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Cover Story

by New York Magazine

What can a billionaire get away with these days? A secret bat cave? A harem of women? An international spy operation? Stealing the soul of a small town in Montana? A Silicon Valley venture capitalist was accused of running a massive sex-trafficking operation by his best bro friend. And we unravel the truth about both of them - their business, their break-up, their lies, and their embarrassing text messages. The story of a billionaire with a hero complex, the ex-spy who turned his life inside out, and us, the reporters who got caught up in their macho drama. Cover Story is an investigative podcast series featuring original reporting from New York Magazine. Part of the Vox Media Podcast Network. New episodes every Tuesday.

Publisher-supplied feed metadata · PodParley refreshed Apr 15, 2026 · Source feed

Episodes

  1. 6. All the Voids

    An episode of reckoning. We catch up with Matt in prison, Mike in Whitefish, and everyone else – wherever they’ve scattered. Both of the men's wives have surprising news. And we add our final touches to what has turned into an uncomfortably intimate portrait of a modern billionaire. Learn more...

  2. 5. I Am the Victim

    The ex-spy is under arrest for fraud, money laundering, and tax evasion. And, in a surprise move, he pleads guilty to all three. What? We start to closely examine his dealings with the billionaire to figure out what really happened between them and the threads start to unravel, and keep…

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  3. 4. Baby, You’re Fine With Me

    Where does sex with a billionaire land you? We talk to three women who soured on Mike, at different points. We examine a court case, a police investigation, and one woman’s memories. We weigh the question: if none of it adds up to a crime, what does it add up to? Learn more about your ad choices....

  4. 3. Mission Creep

    We dig into the billionaire and ex-spy’s bromance and business partnership – which means a detour into the world of spies for hire. The rich cozy up with former intelligence personnel and try to, for better or worse, carry out missions the government can’t seem to do on its own. We are guided by…

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  5. 2. They Were Relationships... Nothing Yucky

    The billionaire is into…Batman. Is that because he’s an actual hero, or because he’s using showy philanthropy to cover up his bad deeds? We track down some women he’s paid millions of dollars to. And we talk to the billionaire about his hero complex. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit...

  6. 1. Mind Your Own Business

    In a cabin in Whitefish, Montana, two ex-spies tell us an outlandish story: right here in town, a billionaire philanthropist is allegedly running a sexual enterprise, importing young women into safehouses. One of the spies knows this because he was the billionaire’s right hand man, and best bro...

  7. Introducing Cover Story: Seed Money

    A billionaire. An ex-spy. A lot of women. Too many lies. Cover Story, Season Two: Seed Money. Hosted by Hanna Rosin. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

  8. 9. The Complainers Group

    So. Should YOU do psychedelic therapy? In the last episode of Power Trip, we get a lot of different answers to this question. Plus, we catch up with some of the people we met throughout this season who fight like hell to get people and institutions to acknowledge what happened to them. And make…

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  9. 8. Who Am I Fooling?

    Since the publication of Michael Pollan’s bestseller, How to Change Your Mind, more people than ever have gotten comfortable trying psychedelics. And a few of them have died. We look into two cases and ask, who’s responsible for warning people about the dangers? And we explore one important...

  10. 7. Political Science

    Meaghan gets a hold of the clinical trial data and she and Dave and Lily pull it apart. Why are the studies so small? What actually happens in the black box of therapy? Why can't the trial participants find their actual experience reflected anywhere in the published data? We look to MAPS for...

  11. 6. Open Heart Surgery

    We talk to participants in the most advanced clinical trials on MDMA as a treatment for trauma. On paper, they are success stories. In reality they are a mess. And one of them was put in a terrible bind by her trial therapists. CREDITS: Cover Story is a production of New York magazine. Power trip...

  12. Introducing Cover Story: Power Trip, Part II

    Cover Story is coming back March 1st! In Part II, we move from the psychedelic underground to the above ground—the world of labs and clinical trials and accredited institutions. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

  13. 5. House Full of Sh*t

    Stories of transgressions multiply. Psychedelic therapists are meddling in marriages, dating their clients, and worse. Francoise Bourzat herself tells us what she thinks is going on, and how her psychedelic community has handled complaints in the past. Credits Cover Story is a production of New...

  14. 4. Bad Hug

    We go to the source - a Mexican psychotherapist named Salvador Roquet, who is known as a “master of bad trips.” It starts to dawn on “Susan” that the problem is not her one rogue mentor. What if boundary crossing is baked into the psychedelic guide training, and implicates Francoise Bourzat and…

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  15. 3. I Am the Wolf

    We cross through the portal to the underground where “Susan” goes through the training to become a psychedelic therapist. Her mentor Eyal crosses way too many boundaries. (Is he the wolf?). And we finally meet Francoise Bourzat, honey-voiced trainer of trainers. In an earlier version of episode…

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  16. 2. That's an Old Story

    Lily visits the Ecuadorian Amazon to work on a project when something terrible happens to her. She barely escapes and makes it home alive. But it’s what happens next that really sets the course of her life. Meanwhile, the psychedelic renaissance is really starting to take off. Credits Cover Story...

  17. 1. I See a Sh*tshow

    After years of experimenting with drugs, Lily discovers the psychedelic underground. It’s a world of shamans and guides - people illegally practicing psychedelic therapy to treat trauma. Their secret mission is make this treatment more widely available in order to “promote the evolution of...

  18. Introducing Cover Story: Power Trip

    Mind. Body. Control. Uncover the dark truth in Power Trip, the first season of Cover Story, a new investigative series from New York Magazine. Hosted by iO Tillett Wright. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

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ABOUT THIS SHOW

What can a billionaire get away with these days? A secret bat cave? A harem of women? An international spy operation? Stealing the soul of a small town in Montana? A Silicon Valley venture capitalist was accused of running a massive sex-trafficking operation by his best bro friend. And we unravel the truth about both of them - their business, their break-up, their lies, and their embarrassing text messages. The story of a billionaire with a hero complex, the ex-spy who turned his life inside out, and us, the reporters who got caught up in their macho drama.

Cover Story is an investigative podcast series featuring original reporting from New York Magazine. Part of the Vox Media Podcast Network. New episodes every Tuesday.

HOSTED BY

New York Magazine

Frequently Asked Questions

How many episodes does Cover Story have?

Cover Story currently has 18 episodes available on PodParley. New episodes are automatically indexed when they're published to the podcast feed.

What is Cover Story about?

What can a billionaire get away with these days? A secret bat cave? A harem of women? An international spy operation? Stealing the soul of a small town in Montana? A Silicon Valley venture capitalist was accused of running a massive sex-trafficking operation by his best bro friend. And we unravel...

How often does Cover Story release new episodes?

Cover Story has 18 episodes. Check the episode list to see recent publication dates and frequency.

Where can I listen to Cover Story?

You can listen to Cover Story on PodParley by clicking any episode. We provide an embedded audio player for direct listening, and you can also subscribe via your preferred podcast app using the RSS feed.

Who hosts Cover Story?

Cover Story is created and hosted by New York Magazine.
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