Adam Ruins Everything

S01 E01 · 2015-09-29 · 30 min

Adam Ruins Giving

Adam exposes why shoe companies that give away free footwear do more harm than good, and explains why you should stop giving food pantries your leftover canned goods.

S01 E02 · 2015-10-06 · 30 min

Adam Ruins Security

Adam sets his sights on security, explaining that airport security wastes too much of our time and money, medicine safety seals do nothing to protect us, and your credit card number isn't remotely secure.

S01 E03 · 2015-10-13 · 30 min

Adam Ruins Cars

Adam exposes the surprising truths behind car dealerships, and the fact that the concept of "jaywalking" was created by auto manufacturers to blame pedestrians for car crashes.

S01 E04 · 2015-10-20 · 30 min

Adam Ruins Forensic Science

Adam uncovers the scary truth behind unreliable methods used as evidence in criminal cases. He exposes the flaws of fingerprinting, hair strand matches and bite mark analysis - which often send innocent people to jail.

S01 E05 · 2015-10-27 · 30 min

Adam Ruins Restaurants

Adam explains why tipping is a custom worth ditching, shows that experts can't tell the difference between wines, and reveals that mislabeled seafood is rampant in the industry.

S01 E06 · 2015-11-03 · 30 min

Adam Ruins Hygiene

Adam reveals that the term "halitosis" was popularized in a 1920's ad campaign that used cruel ads to make people insecure about their breath, and explains why running water is one of the greatest miracles of modern times.

S01 E07 · 2015-11-10 · 30 min

Adam Ruins Voting

The twisted history of the Electoral College, explaining that the Founding Fathers did not want most Americans to vote.

S01 E08 · 2015-11-17 · 30 min

Adam Ruins Work

Adam shows how the 40-hour work week not only exhausts employees but also harms businesses, reveals the legal mess of hiring interns and freelancers, and explores how discussing your salary with co-workers is actually a good thing.

S01 E09 · 2015-12-01 · 30 min

Adam Ruins Summer Fun

Adam reveals that extended vacation makes you dumber, and that iconic rodent Mickey Mouse has made a mess of our copyright laws.

S01 E10 · 2015-12-08 · 30 min

Adam Ruins Sex

This episode explains why circumcision is common in the United States, how Herpes isn't as scary as the media makes it seem, how most people do not truly understand the hymen, and explains the worst sexual problem of all.

S01 E11 · 2015-12-15 · 30 min

Adam Ruins Nutrition

Adam shows why vitamin supplements don't make us any healthier, that the "balanced breakfast" we've been sold is anything but, and reveals how most of the nutritional science the media reports on isn't science at all.

S01 E12 · 2015-12-22 · 30 min

Adam Ruins Death

In a limbo setting, Adam exhibits several failed attempts at terrestrial immortality, and reveals the American funeral industry's more exploitive tactics of mourners. After his date dies in a freak accident, however, he concedes that grappling with uncertainty with death can be just as healthy as clear-cut answers.

S01 E13 · 2016-08-23 · 30 min

Adam Ruins Hollywood

Straight from the red carpet (and with the help of celebrity guests Rachel Bloom and Ariana Madix), Adam exposes the hidden truths behind Hollywood's glitz and glamour, from the clothes stars wear to the process behind movie ratings.

S01 E14 · 2016-08-30 · 30 min

Adam Ruins Football

Adam hits the gridiron to illustrate why the playoffs rarely determine which team is best, then he explores how hydration myths spread by sports drink companies are putting kids at risk. Adam also tackles football-caused brain injuries.

S01 E15 · 2016-09-06 · 30 min

Adam Ruins Weddings

Emily and Murph's wedding day is finally here - but Adam's gift of information may rain on their parade. Adam reveals how most wedding "traditions" were recently created by consumerism, and that divorce is actually a wonderful thing.

S01 E16 · 2016-09-13 · 30 min

Adam Ruins Malls

Adam illustrates that shopping centres were created as tax loopholes for greedy developers, outlet stores are a scam selling low quality merchandise, and nutrient supplements are often dangerously unregulated.

S01 E17 · 2016-09-20 · 30 min

Adam Ruins Animals

Adam explores how purebred dogs are genetic monsters created by bored Victorians and reveals how domestic cats are overpopulated, lethal killing machines.

S01 E18 · 2016-09-27 · 30 min

Adam Ruins Immigration

S01 E19 · 2016-10-04 · 30 min

Adam Ruins Housing

Adam gets evicted from his home, and while searching for a new place, he exposes the harsh realities of real estate. Plus, Adam explains why helping the homeless is a lot simpler and more straightforward than you might think.

S01 E20 · 2016-11-15 · 30 min

Adam Ruins Drugs

Adam weeds through the misconceptions of marijuana and exposes the blunt truth about the War on Drugs - that it stemmed from a racist and political agenda. Plus, Adam illustrates why prescription pills are the true gateway drug.

S01 E21 · 2016-11-22 · 30 min

Adam Ruins Prison

When Emily gets tossed in the slammer, her cellmate reveals that corporations make money off prison inmates while the system does nothing to reduce crime. Adam then sheds light on jail rehabilitation and solitary confinement.

S01 E22 · 2016-11-29 · 30 min

Adam Ruins the Wild West

Adam reveals how prostitution - despite its reputation - actually helped settle the West. He then explains why the "All-American Cowboy" is a myth and that the real western hero wasn't a person; it was air conditioning.

S01 E23 · 2016-12-06 · 30 min

Adam Ruins the Internet

While on a magical technological journey, Adam shows that smartphones are not the society-killers you'd think they are, American cable service providers are basically cartels, and most "free" sites are actually very costly.

S01 E24 · 2016-12-13 · 30 min

Adam Ruins Justice

After getting Emily out of prison, Adam and his sister Rhea take on the justice system; shining a spotlight on the infamous McDonalds hot coffee lawsuit and the substantial problems with the jury duty system.

S01 E25 · 2016-12-20 · 30 min

Adam Ruins Christmas

Ho ho...huh?! Adam teaches his sister that the real St. Nick story is a lot creepier than she thought, and modern Santa was created by commercialism only a century ago. Adam also reveals how gift-giving actually hurts the economy.

S01 E26 · 2016-12-27 · 30 min

Adam Ruins Going Green

Adam meets a young dad on a personal mission to save the world and end climate change...until Adam turns his world upside down. Find out why electric cars and green products don't make the impact you've been promised.

S02 E01 · 2017-07-11 · 30 min

Adam Ruins Having a Baby

Adam dispels the myth about getting pregnant after 35, delves into breastfeeding vs formula, and explores postpartum depression for women - and men.

S02 E02 · 2017-07-18 · 30 min

Adam Ruins Weight Loss

Host Adam Conover illustrates all the reasons low-fat diets can actually make you fatter, and why counting calories is a waste of time.

S02 E03 · 2017-07-25 · 30 min

Adam Ruins the Hospital

Adam Conover explains that inflated hospital costs have created a system that's unaffordable and unfair. Plus, the reckless prescription of antibiotics is making them worthless, and you might not need a mammogram.

S02 E04 · 2017-08-01 · 30 min

Adam Ruins Dating

Adam swipes right on knowledge by exposing the flaws in dating sites; the existence of alpha males (and wolves); personality tests.

S02 E05 · 2017-08-08 · 30 min

Adam Ruins Art

Adam poses the question of what makes great art and shows why pieces visible to the masses are revered, regardless of artistic merit. He then exposes the masters as copycats and reveals that today's art market is a moneymaking scheme.

S02 E06 · 2017-08-15 · 30 min

Adam Ruins What We Learned in School

Adam shows that Columbus didn't discover America, King Tut was a dud and the rules of grammar are not as ironclad as people think.

S02 E07 · 2017-08-22 · 30 min

Adam Ruins College

Adam explains why the odds of becoming a dropout billionaire are not in your favor, how manipulated school rankings have little to do with education quality and why the privatization of student loans created a massive debt crisis.

S02 E08 · 2017-08-29 · 30 min

Emily Ruins Adam

Emily takes over to “ruin” Adam, pointing out where his facts fall short. She debunks the idea that IQ tests measure intelligence and points to information Adam has gotten wrong in the past. Plus, she explains the “backfire effect.”

S02 E09 · 2017-09-19 · 30 min

Adam Ruins His Vacation

Adam Conover and his girlfriend take a journey across America, where he reveals that Mount Rushmore was built on stolen Native American land, Vegas slot machines are purposely designed to be addicting, and a whole lot more!

S02 E10 · 2017-09-26 · 30 min

Adam Ruins the Suburbs

Adam explains how the idealized lawn is an unnatural monstrosity, and that the design of the suburbs is slowly killing you. Plus, the racist history of suburban planning led to today's institutionalized segregation in schools.

S02 E11 · 2017-10-03 · 30 min

Adam Ruins The Economy

Adam explains why lobbying makes filing your taxes so complicated, and why the economic numbers we focus on don't provide the whole story. Plus, American manufacturing can't come back because it was a fluke to begin with.

S02 E12 · 2017-10-10 · 30 min

Adam Ruins Conspiracy Theories

Adam Conover debunks the fake moon landing theory, discusses the Satanic Panic of the 1980s and reveals how to spot a false theory.

S02 E13 · 2017-10-17 · 30 min

Adam Ruins Spa Day

Pricey “detoxifying” treatments cleanse you of cash (and may do more harm than good), while MSG's scary reputation is undeserved. Plus, the placebo effect is way more powerful than you think!

S02 E14 · 2017-10-24 · 30 min

Adam Ruins Halloween

Adam reveals why you have nothing to fear from strangers with candy and how the “panic” over Orson Welles' War of the Worlds broadcast was the clickbait of the 1930s. And, mediums and séances have a long history - of being fake.

S02 E15 · 2017-10-31 · 30 min

Adam Ruins Science

Testing mice means wasted resources because what works on them often fails on humans. Scarce funding stops scientists from seeking cures, and there's no money in reproducing results, even though it's essential in proving findings.

S02 E16 · 2017-11-07 · 30 min

Adam Ruins the Future

Adam explains that unregulated food expiration dates lead to waste and that your 401(k) won't be enough to support your retirement. Plus, Adam's girlfriend Melinda proves that even with research, the future is unpredictable.

S02 E17 · 2018-03-20 · 30 min

Give Me Liberty or Give Me Truth

Adam Conover undermines everything you thought you knew about the American Revolution with startling facts about George Washington, Paul Revere's overrated ride, and the tale of a slave who helped America win.

S02 E18 · 2018-03-27 · 30 min

The First Factsgiving

The Pilgrims didn't break bread with Native Americans, but did dig up their graves! There was no romance between Pocahontas and John Smith, and cities in the New World rivaled London in scale before their “discovery.”

S02 E19 · 2018-04-03 · 30 min

Mutually Assured Ruination

Adam reveals that the United States kicked off the Cuban Missile Crisis; a lone female politician stands up to Joseph McCarthy; a bureaucratic mistake brings down the Berlin Wall.

S02 E20 · 2018-04-10 · 30 min

An Ancient History of Violence

Adam shares that it was against the rules for gladiators to kill opponents, and tells the story of a Celtic woman who brought the Roman Empire to its knees. Plus, the brave “300” Spartans numbered closer to 7000.

S02 E21 · 2018-04-17 · 30 min

The Copernican Ruin-aissance

Adam sheds some light on Copernicus, who was actually supported (NOT persecuted) by the Catholic Church. Plus, a rogue dwarf revolutionized what we know about anatomy, and just wait until you hear about Tulip Mania!

S02 E22 · 2018-04-24 · 30 min

100 Years Ago Today

Adam digs into the Panama Canal, where Teddy Roosevelt formed a new country to snag free land. Plus, one man fought to keep food from killing us, while the Spanish Flu killed more Americans than all 20th century wars combined!

S02 E23 · 2018-11-27 · 30 min

Adam Ruins Guns

Adam gets a shot at both sides of the gun debate by reviewing the science evidence of the effectiveness of gun regulation including stating that a ban on assault weapons would be ineffective, showing how the NRA has evolved over the years and influenced how the country interprets the meaning of the Second Amendment, and that both sides of the gun debate ignore how guns and gun regulation affect minorities.

S02 E24 · 2018-12-04 · 30 min

Adam Ruins Sleep

Adam states that the mattress industry was always a huge scam, that cheap school systems created sleep-deprived teenagers, and how "safe" sleep medications may actually be harmful.

S02 E25 · 2018-12-11 · 30 min

Adam Ruins Tech

Adam logs in to dulge into monopolistic tech companies by stating how Amazon's monopoly over online shopping harms consumers; how consumers do not fully own their technology devices because of corporate abuse of copyright law; and that tech companies not only routinely evade taxes, but also downright eradicate competition and harm society by abusing their monopoly power.

S02 E26 · 2018-12-18 · 30 min

Adam Ruins Flying

Adam takes to the skies to elucidate how airline miles and other credit card rewards are huge ripoffs, the extremely sexist "golden age of flying," and how lack of government regulation allowed the skies to be ruled with an iron fist.

S03 E01 · 2019-01-08 · 30 min

Adam Ruins a Plate of Nachos

Adam takes a bite at foods with the worst truths by stating that Mexican drug cartels import most avacados, that the meat industry lies about health risks and manipulates opposers to side with them, and how corn subsidies changed the crop into the most overused and unhealthy food in American history.

S03 E02 · 2019-01-15 · 30 min

Adam Ruins a Sitcom

Adam tackles classic television stereotypes, from the racism behind public pools, to the "model minority" myth of Asian Americans, to the on-screen toxic masculinity that's masking the problems young men face today.

S03 E03 · 2019-01-22 · 30 min

Adam Ruins Games

Adam hits pause on the myth that connects video games to real-life violence, and reveals that Monopoly was a rip-off of an anti-capitalist teaching game. Plus, Olympic organizers get rich while athletes struggle to get by.

S03 E04 · 2019-01-29 · 30 min

Adam Ruins Nature

Adam digs up the dirt on nature, revealing that Mount Everest is a frozen pile of poop, natural disasters are actually man-made, and there is no such thing as untouched wilderness.

S03 E05 · 2019-08-13 · 30 min

Adam Ruins America

Adam lets his freedom flag fly by examining why America doesn't have higher rates of social mobility. He then uncovers the flaws within our constitution and examines our country's progression and regression.

S03 E06 · 2019-08-20 · 30 min

Adam Ruins a Night Out

Adam and Emily prepare for a big night out by revealing the marketing ploy that convinced women to shave and the fashion agendas that created pockets. They then probe the truth about alcohol consumption.

S03 E07 · 2019-08-27 · 30 min

Adam Ruins Doing Good

Adam takes down the do-gooders and reveals how Teach For America is harmful to both students and teachers. He then uncovers the ineffectiveness of recycling and calls out the billionaires who create charities for tax breaks.

S03 E08 · 2019-09-03 · 30 min

Adam Ruins A Murder

Adam shines a light on why drivers are rarely prosecuted for car accidents that result in death, he breaks down border patrol's search policies, and Adam examines the messed-up history of corpses and medical studies.

S03 E09 · 2019-09-10 · 30 min

Adam Ruins Music

Adam reveals to a music-lover that white artists in the early days of rock-and-roll profited off of plagiarism, that Ticketmaster and Live Nation Entertainment have an unstoppable monopoly over concerts, why many of today's musicians are forced to sell out, and how record labels extort their artists due to the advent of streaming services.

S03 E10 · 2019-09-17 · 30 min

Adam Ruins Little Bugs

Adam reveals to a woman getting ready for a party how spiders actually benefit humanity, how bug parts are hidden inside everyday foods and a whole insect can be more nutritious than part of conventional livestock, and some bugs actually help the human body function properly. Between the segments about food and the human body, Emily discusses what actually happens when a caterpillar becomes a butterfly; and, at the end of the episode, she discusses the eradication of mosquitoes.

S03 E11 · 2019-09-24 · 30 min

Adam Ruins Cops

Adam reveals the serious issues behind SWAT teams, how school police officers send children into a life of crime, and that the issue of mass-incarceration was due to cops cherry-picking whom they arrest.

S03 E12 · 2019-10-01 · 30 min

Adam Ruins Himself

As Adam wraps up the show's third season, his self-doubt gets the best of him to reveal the show's biases, the inconsistencies and mistakes in previous episodes, the sinister agenda of advertising, and how advertisers shift the focus of the show. Between the correction and advertising segments, Adam discusses the truth about dopamine.