Hysterical is Named Apple Podcast’s Show of the Year 2024

Apple has awarded Hysterical as the Apple Podcasts ‘Show of the Year’ for 2024. The seven-part series, created by Dan Taberski, has been recognized for its quality and innovation in the podcasting space.

Hysterical is a podcast series that investigates a mysterious illness that spreads amongst a group of high school girls in upstate New York. The series first began in July 2024 and rose to the top of the charts. As the year concluded, Hysterical maintained a strong position, landing in second place as the most popular new show of the year in Canada.

Taberski began researching the phenomenon known as “Havana Syndrome” when it affected a group of high school girls in Le Roy, New York. The illness is more commonly known to have affected diplomats and CIA agents in the past. This group of high school girls were also affected by a separate illness several years prior.

“A lot of people still think it was an attack from some sort of microwave weapon,” Taberski told Apple when talking about the Havana syndrome news. “The media was pontificating about it, and they were interviewing all these people who were suffering from it, but everybody was really afraid to say, ‘What if it’s all in your head?’ So I thought it would be interesting to pair that story in Le Roy with what was happening to these diplomats and CIA officers to show that it can happen to anybody.”

Taberski sat down for a special conversation made for Apple Podcasts for Creators.

All episodes of Hysterical are available now on Apple Podcasts. The series is produced by Wondery and Audacy’s Pineapple Street Studios. You can subscribe to Wondery+ for access to ad-free episodes.