Author Truman Capote created the true crime genre when he published In Cold Blood in 1966. The book details the murders of the Herbert Clutter family of Holcomb, Kansas in 1959. Since then, people have become obsessed with true crime stories. From unsolved murders to weird disappearances, the more complicated and eerie, the better.
These days, true crime stories are everywhere: TV, film, radio, books, and - more recently - podcasts. There are dozens and dozens of podcasts that discuss or highlight true crime stories. Some are better than others, and the ones listed here are some of the best podcasts on any topic to date. What makes these especially compelling is that each one focuses on just one story across multiple episodes, digging deep into tales of corruption, death, and inexplicable evil.
Red Ball
This four-part series, produced by the people behind Crime Junkie, investigates the case of four young employees who went missing over 40 years ago. Their bodies were found in the woods nearby their place of employment days later, but no one was never accused of murder.
Host Ashley Flowers digs into the case files, working with Indiana State Police, where the crimes took place, in hopes of unraveling some thread or uncovering some clue that could lead to apprehending the killer or killers.
Unheard: The Fred And Rose West Tape
Fred and Rose West killed a dozen women, including their own daughter. This monstrous English couple brutalized their victims and buried their bodies in their own backyard. They managed to get away with their crimes for 20 years before they were caught.
This podcast dissects over 12 hours of research tapes made by writer Howard Sounes, who published a book about the Wests in 1994. These recordings include important interviews and details about the cases. In the podcast, Sounes includes new insights and additional interviews.
22 Hours: An American Nightmare
This intense podcast digs into the home invasion and murders of the Savopoulos family, a wealthy Washington, D.C. family with business connections. In the course of 22 hours, they were tortured, bludgeoned, and their house set on fire.
The family - including a man, his wife, and their 10-year-old son - perished alongside their housemaid. 22 Hours attempts to understand how anyone could commit such a heinous act. What were their motivations? What does the evidence say? Was the right person captured for the crimes?
Crimetown
Crimetown, created by the same people who made the Robert Durst documentary series The Jinx, investigates organized crime in different cities. The acclaimed second season is focused on Detroit, Michigan, a site of unimaginable corruption and high-level criminal activity.
The Detroit season follows the rise and fall of former Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick, who resigned as mayor in 2008 after being charged with perjury and obstruction of justice. As the podcast shows, Kilpatrick may have been responsible for much worse.
Conviction
What's unique about this podcast is that it follows cases from the perspective of a detective. Here, the detective is Manuel Gomez of New York City. While this podcast technically focuses on different cases, they are unified around Gomez and one theme: the cases involve young men who have been charged with crimes they claim to have never committed.
Reporter Saki Knafo follows Gomez through his reanalysis of each case, ultimately raising important questions about the criminal justice system. How fair and equitable is it? Is everyone given the same chance to prove their innocence?
Dirty John
Hosted by Christopher Goffard, and made in conjunction with The Los Angeles Times, Dirty John focuses on the life of John Michael Meehan. Meehan, a charming man with a sketchy past, married businesswoman Debra Newell after a short courtship. The two met via online dating.
What ensued after they made their vows involves abuse, manipulation, and a fight for survival. Newell's extended family was soon wrapped up in the action, and things culminated on the rooftop of a parking garage.
Root Of Evil
True crime junkies are familiar with the unsolved Black Dahlia case. In 1947, the dismembered body of aspiring actress Elizabeth Short was found. The brutal nature of the crime, as well as the woman's mysterious history, caused the case to be swept up in a media frenzy.
Short's killer was never found, and Root of Evil digs into the story of one suspected killer. What's special about this podcast is that it includes testimony from a close family member of this suspect, Dr. George Hodel.
The Clearing
When she was 40-years-old, April Balascio realized her father was a killer. It was her testimony to police that led to her father's arrest and eventual conviction in 2009. Alongside podcast host Josh Dean, April reaches back into the past to put all the puzzle pieces together.
What listeners find out about April's life throughout the course of The Clearing is shocking to the say the least. April's father, Edward Wayne Edwards, died in prison in 2011, and the public is still trying to get a grasp on the extent of his crimes.
Serial
One of the most popular investigative journalism podcasts, Serial has released three acclaimed seasons. While the second two focus on the military and the criminal justice system overall, the first season takes a deep look into the murder of 18-year-old high school student Hae Min Lee.
She disappeared on January 13, 1999, after leaving her Baltimore high school, and her body was found almost two weeks later. While her ex-boyfriend was convicted of the crime, he has always maintained his innocence. Serial looks at the facts of the case to see if there's any validity to his claims.
In The Dark
Hosted by Madeleine Baran, In the Dark is another stellar investigative journalism podcast that has two seasons under its belt. The first season discusses the abduction of Jacob Wetterling. When this child went missing, it made national news. Due to police negligence and mishandling, it took 27 years to figure out what happened to Jacob.
The second season tells the story of Curtis Flowers, a man who has been convicted six times of the same crime. Flowers has won each of his appeals, yet the prosecutor continues to retry the case each time. How is that this cycle keeps repeating itself?