Ep. 383 - Dr. Lynne McNeill on 'Squatchy Lore and Legends!

September 7, 2026

AI Summary

5 min read

Dr. Lynne McNeill, a folklorist at Utah State University, opens the conversation by correcting a common misunderstanding: folklore does not mean “false.” In her field, folklore refers to cultural information—stories, beliefs, customs, even material objects—that moves through a population by word of mouth, passed among everyday people rather than distributed by institutions or corporations. A folk legend has no single correct version, unlike a copyrighted film; it is both traditional and dynamic, always changing as it is retold. This makes folklore a natural home for subjects like Bigfoot, not because the creature is unreal, but because the information about it circulates at a grassroots level, shaped by personal experience and community exchange.

What Legend Tripping Reveals About Belief

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What you'll learn

1 (04:07) **What Folklore Actually Means** - Dr. McNeill defines folklore as a field of study, not a synonym for "false"
2 (08:17) **Tradition vs. Variability** - The two defining qualities of folklore are tradition and dynamism
3 (09:29) **How Folklore Handles Belief and Reality** - Folklore is a larger umbrella than "legend" or "belief," and it helps people test what is possible in reality
4 (11:37) **From Supernatural to Natural: The Kraken Example** - Taking personal stories seriously can lead to scientific discovery
5 (15:06) **All Evidence is Part of the Folklore** - Footprints, sounds, hoaxes, and local warnings are all considered part of the Bigfoot mythos
6 (16:58) **Legend Tripping and Ostention** - The ability to test a story in person changes its nature and opens the door to acting out the legend
7 (20:29) **Why Legend Tripping Persists Beyond Adolescence** - It is not just a teenage rite of passage; it is a lifelong pursuit of engaging with mystery

+ Full timestamped outline available in the app

Guests on this episode

Matt Pruitt

Show Notes

Cliff Barackman and Matt Pruitt speak with folklorist Dr. Lynne McNeill about the intersection of folklore, science, and the sasquatch! Dr. McNeill is an Associate Professor of Folklore at Utah State University. Her research focuses on legend and belief, cryptids, digital culture, and the ways that folklore develops and spreads through communities. Dr. McNeill discusses what folklore actually is, why folklorists study it, and what traditional stories tell us about the world around us. The conversation explores scientific discoveries that were preceded by folklore and traditional knowledge, what the persistence of sasquatch legends might mean from a folklorist’s perspective, and how the internet and social media have transformed modern perceptions of the sasquatch phenomenon!

See Cliff and Dr. McNeill speak at Wild About The West on Saturday, September 12th at the Nora Eccles Harrison Museum of Art on the Utah State University campus in Logan, Utah!

See Cliff and Pruitt at Cryptid Con in Florence, IN, November 21-22!

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