logo
episode-header-image
Mar 2020
40m 25s

Waco - The New Messiah | 1

Wondery
About this episode

In 1993, a massive conflict erupts in rural Texas. The federal government launches a siege against the Branch Davidians, a religious group based in the outskirts of Waco. What follows is the longest firefight in the history of American law enforcement. And it’s a battle that ends in tragedy. But the standoff has its genesis years before. It’s then that Vernon Howell comes looking for a new religious community to call home. He finds it with the Branch Davidians, and soon, he begins working to seize power.


Want to listen to the remaining episodes of Waco? Episodes 2-7 are available exclusively and ad-free on Wondery+. With Wondery+, enjoy exclusive seasons, binge new seasons first, and listen completely ad-free. Start your free trial in the Wondery App, Apple Podcasts, Spotify or visit wondery.app.link/rUic7i1hMNb now.  

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Up next
Aug 19
The Massacre at My Lai | Pinkville | 2
On the morning of March 16, 1968, Charlie Company lands in the village of My Lai expecting to face hardened Viet Cong fighters. Instead, they find unarmed civilians – and proceed to carry out one of the most infamous massacres in U.S. military history. Be the first to know about ... Show More
35m 19s
Aug 12
The Massacre at My Lai | The Road to My Lai | 1
In late 1967, the young men of Charlie Company arrive in Vietnam – ill-prepared, poorly led, and thrown into a brutal, confusing counterinsurgency. As frustrations mount and the enemy remains unseen, the stage is set for one of the most infamous atrocities of the Vietnam War.Be t ... Show More
34m 26s
Aug 11
Business Wars Presents: The AOL-Time Warner Disaster
Think business is boring? What about when your streaming bill goes up, or your favorite restaurant files for bankruptcy? Do you ever wonder what’s going on behind the scenes? Business Wars gives you a front row seat to the biggest moments in business, to explain how they shape ou ... Show More
7m 8s
Recommended Episodes
Nov 2021
21: A Church vs. The Feds: Who Shot First?? The WACO Siege
In 1993, the quiet Texas town of Waco was turned into a bloody battlefield when an extremist religious group and their leader went to war with the American Government. We’re talking assault weapons, helicopters, tanks, explosions and huge fires. Dozens were killed. Today, Bailey ... Show More
1h 6m
Jul 2021
The Waco Siege And The Branch Davidians
Sara and Danny are back to breakdown one of the longest police standoffs in history: The Waco Siege. They start with the origins of the Branch Davidians and its eventual leader David Koresh, who was at the top of the cult at the time of the siege. They also go through the cult’s ... Show More
59m 6s
Dec 2019
Kentucky Blood Feud - The Murder of Daniel Bates | 1
The longest and bloodiest feud in American history erupted in the 1840s in Clay County, Kentucky — where it raged for nearly a century and ultimately claimed more than 150 lives. The Clay County War, also known as the Baker-Howard Feud, pitted four families against each other: th ... Show More
34m 45s
Nov 2022
Waco Siege & Branch Davidians Pt. 1
On February 28th, 1993, ATF agents raided a compound in Waco, Texas, belonging to a religious group known as the Branch Davidians. A 51-day standoff ensued, ending in a violent siege. Eighty-one people lost their lives, many of them children — but to this day, no one knows which ... Show More
33m 53s
May 2024
The Pinkerton Detective Agency | "We Never Sleep" | 1
In the early 1850s, Scottish immigrant Allan Pinkerton stumbled upon a counterfeiting operation while gathering wood for his barrel-making business. After helping the authorities arrest the criminals, he was inspired to form a detective agency, to chase bank robbers and train ban ... Show More
41m 9s
Jun 2024
The Spy Who Betrayed Bin Laden | Holy War | 1
It’s 1994 and 16-year-old Aimen Dean wants to die. He’s heading to war-torn Bosnia to join the Mujahideen and save fellow Muslims. He hopes to become a martyr so that he can be reunited with his dead parents in paradise. Instead, he’s about to be confronted by a bloody reality. L ... Show More
40m 26s
Dec 2022
Presidential Assassinations | Murder for Spoils | 1
On April 14th, 1865, John Wilkes Booth shot President Abraham Lincoln at Ford’s Theatre in Washington, D.C. Lincoln died hours later, shocking the war-torn nation and becoming the first President to be assassinated in office. But he would not be the last.Sixteen years later, no a ... Show More
41m 21s