Things Fell Apart

Strange Stories from the History of the Culture Wars

By: Jon Ronson

Narrated by: Jon Ronson

Jon Ronson delves into the extraordinary history of our current cultural conflicts.

From taking the knee to transgender rights, wedge issues are everywhere in modern life - dividing opinions, polarising debate and tearing friendships and families apart. Even something as seemingly innocuous as wearing a facemask can provoke vicious disagreement. But how did we get here, and what does it mean for society going forward? In this gripping series, acclaimed writer and journalist Jon Ronson searches for the origin stories of the hostilities - the pebbles thrown in the pond, creating the ripples that led to where we are today.

His quest leads him from the Swiss Alps in the 1970s to contemporary Michigan, as he tracks down the cultural warriors involved in shaping some of the defining ideological battles of our era. Among them are filmmaker Frank Schaeffer, whose debut documentary triggered the explosive abortion rows that still rage over 40 years later; AIDs activist Steve Pieters, who prompted a crisis of conscience for televangelist Tammy Faye Bakker; Kelly Michaels, a day-care worker embroiled in America's 'Satanic panic'; and Brad Templeton, who shared a joke on a message board in the early days of the internet - and became the very first person to be publicly shamed for something they did online.

Surprising, nuanced and full of unexpected twists, these amazing human stories shed new light on our most ferocious cultural clashes, illuminating how we got caught up in them - and what we can learn from them.

NB: Contains language which some may find offensive and deals with adult themes.

Cast and credits:

Written and presented by Jon Ronson

Produced by Sarah Shebbeare

Assistant Producer: Sam Peach

Original music by Phil Channell

Mixed by Bob Nettles

Editor: Philip Sellars

With Frank Schaeffer, Amanda Robb, Rev Rusty Thomas, Alice Moore, Rev Jim Lewis, Roger McGough, Rev Ron English, Christian Gregory, Jay Bakker, Steve Pieters, Bob Larson, Jon Trott, Kelly Michaels, Brad Templeton, Luisa D'Amato, Brian Reid, Eric Charles, John Sack

With thanks to Trey Kay.

Archive from the PTL network's 'Tammy's House Party' and the 'PTL Club'

First broadcast BBC Radio 4, 9 November - 28 December 2021

©2022 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd (P)2022 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

Critic reviews

"A thoroughly satisfying listen." (Miranda Sawyer, The Guardian)

This is free on podcast apps

Love Jon Robson, love the series. I’m mad tho because this is free on my podcast app and i was charged one credit for this series >:((

I love Jon Ronson

I’ve heard someone say they’d listen to Jon Ronson read the dictionary, and I’m of the same opinion. My fondness for his soothing voice aside, I feel like his books always present an interesting topic, he does a great job interviewing subjects without bias, and really comes off as compassionate and caring. I appreciate this topic, with the frenzy of the past couple of years, it’s a very relevant topic, and despite what sort of unsettling ideas come up here, I seem to walk away not feeling complete despair, but uplifted. I think much of that is due to Ronsons personal journalism style, but again, I’m already a fan, so of course I loved it.

Great but should have been a free listen...

This is great and I don't regret spending a credit, but this should have been included in Audible's membership for free. It's far too short to be worth the cash price and not substantial enough to really be worth a credit.

That said, most of what's here just proves Christopher Hitchens correct: Religion poisons everything. We are largely a nation of idiots, the dumbest of whom are motivated authoritarians who make life more difficult for everybody--and the primary motivation is their imaginary friend.

Robson amazes again

Love, love, love Ronson’s amazing storytelling and reporting. The only issue I have is the format. This one is a compilation of radio episodes, so it starts with a promo intro, then every episode has the same opening repeated. This would not be an issue if it were a brief intro, but each one describes the series premise and has the same audio clips. Could be slightly tighter with a little editing. (They DID remove the end credits from all the episodes and tack them on at the end of the book, so it’s possible.) Otherwise, if you are a Ronson fan, this is another great in depth foray into the back story of how we got to today.

In this book, Jon takes us through the origins of the Culture Wars… how evangelicals embraced abortion, even though it was originally ignored as a Catholic cause, educational book bans, how Tammy Fae Bakker became a gay icon, fake news and child abuse, LGBTQA+ rights, etcetera… all leading up to the sparks igniting the events of Jan. 6, 2021 and it’s aftermath.

…and yes, it all ties together…

…and it doesn’t look like it’s going away soon.

Thanks, Jon, for providing the histories, the when, what and why. Looking forward to the next few project!

worthwhile

engrossing and thought provoking

makes me want to download and listen to more of his works

Fascinating Archaeology of The Origins of Conspiracy Theories.

While Ronson does a good job of tracking the rise and evolution of a number of popular tropes that have merged into an Alternative Reality so many of our fellow Citizens dwell in I think we need to delve deeper. I have lived through many, if not all, of these waves and have been disgusted by their silly outlandish beliefs. But the rise of QAnon and MAGA have exposed the danger they can pose to Life in America.

What has been even more puzzling has been the speed and scope of their wildfire spread and the grip that they maintained over their Believers. Whether the influence of Religion, Media, or Politics was the root cause of each, they all seemed to arise out of thin air and grow in power and extremism with no sufficient opposition from more Rational Forces in the Society.

Unlike the Hula Hoop, Pet Rock, or Disco fads that blossomed and faded in weeks or months leaving almost no trace behind, these Manias metastasized into Political and/or Religious Movements lasting years and tearing apart People, Families, and Institutions. Another interesting and dangerous quality we’ve experienced is the way disparate Theories tend to find common cause with others and multiply their influence, e.g. Anti-Abortion, LGBTQ, and Book Banning. Their Followers find a common thread and identify with other Members of their Tribe.

It is this last quality that Ronson hasn’t satisfactorily addressed in Things Fell Apart, perhaps because he’s a journalist and not a Psychologist. But why do these Theories attract a certain sliver of the Populace. I’m pretty sure you could connect the dots of each Tribe from Pro-Life to Satanic Panic to QAnon to MAGA.

There has to be some element of Personality, Education, Economics, etc. that makes these Followers vulnerable to the appeal of various Conspiracies. That, to me, is the worrying issue, because Social Media has made it much too easy for these Tribes to grow and spread. I think this book is a good start, but more research needs to be done to understand where these Folks live in these Fantasy Worlds. Four Stars. ****

I like Jon Ronson

I like Jon Ronson, and… I don’t know what else you want me to say…

distortions

Jon Ronson is a brilliant storyteller but this series is framed incredibly disingenuously. It is presented as though it is an impartial investigation into how things spiral out of control but it is quite clear who they think are being reasonable and who is not. I was left very disappointed.

sloppy, shallow reporting disguised as journalism

if you actually know anything about one or more of these topics, you know that Ronson borders on lying in these. he is a grifter.