American Criminal

Cautionary Tales is the podcast that explores history's biggest missteps,and asks what we can learn from them. Whether it's a botched crime, a film flop, or a catastrophic plane crash, there is always a lesson. Each episode brings together storytelling, social-science analysis, and carefully crafted soundscapes. In "Number Fever: How Pepsi Nearly Went Pop", host Tim Harford explores the fallout from one of the most disastrous company promotions in history. When Pepsi accidentally printed winning numbers in 800,000 bottle caps, instead of two, chaos reigned. Thousands were told they were about to be lifted out of poverty, only to be informed it was all a mistake. People fight for what they've been promised, both in court and in the streets, resulting in several deaths. This episode looks at other examples of when company promotions have made mistakes, or customers have exploited poorly worded smallprint. Is the customer always right, or does the house always win? Listen to Cautionary Tales wherever you get podcasts. (Link: https://lnk.to/CTAmCriminal) To listen to all three episodes of 'The Great McDonald's Monopoly Heist' right now and ad-free, subscribe in Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠AmericanCriminal.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In 2001, the FBI receive an anonymous tip that the McDonald's Monopoly promotions have been rigged for years, and they set out to investigate. But what seems like a joke case at first soon turns deadly serious. And just when the story breaks, history happens, and a fast food competition doesn't seem so important anymore. To listen to all three episodes of 'The Great McDonald's Monopoly Heist' right now and ad-free, subscribe in Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠AmericanCriminal.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

After finding a way to steal the highest value prize tokens for the McDonald's Monopoly games, Jerry Jacobson had a problem: he needed people who could claim the prizes and then give him a cut. He didn't have the network to pull off a scheme like that. But he soon found people who did: the Mafia. To listen to all three episodes of 'The Great McDonald's Monopoly Heist' right now and ad-free, subscribe in Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠AmericanCriminal.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In 1987, McDonald's joined forces with another American icon for a marketing scheme. The McDonald's Monopoly promotion was so popular that the company decided to bring it back again and again, watching their sales spike every time. What they didn't know was that one man on the inside was rigging the game so that no one would ever win the big prizes -- for years. To listen to all three episodes of 'The Great McDonald's Monopoly Heist' right now and ad-free, subscribe in Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠AmericanCriminal.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Medical professionals are some of the most trusted people in our society. And for good reason. They dedicate their lives to helping others. Every now and again, you get a bad egg like Genene Jones, who seeks to hurt her patients, too. And then there are the more complicated cases. Walter Jackson wanted to help people. He really did. But his way of doing that was the transorbital lobotomy -- a procedure he pioneered and then performed thousands of times. To listen to all four episodes of 'The Killer Nurse: Genene Jones' right now and ad-free, subscribe in Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠AmericanCriminal.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices