Slow Burn: Watergate | Episode 6 - “Rabbit Holes”

Release Date: January 9, 2018

Host: Leon Neyfakh

Episode Overview

This episode, titled “Rabbit Holes,” explores the explosion of conspiracy theories in America following the Watergate scandal. Through select stories, archival tape, and expert commentary, the episode examines how Watergate didn’t just expose government wrongdoing—it fundamentally altered Americans’ relationship to truth and suspicion, launching the nation into a new era of skepticism and paranoia. The episode uses the 1972 crash of United Airlines Flight 553—killing Dorothy Hunt, wife of Watergate burglar E. Howard Hunt—as a lens to explore how real events fueled wild speculation, blurred the line between legitimate theories and outright conspiracies, and changed American belief systems forever.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Crash of United 553: Tragedy Meets Suspicion

• Opening Story: The episode sets the stage with United Airlines Flight 553’s crash on Chicago’s South Side (00:00–01:00). Dorothy Hunt, wife of Watergate operative E. Howard Hunt, was on board, carrying $10,000 in cash.
  • “As the Boeing 737 hit the ground, it sent a car flying through one house and sliced the roof off another.” (Narrator, 00:10)
• Media highlight: Investigators were tracing hundred-dollar bills found in Dorothy Hunt’s purse (01:09), stirring suspicions from the start.

2. Mae Brussell and the Rise of the Conspiracy Counterculture

• Mae Brussell, a California radio host, emerges as a key figure—dubbed the "Queen of Conspiracy."
  • “Brussell’s show is broadcast out of KLRB, a small left-wing FM rock station in California.” (Narrator, 01:47)
• Brussell quickly connected the crash to Watergate, spotlighting the immediate appointment of Nixon’s aides to key transportation and investigation posts following the crash (02:11).
  • "Now that's an interesting location for an espionage agent who's tied in with his whole team and secret funding." (Mae Brussell, 02:37)
• She speculated about the origins of Hunt's money and even referenced rumors of cyanide in the pilot’s bloodstream (02:49).
  • “The money came from El Paso Gas…there were cyanide traces in the bloodstream of the pilot in the crash…” (Mae Brussell, 02:49)

3. Expanding Circles of Paranoia

• Brussell compiled a list of 30 Watergate-connected deaths, including Martha Mitchell and J. Edgar Hoover. She promoted the idea they were victims of foul play (03:00–03:35).
  • “Martha Mitchell is dead. They murdered her the same way as they did Jack Ruby. And Martha Mitchell and Jack Ruby have a lot in common.” (Mae Brussell, 03:27)
• The host notes: Mae Brussell symbolized the energy unleashed by Watergate—one that made an entire generation more suspicious and eager to uncover government secrets (03:35).

4. Why America Became a Nation of Conspiracy Theorists

• Historian David Greenberg puts the phenomenon in context:
  • “We’re still coming out of the most heated, florid period of kind of 60s radicalism…” (David Greenberg, 04:06)
  • “There’s in the culture this deep-seated distrust of authority, distrust of officialdom. And so people are already in a skeptical frame of mind…” (David Greenberg, 04:19)
• Watergate proved that “the paranoiacs were right”—a real cabal existed.
  • “Watergate was a conspiracy.” (David Greenberg, 04:38)
  • “They really did steal and cheat and lie.” (Narrator, 04:43)
  • “Once you realize that part of the picture lies outside of you, you sort of wonder how much else.” (David Greenberg, 04:56)

5. Conspiracy Theories Become Mainstream

• Shift in public belief: After Watergate, Americans’ willingness to believe in hidden plots soared.
  • Example: The percentage of Americans convinced Lee Harvey Oswald was part of a conspiracy increased from 52% in 1963 to 81% in 1976 (05:05).
  • “Belief in others proliferates—American society has gone buggy on conspiracy theories, because so many nasty demonstrations of the real thing have turned up.” (Washington Post columnist, paraphrased by the narrator, 05:23–05:30)
• The “weird bouquet of conspiracy theories” after Watergate was American society’s response to an awakening: there really were secrets, and people wanted answers.

6. Defining the Line: Conspiracy Theory vs. Theory

• The episode sets out its central questions:
  • Why were so many ready to believe?
  • How did these beliefs help take Nixon down?
  • What distinguishes a conspiracy theory from a legitimate theory? (05:50–06:20)
• The opening crash story recurs as a motif: Did it “confirm to everybody that Mae had it right?” (News reporter, 06:20)
  • “If they had the proper witnesses, we'd begin to exhume some of these bodies and find out what's really happening in this nation.” (Mae Brussell, 06:28)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On the Mania for Explanations:
  • “All of the secrets and skullduggery that were revealed during Watergate created an enormous appetite for explanations and for answers.” (Narrator, 05:30)
• On the Culture of Distrust:
  • “There’s in the culture this deep-seated distrust of authority, distrust of officialdom. And so people are already in a skeptical frame of mind when it comes to official explanations.” (David Greenberg, 04:19)
• On Watergate’s Lasting Impact:
  • “Watergate turned everyone into a conspiracy theorist.” (Narrator, 03:35)
• Mae Brussell’s Challenge:
  • “If they had the proper witnesses, we’d begin to exhume some of these bodies and find out what’s really happening in this nation.” (Mae Brussell, 06:28)

Timeline of Key Segments

| Timestamp | Segment/Theme | |------------|------------------------------------------------------------| | 00:00–01:00| United 553 crash, Dorothy Hunt’s death and mysterious cash | | 01:09 | News report on found cash and investigation | | 01:23–02:43| Mae Brussell’s suspicions and theories | | 03:00–03:35| Brussell’s list of Watergate-related deaths | | 04:06–04:56| Historian Greenberg contextualizes post-Watergate paranoia | | 05:05 | Surge in public belief in conspiracy | | 05:50–06:20| Episode questions: why belief, impact on Nixon, theory vs. conspiracy | | 06:20–06:37| News and Brussell on the need for answers |

Final Thoughts

Rabbit Holes dives deep into how Watergate’s proven conspiracies set off an era where nothing official could be trusted at face value. The episode shows how a nation, confronted with evidence of backroom plots, slid into a maze of suspicion that would permanently reshape political culture—even beyond Nixon’s downfall. The stories of Mae Brussell and Dorothy Hunt highlight how fact and theory, coincidence and intent, became indistinguishable for millions of Americans.

“Watergate turned everyone into a conspiracy theorist.” — Narrator (03:35)

“If they had the proper witnesses, we’d begin to exhume some of these bodies and find out what’s really happening in this nation.” — Mae Brussell (06:28)