photographer and filmmaker Judith Prat. With a background in human rights law, Judith powerfully examines the persecution of women accused of witchcraft in the Pyrenees during the early modern period. Judith discusses her documentary film "Decían Que Era Bruja" (They Said She Was a Witch), which pays tri...
Apr 09, 2025•52 min•Ep. 135
In this powerful episode, we explore the discrimination faced by persons with albinism across Africa through conversations with two remarkable advocates from the Sierra Leone Association of Persons with Albinism (SLAPWA). Join us as we welcome back Jay Kamara, a familiar voice to our listeners, alongside Daniella Garrick, a model, youth leader, and advocate who is representing Sierra Leone in the upcoming Miss Albinism Africa pageant in June 2025. Our guests share how marginalized communities ca...
Apr 02, 2025•35 min•Ep. 134
In this compelling episode, we welcome back returning guest Dr. Govind Kelkar. Building on her previous insights about women's experiences in India, Dr. Kelkar shares her recent groundbreaking research across eight northeastern Indian states, examining the complex interplay between traditional beliefs and modern pressures. Dr. Kelkar's fieldwork reveals how patriarchal systems have intensified within these communities, fueling the devaluation of women and perpetuating the dangerous practice of w...
Mar 26, 2025•51 min•Ep. 133
A cornerstone message of our Witch Hunt podcast and End Witch Hunts nonprofit centers on community-based advocacy paired with holistic intervention programs. Experts are illustrating that sustainable change requires coordinated efforts that empower local communities while addressing the complex root causes that perpetuate these harmful practices across the Americas. This final episode in our Podcasthon series examines unique manifestations of witch hunts throughout North, Central, and South Amer...
Mar 21, 2025•20 min
Our Ending Witch Hunts Podcasthon series now turns to Europe, home to history's most notorious stories on witch trials. Hosts Sarah and Josh talk about witch persecutions across England, Scotland, Ireland, Italy, Germany, France, and Portugal, while touching on a surprising truth: these aren't just historical events. The episode connects Europe's witch trial past with present-day manifestations, including physically harming exorcisms, spiritual abuse and ritual abuse cases in the UK and US. With...
Mar 20, 2025•21 min
In this episode for Podcasthon 2025, we welcome Holly Bamford, a History PhD candidate at Liverpool University who researches late medieval and early modern witchcraft and superstition. Holly examines the historical context of witch hunts through detailed case studies.We met Holly at the Magic and Witchcraft conference in York 2024, one of many academic events that help us connect with experts in the field of witch trial history and contemporary witch hunt research.The conversation covers the 16...
Mar 19, 2025•56 min•Ep. 132
Welcome back to our Podcasthon series, "Ending Witch Hunts." In this fourth installment, Josh and Sarah explore the pervasive issue of witch hunts across Asia. As Sarah notes, "The witch hunting story continues to unfold in ways many people don't realize." We examine how witch hunts and witch branding remain significant problems throughout parts of Asia, with a particular focus on India. Throughout the episode, we highlight the work of many local advocates who are fighting these dangerous practi...
Mar 18, 2025•23 min
Welcome back to our Podcasthon series, "Ending Witch Hunts." In this third installment of our Podcasthon series, Josh and Sarah continue the full story of witch hunting by examining contemporary SARV- sorcery accusations and related violence in Papua New Guinea. As Sarah reveals, "The witch hunting story is bigger than just what most people know. Pull back each layer and you find that witch hunts aren't a tall tale or an open-and-shut case." We will share about these layers through discussing th...
Mar 17, 2025•24 min
Welcome back to our Podcathon series, "Ending Witch Hunts." In this second installment, Josh and Sarah continue the full story of witch hunting by examining contemporary witch hunts across Africa. As Sarah reveals, "The witch hunting story is bigger than just what most people know. Pull back each layer and you find that witch hunts aren't a tall tale or an open-and-shut case." We will cover several nations across Africa and how advocates in specific communities are supporting victims and educati...
Mar 16, 2025•40 min
Join us each day March 15-21 as we participate in Podcasthon 2025, where more than 1,500 podcasters unite to amplify causes close to their hearts. We're proud to participate with our nonprofit End Witch Hunts, which is working to educate about persecution of alleged witches worldwide. When you think of the Salem Witch Trials, it might seem like ancient history—an open-and-shut case from a bygone era. But as Sarah reveals, "The witch hunting story is bigger than just Salem. Pull back each layer a...
Mar 15, 2025•30 min
In this episode, Professor Victoria Canning from Lancaster University discusses the overlooked intersection of criminology and witchcraft persecution. Through the lens of "zemiology"—the study of social harm—Canning examines how witchcraft accusations create profound physical, psychological, and cultural damage.Central to our conversation is her concept of "torturous violence," which expands definitions of torture beyond state actions to include sustained community violence with similar traumati...
Mar 12, 2025•51 min•Ep. 131
This International Women's Day, we revisit the story of Arminda de Jesus, a 32-year-old mother accused of witchcraft in 1933 Portugal. Through our interview with Dr. Inês Tadeu from the University of Madeira, we present the historical facts of this little-known case from the village of Soalhães. Dr. Tadeu's research through trial records and newspaper accounts provides context for understanding how witchcraft accusations persisted into the 20th century. Arminda's case, occurring just 22 years af...
Mar 08, 2025•25 min
Join us for an informative International Women's Day 2025 episode where we explore this year's theme: "Accelerate Action." We're shining a light on a global crisis often hidden from headlines - women and girls being accused of witchcraft, subjected to violence, exiled from their communities, and even killed. Discover how International Women's Day initiatives have already made tangible progress in combating these human rights violations. Since launching our podcast in 2022, we've covered heartbre...
Mar 05, 2025•25 min•Ep. 130
