Podcasts by Smoke Screen: My Fugitive Dad
Smoke Screen is an investigative documentary series on people with complex motives and morals. Follow characters on the fringes of society — con artists, cult leaders, corrupt politicians — as they seduce their marks and bend communities to their will. Join us as we unravel their stories and bring justice to the people they’ve deceived.
SEASON 8: My Fugitive Dad
Further podcasts by Neon Hum Media
Podcast on the topic Gesellschaft und Kultur
All episodes
Episode 9: There's A Fire from 2021-12-14T08:30
Mariah talks to the Boyle Heights residents who watched as FBI agents raided Huizar’s home and offices. Three months into the pandemic, he’s arrested and pleads not guilty. The residents of CD14 ar...
ListenEpisode 8: The Downfall from 2021-12-07T08:30
Huizar’s carelessness starts to catch up with him. After more than a dozen all-expenses paid trips to Vegas with plenty of perks, Huizar gets played by one of his own. A businessman turned FBI info...
ListenEpisode 7: The Coverup from 2021-11-30T06:00
Huizar’s downfall started with a sexual harassment lawsuit. He didn’t have the hundreds of thousands of dollars to settle the suit on his own... so the Feds say he relied on a new friend. A develop...
ListenEpisode 6: The Heyday from 2021-11-23T08:30
Gentrification comes in waves. Over years, a piece of downtown LA transformed from Skid Row, to a bastion for young artists, to a hipster neighborhood with some of the highest rents in the city. By...
ListenEpisode 5: How Downtown Was Won from 2021-11-16T08:30
No man is an island. Huizar couldn’t have pulled off the alleged corruption scheme without help. Host Mariah Castañeda tells the story of how Huizar allegedly built the criminal enterprise the FBI ...
ListenEpisode 4: Progress Over People from 2021-11-09T08:30
When fancy new developments like The Gold Line expansion get proposed, residents of Boyle Heights wonder if it’s actually for them, or if these new new things are meant to attract future residents....
ListenEpisode 3: Red Flags from 2021-11-02T07:30
Alvin Parra worked for Huizar when he first got elected. He saw early warning signs that Huizar wasn’t the man of the people he made himself out to be. Parra tried to warn people about what he saw ...
ListenEpisode 2: Gentrification is Warfare from 2021-10-26T05:30
A militant organization called Defend Boyle Heights protests encroaching gentrification, by any means necessary. We dig into two origin stories: how Huizar emigrated at the age of 4 and ended up at...
ListenEpisode 1: The Gem of Boyle Heights from 2021-10-26T05:00
As a working-class Latinx neighborhood in Los Angeles faces gentrification, residents are ready to fight to defend their turf. Mariachis lead a rent strike and ask their councilman Jose Huizar for ...
ListenIntroducing The Sellout and Smoke Screen Plus from 2021-10-22T19:00
Jonathan Hirsch, Neon Hum CEO and host of I Am Rama, introduces this season of Smoke Screen (it's called The Sellout!) and our new paid subscription service, Smoke Screen Plus. If you buy a paid...
ListenComing Soon: The Sellout from 2021-10-12T19:44
Jose Huizar grew up in Boyle Heights – a working-class Latinx neighborhood in L.A. Eventually, he became their councilperson. And, for the most part, people trusted Huizar... until the day the F...
ListenChapter 10: Legacy from 2021-08-17T08:00
In this episode, we explore all that Rama left behind: students, a charitable foundation, music, books, and a complicated legacy. I Am Rama is a Neon Hum Original podcast.Host and Executive Produc...
ListenChapter 9: Conscience Bay from 2021-08-10T08:00
Power trips to paradise and never-before shared knowledge -- were these golden times, or Rama’s way of saying goodbye? This episode explores the final years leading of Rama's life. I Am Rama is a...
ListenChapter 8: Public Opinion from 2021-08-03T08:00
As Rama’s image took a hit in the public sphere, his students circled the wagons around their teacher. In something of a last ditch effort to win over the media, Rama accepts an invitation to appea...
ListenChapter 7: Accused from 2021-07-27T08:00
Multiple women accuse Rama of sexual misconduct and emotional manipulation. Many of Rama’s students defend their teacher. I Am Rama is a Neon Hum Original podcast.Host and Executive Producer: Jon...
ListenChapter 6: Deprogramming from 2021-07-20T08:00
Rama finds himself in the crosshairs of the Cult Awareness Network, a group dedicated to extricating people from what they consider to be cults by “deprogramming” them. But Rama’s students tell a m...
ListenChapter 5: Brenda from 2021-07-13T08:00
A young woman follows Rama to New York, and mysteriously vanishes, leaving behind many to wonder what happened. In this episode, people who knew and loved Brenda Kerber piece her story back togethe...
ListenChapter 4: Spiritual Contract from 2021-07-06T08:00
Will Arntz is a man of many talents, from filmmaker to laser physicist. In this episode, Will relives the time he spent studying with Rama and how it changed his life. I Am Rama is a Neon Hum Ori...
ListenChapter 3: California Dreaming from 2021-06-29T08:00
Rama’s growth as a spiritual teacher in the mid-80s starts in California but takes him and his students all over the country. Rama defines his doctrine, turning his attention to the potential of th...
ListenChapter 2: Becoming from 2021-06-22T10:30
This episode follows Frederick Lenz III from his early days and education through his introduction to spiritualism with his mentor, Sri Chinmoy, at the dawn of the New Age. Young Freddie becomes “...
ListenComing Soon: I Am Rama from 2021-06-08T10:00
Rama was a spiritual teacher in the 80s and 90s who inspired many of his students while helming what many of his detractors would describe as a cult. He defied society’s archetypal vision of a New ...
ListenIntroducing: Cheat! from 2021-05-24T08:00
Have you ever wondered about those people in life who don’t play by the rules? Maybe it was the person who looked over your shoulder in that exam. The person who got the job instead of you because ...
ListenIntroducing: The Vaping Fix from 2021-05-18T08:00
Two young Silicon Valley entrepreneurs set out to rid the world of smoking with an incredible new product. The device stands to disrupt the tobacco industry and make them rich, until it falls into ...
ListenEpisode 9: How To Get Away With Fraud from 2020-10-08T05:00
Until now, Father Ryan has mostly escaped punishment for stealing money from followers under false pretenses. What would it take for him to face a jury of his peers? Learn more about your ad choice...
ListenEpisode 8: Origin Story from 2020-10-01T05:00
Alex Schuman finally has his showdown with Father Ryan. But things don't go as planned because Father Ryan has something to confess about his past that sheds light on why he wanted to become a "pri...
ListenEpisode 7: Two Dead Priests from 2020-09-24T05:00
In his autobiography, Father Ryan connects himself to two priests who died suspiciously. One he accuses of molesting children. The other? He says he teamed up with to publicly shame pedophile pries...
ListenEpisode 6: No Good Deed Goes Unpunished from 2020-09-17T05:00
The father-daughter investigator team discovers the cop who arrested Father Ryan may have an ulterior motive. They defend Father Ryan tooth and nail - until they get a troubling surprise of their o...
ListenEpisode 5: Meet The Browns from 2020-09-10T05:00
A sheriff deputy arrests Father Ryan for taking more than $70,000 from an elderly follower. It's looking like he might get 7 years in prison, but then he meets a father-daughter pair of private inv...
ListenEpisode 4: Llama Drama from 2020-09-03T08:00
After Father Ryan steals a follower's money, her property and even her husband's ashes, she hires a lawyer. A legal battle ensues over unpaid loans and a herd of llamas that Father Ryan leaves high...
ListenEpisode 3: The Teacher from 2020-08-27T05:00
Even con artists need mentors. Meet the false prophet who teaches Father Ryan how to perfect his con. Father Ryan evades criminal charges again and Alex learns about an unspoken reason prosecutors ...
ListenEpisode 2: Coming Home from 2020-08-20T08:00
Alex tracks down Father Ryan’s son, Jonathan Brady, and discovers Father Ryan was a scammer and manipulator long before he wore a priestly robe. Turns out he had plenty of practice committing fraud...
ListenEpisode 1: An Unholy Priest from 2020-08-13T08:00
Investigative reporter Alex Schuman hears about a guy accused of swindling millions who has travelled the Midwest for decades pretending to be a priest. Alex starts his journey talking to two peopl...
ListenSmoke Screen: Fake Priest Trailer from 2020-07-31T00:10
For 30 years, a man claimed to be a priest. He performed baptisms and took confession. Every time he ran into trouble, Father Ryan would move on to another small Midwestern town and start his schem...
ListenIntroducing Smoke Screen: Fake Priest from 2020-07-31T00:10
For 30 years, a man claimed to be a priest. He performed baptisms and took confession. Every time he ran into trouble, Father Ryan would move on to another small Midwestern town and start his schem...
ListenSmoke Screen: Fake Priest Trailer from 2020-07-31T00:10
For 30 years, a man claimed to be a priest. He performed baptisms and took confession. Every time he ran into trouble, Father Ryan would move on to another small Midwestern town and start his schem...
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