Why Do We Turn on Innocent People?

Michael Stevens (0:01)

Hello, and welcome to The Rest Is Science. I'm Michael Stevens.

Hannah Fry (0:04)

And I'm Hannah Fry. For no reason at all.

I thought I'd do an episode about lying.

Michael Stevens (0:10)

Okay.

Hannah Fry (0:10)

An episode about accusations, about accusations, about witch hunts. I don't know, there's nothing in particular that gave me this as an inspiration, but.

Michael Stevens (0:21)

Apropos of nothing.

Hannah Fry (0:23)

Apropos of nothing. Let's talk about science.

Michael Stevens (0:26)

An episode about traits or personalities and lying, and accusing people of things that they may be innocent of.

Hannah Fry (0:39)

Exactly. Exactly. Apropos of nothing. Of nothing at all.

Michael Stevens (0:47)

This episode is brought to you by Cancer Research UK.

Hannah Fry (0:49)

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Michael Stevens (1:00)

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Hannah Fry (1:09)

And back down on Earth, Cancer Research UK is working with astronomers to explore tumors with technologies that are typically used to map the Milky Way, which I think gives you an idea of just how complex this disease is.

Michael Stevens (1:22)

That's right. There are over 200 different types of cancer. But by pushing boundaries and embracing the latest technologies, Cancer Research UK has helped double cancer survival in the UK over the past 50 years.

Hannah Fry (1:34)

And today it is continuing to save and improve lives around the world. For more information about Cancer Research UK, their research and breakthroughs and how you can support them, visit cancerresearchuk.org.

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Hannah Fry (2:52)

It was during the Olympics in 96 in Atlanta, and security guards found this unattended backpack.

Michael Stevens (3:01)

Yeah, I was 10 when it happened. Right.

I've read a little bit about it since.

Hannah Fry (3:06)

Go on, you tell me it, you tell me it. Because I mean, I only found out about it like two days ago.

Michael Stevens (3:11)

Well, from what I remember, a guy was falsely accused for quite a while. He was like a security guard there.

Hannah Fry (3:20)

Yeah, that's right.

Michael Stevens (3:21)

And the poor guy like really was just fingered. And for quite a while, it was like, yeah, it was him. And when the true perpetrator or perpetrators were discovered, the guy's life had been ruined. And there wasn't nearly as much attention on like, oh, no, actually forget everything that we said about him. So he just kind of became the bomber, the Olympic bomber.

But it wasn't him at all.

Hannah Fry (3:46)

Exactly. This story didn't have cut through here at all. When I came across, I was really astounded. So for those of you who haven't heard this story before, this is Olympics 1996 There's a security guard that finds this unattended backpack. Officers begin clearing the area and they manage to do it really quickly. So when the bomb explodes, only one person dies. Somebody else has a heart attack. There's 111 people who are injured, but it would have been way, way, way, way, way, way worse had there not been this quick response. So in the first 24 hours, the security guard, a guy called Richard Jewell, he's called a hero by the press. Everyone is really thankful to him for everything he did. But then exactly as you describe, somebody calls the FBI with a tip saying that they know Richard Jewell, and they think that he might have planted the bomb himself in order to look like a hero.