💥Wondery and Audacy's Pineapple Street Studios Announce Hysterical, a Limited Series from Podcaster Dan Taberski About a Mysterious Outbreak That May or May Not Be Mass Hysteria.

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Wondery and Audacy's Pineapple Street Studios—a company of leading premium podcast network Audacy Podcasts—announced today that it is bringing Hysterical to listeners everywhere, a seven-part investigative series by host Dan Tasberski about a mysterious 2011 illness contracted by a group of high school students across upstate New York.

Taberski, the podcast heavyweight behind several award-winning and genre-defining series, attempts to uncover what really happened in this fascinating case, and in the process, discovers similarities to other more recent mysterious events. Hysterical debuts on Wondery+, and is available for Prime members on Amazon Music and Amazon Music Unlimited subscribers on July 8. Hysterical will be available everywhere you get your podcasts starting July 22.

Hysterical forces listeners to grapple with the mysteries of their own minds and to reckon with a contagion thought to be long dead, but which may be the defining disorder of our time. It forces us to question our preconceived notions about sickness and health, about whose symptoms we take seriously, whose we dismiss, and why? Through the contemporary cases he selects, Taberski shines a light on our inescapable connectedness, and on the perils of assuming we are each an island unto ourselves. 

The series begins by examining the outbreak of a puzzling illness in LeRoy, NY, believed by some to be the most severe case of mass hysteria since the Salem Witch Trials. In the process, he discovers similarities to more recent mysterious cases, such as Havana Syndrome and the outbreak of police officers across America apparently overdosing from exposure to fentanyl.

Taberski has built an award-winning career in podcasting by crafting a number of thoughtful, well-researched series that take a deeper look at cultural phenomena and revisit overlooked ideas. Hysterical continues this vision by weaving together multiple modern and historical touch points, leading listeners to a better understanding of these compelling and unusual cases.

Taberski is a writer, director, producer, and Peabody award-winning podcaster. His most recent documentary project was 9/12, an audio series about post-9/11 America. Taberski is also the host and creator of limited run podcast series The Line, Running From COPS, Surviving Y2K, and Missing Richard Simmons. Prior to his career in podcasting, Taberski created the hit kids show Destroy Build Destroy for Cartoon Network, was a former producer for The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, and worked on economic policy in the Clinton White House.

Hysterical is a Wondery and Pineapple Street Studios production, marking the studios’ sixth collaboration, following The Competition, Ghost Story, Will Be Wild, Persona, and 9/12. It is Pineapple Street’s fifth series with Taberski. 

About Wondery

Wondery, an Amazon company, is a podcast studio known for character-driven, binge-worthy stories including Dr. Death, British Scandal, Even the Rich, and Business Wars, and distribution of hit partner shows Morbid and How I Built This. Wondery was behind six of the “Top 25 New Shows of 2023”, according to Podtrac, including Ghost Story, Exposed, and Stolen Hearts. Over 55 shows from Wondery have hit No. 1 on Apple Podcasts, including Scamfluencers and Stolen Hearts. Many Wondery podcasts have been adapted for scripted television or streaming series, including Dr. Death and Joe vs Carole on Peacock and The Shrink Next Door and WeCrashed on Apple TV+. Wondery has gained critical acclaim and commercial success for its immersive approach to sonic, emotionally driven storytelling. The Wondery app offers a unique, personalized podcast listening experience, including access to its premium ad-free offering Wondery+. With Wondery+, fans experience early access, exclusive episodes, and ad-free listening. https://wondery.com/

About Audacy’s Pineapple Street Studios:

Founded in Brooklyn in 2016 by Jenna Weiss-Berman and Max Linsky, Audacy’s Pineapple Street Studios paved the way for in-depth, diverse storytelling by way of high-quality original and partner podcasts. Pineapple Street Studios creates inventive, award-winning original podcasts: multi-episode narratives, investigative journalism, branded series, and talk shows that routinely debut in the top ten on the Apple Podcasts charts, reach tens of millions of listeners, and have been cited repeatedly on “best of” lists. Pineapple Street is behind some of the most critically acclaimed shows, including “9/12,” “Will Be Wild,” “Magnificent Jerk,” “Ghost Story,” “70 Over 70,” “Classy with Jonathan Menjivar,” Patrick Radden Keefe’s “Wind of Change,” “Welcome to Your Fantasy,” “Missing Richard Simmons,” “Back Issue,” The New York Times’ “Still Processing,” activist Brittany Packnett Cunningham’s “Undistracted,” and “The Catch and Kill Podcast with Ronan Farrow.”

About Audacy

Audacy, Inc. is a leading multi-platform audio content and entertainment company that connects with 200 million consumers. Powered by its exclusive, premium audio content that includes unrivaled leadership positions in news and sports radio, Audacy operates one of the country’s two scaled radio broadcasting groups, a rapidly growing direct-to-consumer digital audio platform, multiple audio networks, a major event business and a leading, award-winning podcast studio. Learn more at www.audacyinc.com, Facebook, X, LinkedIn and Instagram.

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