Title: Best true crime podcasts of all time
Headings: The best true crime podcasts of all time
The best true crime podcasts of all time
Serial
S-Town
In the Dark
Missing & Murdered
Last Podcast on the Left
Criminal
74 Seconds
Conviction
Crime Junkie
Alibi
Someone Knows Something
Chasing Cosby
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Content: Best true crime podcasts of all time
The best true crime podcasts of all time
These legendary podcasts will hunt you down, and haunt you. Image: bob al-greene / mashable
By Jess Joho Apr 26, 2020
The question of why we love true crime podcasts has been asked over and over again. Serial might've turned it into a mainstream phenomenon back in 2014, but the trend thrives to this day with dozens of the most popular true crime podcasts racking in hundreds of thousands of downloads. But the truth is, our true crime obsession isn't anything new or even all that strange. The general public has harbored a bloodthirsty fascination for real-life violence for centuries. " If it bleeds, it leads," has long been a truism not just for the media, but also for true crime podcasts. What's newer, though, is our collective questioning of the morality behind this longstanding bloodthirstiness of ours, and pausing to wonder where it comes from. The answer to that question is multi-faceted. They range from our psychological need to pay attention to danger, the desire to arm ourselves with information for women in particular (who make up a disproportionate percentage of true crime lovers and are also usually the victims in true crime stories), or the uncomfortable truth that true crime just makes for good storytelling with mystery, violence, tragedy, and drama.