
Birds Aren't Real
The True Story of Mass Avian Murder and the Largest Surveillance Campaign in US History
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Narrated by:
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Connor Gaydos
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Peter McIndoe
About this listen
This program is read by the authors.
The true story of the greatest conspiracy in US history—and how to fight back.
Have you ever seen a baby pigeon? You haven’t, have you? No one has, not in many, many years. They used to be everywhere. You couldn’t walk out of your front door in New York City in the 1930s without seeing dozens of those little guys scurrying around. Today, there are millions of grown up pigeons in New York, but not a baby pigeon to be seen. That’s because they come out of the factory as adults.
This is one of the many smoking guns of the bird drone surveillance crisis. Since 1959, the Deep State has mercilessly slaughtered over 12 billion birds and replaced them with identical drones that are designed to spy on private citizens and report their every action directly to the government. From pet canaries to Sesame Street, the shadowy figures that pull the strings have infiltrated every aspect of our society, making a mockery of civil liberties while the American people live in blissful ignorance. Until now.
In Birds Aren’t Real, whistleblowers Peter McIndoe and Connor Gaydos trace the roots of a political conspiracy so vast and well-hidden that it almost seems like an elaborate hoax. These hero Bird Truthers have risked life and limb to compile and disseminate a treasure trove of information about the origins of the surveillance crisis, its spread, and the patriots who are on the front lines today, raising awareness and working to reclaim America as the land of the free. This urgent manifesto features a host of useful illustrations, activities, and leaked classified documents that will convince even the most outspoken skeptic that birds aren’t real. The truth is out there: will you stand and fight before it’s too late?
A Macmillan Audio production from St. Martin’s Press.
©2024 Peter McIndoe and Connor Gaydos (P)2024 Macmillan AudioListeners also enjoyed...
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Critic reviews
“More than a million people have become followers of a conspiracy theory that birds aren’t real…[the movement] mirrors some of the absurdity that has taken flight across the country.”—60 Minutes
“This is Gen Z’s attempt to upend the rabbit hole with absurdism.”—New York Times
“The most perfect, playful distillation of where we are in relation to the media landscape we’ve built but can’t control…It’s a conspiracy-within-a-conspiracy.”—The Guardian
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- Unabridged
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In Evicted, Princeton sociologist and MacArthur “Genius” Matthew Desmond follows eight families in Milwaukee as they each struggle to keep a roof over their heads. Hailed as “wrenching and revelatory” (The Nation), “vivid and unsettling” (New York Review of Books), Evicted transforms our understanding of poverty and economic exploitation while providing fresh ideas for solving one of twenty-first-century America’s most devastating problems. Its unforgettable scenes of hope and loss remind us of the centrality of home, without which nothing else is possible.
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Former Property Manager
- By Charla on 05-18-16
By: Matthew Desmond
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The Death of Truth
- How Social Media and the Internet Gave Snake Oil Salesmen and Demagogues the Weapons They Needed to Destroy Trust and Polarize the World—and What We Can Do
- By: Steven Brill
- Narrated by: Dan Woren
- Length: 10 hrs and 32 mins
- Unabridged
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How did we become a world where facts—shared truths—have lost their power to hold us together as a community, as a country, globally? How have we allowed the proliferation of alternative facts, hoaxes, even conspiracy theories, to destroy our trust in institutions, leaders, and legitimate experts? Best-selling journalist Steven Brill documents the forces and people, from Silicon Valley to Moscow to Washington, that have created and exploited this world of chaos and division—and offers practical solutions for what we can do about it.
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It’s all about follow the money with programmatic advertising.
- By scott b burton on 11-07-24
By: Steven Brill
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This Is Not a Game with Marc Fennell
- By: Marc Fennell
- Narrated by: Marc Fennell
- Length: 3 hrs and 19 mins
- Unabridged
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This Is Not a Game is the extraordinary untold story of the internet’s first conspiracy theory, the legend of Ong’s Hat. Marc Fennell will dive deep into a previously unexplored world of tech hippies, eccentric web subcultures and simmering paranoia, uncovering how this tongue-in-cheek artistic experiment backfired on its creator and went on to influence much of what’s wrong with the internet today.
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WOW!
- By pondo on 05-09-24
By: Marc Fennell
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Stories Are Weapons
- Psychological Warfare and the American Mind
- By: Annalee Newitz
- Narrated by: Alexandra Cohler
- Length: 7 hrs and 2 mins
- Unabridged
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Annalee Newitz traces the way disinformation, propaganda, and violent threats have evolved from military weapons deployed against foreign adversaries into tools in domestic culture wars. Newitz delves into America's deep-rooted history with psychological operations, beginning with Benjamin Franklin's Revolutionary War-era fake newspaper and nineteenth-century wars on Indigenous nations, and reaching its apotheosis with the Cold War and twenty-first-century influence campaigns online.
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The Forever Wars
- By idrissa35653 on 12-27-24
By: Annalee Newitz
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Invisible Rulers
- The People Who Turn Lies into Reality
- By: Renee DiResta
- Narrated by: Anna Caputo
- Length: 15 hrs
- Unabridged
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Renée DiResta’s powerful, original investigation into the way power and influence have been profoundly transformed reveals how a virtual rumor mill of niche propagandists increasingly shapes public opinion. While propagandists position themselves as trustworthy Davids, their reach, influence, and economics make them classic Goliaths—invisible rulers who create bespoke realities to revolutionize politics, culture, and society. Their work is driven by a simple maxim: if you make it trend, you make it true.
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the more things change...
- By Gina S. on 07-01-24
By: Renee DiResta
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The Longest Con
- How Grifters, Swindlers, and Frauds Hijacked American Conservatism
- By: Joe Conason
- Narrated by: Steve Marvel
- Length: 10 hrs and 55 mins
- Unabridged
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The Longest Con tells the fascinating story of the partisan con artists who have corrupted conservative politics in our time, creating a toxic phenomenon that culminated in the election of Donald Trump, a bumptious fraud whose checkered career and tawdry retinue, including his presidential cabinet, have featured almost every variety of scam. But long before he appeared, Trump's path to power was blazed by the motley horde of swindlers and quacks who preceded him.
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America Needs to Know the Truth and Dangers of Trump
- By Tiberius on 12-01-24
By: Joe Conason
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Evicted
- Poverty and Profit in the American City
- By: Matthew Desmond
- Narrated by: Dion Graham
- Length: 11 hrs and 3 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall
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Performance
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Story
In Evicted, Princeton sociologist and MacArthur “Genius” Matthew Desmond follows eight families in Milwaukee as they each struggle to keep a roof over their heads. Hailed as “wrenching and revelatory” (The Nation), “vivid and unsettling” (New York Review of Books), Evicted transforms our understanding of poverty and economic exploitation while providing fresh ideas for solving one of twenty-first-century America’s most devastating problems. Its unforgettable scenes of hope and loss remind us of the centrality of home, without which nothing else is possible.
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Former Property Manager
- By Charla on 05-18-16
By: Matthew Desmond
What listeners say about Birds Aren't Real
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- Lucas
- 09-26-24
very solid dry humor for a light read, good on a road trip or something like that.
funny well performed comedy about conspiracies, a bit weak in the back 1/3rd or so, but otherwise few complaints
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- That Guy From the Video Store
- 06-06-24
I love that they committed to the bit.
No evolution in the story made it feel a little repetitive, but I love that they committed to the bit rather than reworking it to make the book a little more dynamic.
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1 person found this helpful
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- Guti
- 07-28-24
Would have loved to like this
The book is kind of funny, it got me a few laughs but overall it’s not a great book. The joke grows old super fast
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- J. C.
- 06-13-24
disappointed
I wanted to like this but not as funny as I'd hoped.
some of the jokes were pretty funny but most of them fell flat.
I don't regret purchasing it because I'm happy to support these guys who do an otherwise fantastic job on the Birds Aren't Real meme. I just think they may have to take a different approach when writing a book.
I think a different narrator might help. I know the authors are usually the best but this might have been funnier with somone who was better at a serious and deadpan delivery.
I still love you guys and no regrets on the purchase but I think you can do better.
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- Anonymous User
- 07-02-24
The truth we needed
The single most important exposé in the history of the United States. I cannot overstate how crucial the information in this book is to forming a correct understanding of the world around us. Never forget: There is bird propaganda all around us. if it flies it spies. Bird watching goes both ways. Spread the word!!!!!
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- Roger Bowersox
- 06-04-24
Confirmation of the greatest government conspiracy.
Confirmation of the greatest government conspiracy. Those of us who know will follow the instructions here to end the drones and bring back the burbs.
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2 people found this helpful
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- Mathias farnsworth
- 06-18-24
The truth is out for those who seek it
The overall book was interesting and funny explaining of the government take over the truth. The vail of government lies exposed
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1 person found this helpful
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- Chris V.
- 07-08-24
the truth will set you freer than birds
this should be free to spread the truth. perhaps this is a trap. perhaps it is a cash grab. either way, shut up and take my money level "informative".
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1 person found this helpful
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- cierra davis
- 10-27-24
Decent
Very Funny but a good listen. I struggle towards the end, trying to not skip forward.
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- Matt Garcia
- 10-21-24
Funny but a little too much satire toward the end
Funny but started to get ridiculous at the end. I finished it but struggled in the last hour or so. But definitely got several out loud chuckles!
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