The Max Headroom Pirate TV Incident Part 1

Before streaming and scrolling there was broadcast television—shared signals sent through the air for anyone with an antenna to catch. But when something’s that open, it’s also open to hijacking. In part one of our two-part series, we dig into one of the most bizarre and legendary cases of broadcast piracy: the Max Headroom Incident. On November 22, 1987, two Chicago stations were interrupted by a strange figure in a Max Headroom mask, delivering surreal, unsettling messages in a two-minute broadcast that has baffled and fascinated for nearly four decades. Who did it, why, and how did they pull it off? We explore the theories, the tech, and the legend that refuses to fade. Visit our website for a lot more information on this episode.

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The world is more mysterious than most people are comfortable imagining. We cross paths with the mystical from time to time and may not even notice it. If we do, we quickly return to our usually mundane daily existence. But what if we not only acknowledged the unknown, we investigated it and spoke with those in the know? That's what co-hosts Scott Philbrook & Forrest Burgess, and co-executive producer Tess Pfeifle do at Astonishing Legends. Over 100 million downloads and hundreds of thousands of listeners have discovered the thrill of exploring the mysteries of our world, showing that the unknown can be both captivating and intriguing. Welcome to Astonishing Legends!