22 Thousands of People Are Playing Trivia Online and You Can't Join (Unless...) | LearnedLeague

INFLUENCE

When "Thorsten A. Integrity" created a trivia challenge for his co-workers in 1997, he never dreamed it would become the Internet's most exclusive knowledge battleground. The proprietor of LearnedLeague (whose *actual* name is Shayne Bushfield) built a thoughtful trivia tournament on defense mechanics and the honor system. And when it finally got online, his core group remained small for more than a decade.

But as friends referred friends, the circle of vetted, honest players grew. And in the age where you can Google or ChatGPT nearly any answer, honor remains a cornerstone of the League's values.

Today, tens of thousands of players (including some [REDACTED] celebrities!) compete in seasonal, head-to-head challenges, where knowing your opponent's track record is a huge part of the strategy. The community is so dedicated and insular that it has broken off into smaller sub-tournaments during the off-season. But you actually can't join LearnedLeargue ... unless someone on the inside invites you.

What ran as a passion project for Shayne has turned into his full time job. He joins Matt to discuss the humble origins of the League, what makes for a great trivia question, the punishment for cheaters (spoiler: It's death), the value of knowledge in the age of the Internet, and why he has no reason to promote the League to new players.

This show is made possible by listener support: https://www.patreon.com/influencepod

Listen & subscribe wherever you get podcasts:

🍎 https://apple.co/44FeACS

🟢 https://spoti.fi/3UGQjrN

⏯ https://amzn.to/3wCdueF

Join our Discord community! https://discord.gg/influencepod

Call the show and leave a message: (347)-871-6548

Email me with guest & trivia suggestions! [e-mail] (NOICE)

Follow me:

🐤https://twitter.com/Matt_Silverman

📸 https://www.instagram.com/matt_silverman

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices