How the Church Invented Cancel Culture (ft. Eleanor Janega) cover art

How the Church Invented Cancel Culture (ft. Eleanor Janega)

How the Church Invented Cancel Culture (ft. Eleanor Janega)

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Think cancel culture is new? The Catholic Church invented it in the Middle Ages.


Being burned at the stake was the ultimate deplatforming. In the 15th and 16th centuries, figures like Joan of Arc, Giordano Bruno, and Jan Hus faced the stake for the crime of heresy. But was heresy actually just a way to crush dissent?


This week, medievalist and historian Eleanor Janega (@GoingMedieval) joins Katelyn and Christine to unpack history’s original cancel culture. From the Vatican's "Community Guidelines" to the trial of Galileo, we look at how institutions have always used moral panic to maintain power.


Scheduling Note: Cancel Me, Daddy will return in January 2026. Happy Holidays and a Happy New Year! Thank you for tuning in—we appreciate you so much.


Stream on our YouTube channel—remember to ring the bell! Listen via Apple or Spotify. Be sure to check out the merch store—Merch Me, Daddy!


Links for Apple:


  • Subscribe to the Gone Medieval podcast via History Hit, Apple, or Spotify
  • Follow Eleanor Janega on Bluesky: @goingmedieval
  • Buy Eleanor’s book, The Once and Future Sex: Going Medieval on Women's Roles in Society, via The Flytrap Media’s Bookshop.org storefront


Cancellation List Patreon Supporters:

Megg, I Beuregard, Alison, Siobhan Green, Maggi Joseph, Leslie Zavisca, Summer Lark, Amy Veeres, Matt

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