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cover of episode 23: The Max Headroom Incident. UNSOLVED: The Creepiest TV Hack in History

23: The Max Headroom Incident. UNSOLVED: The Creepiest TV Hack in History

2022/6/26
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The Why Files: Operation Podcast
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AJ (Y-Files): 1987年11月22日，芝加哥WGN-TV频道9的体育节目直播中，信号突然中断，随后被劫持，发生了震惊电视界的"麦克斯·海德鲁姆事件"。入侵者戴着橡胶面具和太阳镜，形象酷似电视角色麦克斯·海德鲁姆，但并未言语。事件发生后，WGN-TV迅速恢复了信号，但两小时后，PBS频道11的《神秘博士》节目也遭遇了同样的劫持，入侵者再次出现并说了话。这次入侵持续到节目结束才停止。此后，联邦通信委员会和联邦调查局对该事件展开了调查，但最终未能找到罪犯。整个事件过程充满了神秘感，至今仍是电视史上最离奇的未解之谜之一。入侵者使用的技术手段也引发了人们对广播信号安全性的担忧。 通过对视频的分析，我们可以发现入侵者使用了模拟环形调制器来创造麦克斯·海德鲁姆的独特声音效果，这在当时是一种常见的音频处理技术。入侵者还巧妙地利用了WGN电视台和发射塔之间的信号传输漏洞，通过在两者之间放置设备，以更高的功率发送信号，从而覆盖了电视台的正常信号。入侵者在视频中还出现了一些耐人寻味的细节，例如引用了可口可乐的广告语和动画片《卡车货运》的主题曲，以及对芝加哥电视台的嘲讽。这些细节暗示了入侵者可能对电视媒体和流行文化有深入的了解，也增加了事件的神秘色彩。 尽管多年来，人们对麦克斯·海德鲁姆事件的幕后主使有很多猜测，但都没有得到证实。大多数人认为这是一名对WGN心怀不满的员工所为，但没有确凿证据。事件的发生也让人们反思电视媒体的安全性以及对潜在风险的防范措施。 Hecklefish: (在播客中主要负责与AJ互动，并未就麦克斯·海德鲁姆事件发表独立观点，故此处无核心论点)

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The Max Headroom Incident began on November 22, 1987, when WGN-TV's signal was hijacked during a sports broadcast, leading to a bizarre and unexplained interruption.

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THE MAX HEADROOM INCIDENT. 

November 22nd, 1987 was a pretty normal evening for television viewers in Chicago. That night, like every night, Dan Roan was covering sports on WGN-TV, Channel 9.  Then suddenly, the signal was disrupted and screens across the city cut to black.  

Engineers at WGN-TV thought their transmitters were failing.   

They weren't. A few seconds later, something crazy happened.  

WGN's broadcast signal had been hijacked in what is now known as "The Max Headroom Incident".   

WGN-TV was able to act quickly and get their signal back. But, Two hours later, it would happen again to another TV station and there was nothing they could do to stop it.  

What happens next remains one of the most bizarre unsolved crimes in television history.  

Let's find out why.

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