In the technology field, podcasts have risen in popularity over the course of the past few years. Likewise, true crime has taken over the hearts and minds of the millennial population and beyond. Admittedly, I am one of those strange people who not only listens to true crime podcasts, but I also will look them up when I’m bored in my room or sitting at my work-study job with no homework to do on downtime. That’s why I have compiled my top three picks for true crime podcasts – just in time for “spooky szn”!
3. Marcia Clark Investigates the First 48
This podcast I actually stumbled upon by surprise. I was looking up new things to listen to, and it just so happened that I had just finished watching the O.J. Simpson documentary, O.J.: Made in America, and had taken a liking to the prosecution’s lady in the lead, Marcia Clark. She was smart, persistent and, quite frankly, a total bad ass. And, given that my father is involved in the law enforcement field, I would often come home from a long day of junior high studies and struggles to find him sitting on the couch before work, eating a sandwich, and watching The First 48. Mix the two together, and you’ve got one great podcast. When I listened to the podcast for the first time, Marcia covered the Casey Anthony case, which, in my opinion, is a case that just sits in the back of your mind and bothers you like crazy. Guilty or innocent? If she is guilty, how on earth could a mother kill her own child? If she’s innocent, why is there so much evidence against her? Another great case Marcia covers includes the disappearance of White House intern Chandra Levy, a scandalous and shocking case that echoed all across the United States.
Marcia does a great job covering the evidence involved in these stories and paces the plot so that even if you are not a highly-trained FBI detective, you can still understand the story line. She builds up suspense perfectly and does a great job wrapping everything up.
2. My Favorite Murder
My Favorite Murder is a great podcast in which the hilarious hosts Karen Kilgariff and Georgia Hardstark cover several different cases and strange events. My personal favorite of theirs include the Minisodes, in which Karen and Georgia cover happenings sent in by listeners. Spoiler: one of my favorites involves a lady coming home to find that someone dumped two bodies ON HER FRONT LAWN! How insane is that? Another discusses a story that begins spooky, but ends up just being extremely weird. Here’s the details: a child goes to play in the basement of her mother’s friend’s home one evening. While playing with a bouncy ball, the child looks up into one of the windows and sees a pair of bright eyes staring back at her and making screeching noises. Of course, the girl runs uptstairs, frightened, and tells her mother about what she saw. However, the strangest thing about this story is that the eyes were actually a neighboring elderly woman who had fallen off of her ladder (at night) and needed help. Needless to say, don’t climb ladders at night. You might fall and scare the bejesus out of a small child.
Although I stopped listening to MFM, I enjoyed the fact that this dynamic duo kept up the suspense of each case while also being insanely funny when it was necessary all while making a creepy situation seem a ton less freaky. If you are looking for a comedy-filled killer (pun not intended), start yourself off with My Favorite Murder.
1. Crime Junkie
I honestly cannot say enough wonderful things about this podcast. The hosts Ashley Flowers and Brit Prawat go in-depth into so many different cases: serial killers like the Golden State Killer and the Green River Killer, as well as enigmatic disappearances, such as the infamous case of missing college student Maura Murray. Every Monday, I look forward to the notification on my phone letting me know that my next episode is ready to be listened to and investigated. Ashley and Brit do an amazing job explaining each case to listeners and make the podcast very easy to follow (and obsess over). Not only do they record fantastic podcasts, but the two work with Crime Stoppers of Indiana and various DNA testing organizations to help solve cold cases, bring awareness to those missing or murdered, and bring evil to justice. To top it all off, Crime Junkie was rated #1 on the Apple Podcasts chart. If you need your fix of great stories and desire to have a catchy jingle stuck in your head for days on end, I suggest Crime Junkie. Be weird, be rude, stay alive!
All in all, these podcasts have so many great things about them, but something I have learned after listening to several (and I mean several) episodes is that men and women alike must ALWAYS do their best stay safe: always be aware of your surroundings, never accept a car ride from someone you don’t know, and use the buddy system when necessary! These podcasts have really opened my eyes to the world we live in and have allowed me to avoid any situation that may be dangerous to me or others. So, with that being said, pop in some earbuds, hit play, and prepare yourself to be peeking over your shoulder when you walk through the dark.