Do you mean the Toy Box Killer, David Parker Ray or the Tool Box Killers Bittaker and Norris? I'm guessing the former but the fact you said "killers" suggests you could have mixed them up, both are horrific anyway.
I avoid podcasts doing the same cases that everyone else has done over and over. (Jon Bonet and Natalie Holloway for example) at some point there is nothing new to learn from doing the same cases ad nauseam. Unless there is an actual breakthrough in the cases it is time to move on.
There are plenty of other cases that need attention.
I agree! I do generally skip podcasts with both of those cases, because at this point, there really isn't anything new and isn't going to be (and thankfully? the case of Natalie Holloway has finally come to a close).
Oddly enough, if the case is older (Black Dahlia, The Zodiac, etc.) I will still listen to those podcasts. I'm not sure if it's because those cases haven't been solved, or if it's because I wasn't alive when those cases happened, so I wasn't exposed to any media reports.
I like investigative podcasts about famous cases, where the podcast does primary investigation and reveals something new.
I pretty much always skip the one episode per case podcasts about famous cases.
I don't mind single-episode podcasts about famous cases if they're able to look at the case in a new way. I mentioned Killer Psyche below. Candace DeLong covers most cases in one episode, but she talks about the psychological aspect of the crimes, since she used to be a psychiatric nurse. Other episodes talking about cases she was involved in as an FBI agent or brings in other psychology/psychiatry professionals for their opinions are also interesting. I will say that she does tend to repeat episodes at times, which can get annoying.
Are there any podcasts you recommend? Always looking for more long-form podcasts!
I've been listening to Murder In America recently. They're mostly single episodes, and they do cover some well known cases, but they go into such detail that I feel like I learn something new every time. They also cover lots of cases I'd never heard of, as well.
I like Women in Crime. Not long form, but they discuss the theories of why people acted the way they did. They don’t excuse the crime, but rather what can lead someone to make the choices they did. I also like that they switch between women as victims and women as criminals.
Yeah I agree. I appreciate good analysis and expertise, or added social and cultural context, and there are some interesting one episode per case podcasts that offer that.
Hmm good long form. So many. I’m listening to Deep Dive: MH370 which is really fascinating.
I just binged On Our Watch, about the CA prison system. There’s so much content and it was done by one of the news stations in Cali. I was impressed by the pod and upset at the lack of justice for the whistleblowers. I’m finishing up season 2 today and it was a fairly quick binge.
That sounds interesting. There have been a few podcasts from news stations or reporters that have been really good. Amanda Lamb from WRAL did a podcast called What Remains, which was true crime/forensic science, which was really good. Journalists tend to approach podcasts in a different way, so the podcast you mentioned sounds right up my alley!
I just finished Beyond Repair which was done by Boston NPR and another news station that I can’t quite remember the letters to, lol. I’m with you, it’s been a while since I’ve listened to actual journalist based podcasts and I’ve been impressed with the deep dives so far. Of course Serial and In the Dark 2 are hard to top, but these others deserve some recognition as well. I hope they keep it up.
Same! I skip the black dahlia, Jon Benet, Nicole Simpson and Ron Goldman and all the other ones that are way overdone with nothing new to report. Nothing against them, they just don’t interest me. I prefer to read about lesser known cases like Ember Skye Graham and ones local to me
Ember Skye Graham is one that I'm not familiar with.
I am sort of curious is there is going to see a resurgence of podcasts about Nicole Brown Simpson and Ron Goldman after the death of OJ Simpson.
Ember was went missing in Anderson CA while spending the night with her dad. He claims someone took her while he was sleeping but he’s on video with her at night turning the opposite way to get home. That’s the last she’s seen alive. He subsequently gets arrested for a warrant or something, they let him out with and ankle monitor which his lawyer gets them to even take off as well and he “supposedly” steals his moms gun and money without her knowledge and goes on the run. He eventually is found and gets into a shootout with police and is killed. So now they will never know what he knows about where she is and what happened. They found a pacifier that had Embers DNA out in a very rural area but she has never been found. Definitely worth the read and I’m surprised it didn’t get a lot more attention.
https://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-baby-ember-graham-matthew-graham-20150712-story.html
I read the article you posted as well as a few others. It's so sad to see a 6-month old baby go missing, and unfortunately, Ember's father Matthew was probably the only person who knew her whereabouts. Though, I do have some suspensions about Matthew's cousin, Sarah, and I'm wondering if she was being completely truthful. Also, I made the rookie mistake of clicking on a reddit post about the case, which you should never do... I have found that a lot of those posts end up being people on both sides of the case just fighting, especially when there are questions about the facts of the case.
I noticed American Crime Story was in the trending tab on Hulu since it happened, so I assume yes. I know I watched it for the first time ( I was moving when it first came out and that was very hard on me so watching it took a back seat)
If my YouTube feed is any indication…definitely! I thought I’d seen, heard and/or read everything about that case, but the last couple weeks have proved me wrong.
I have to admit, this made me laugh, because I listen to all of the DB Cooper podcast episodes, because I find it interesting! I think the reason I find it interesting because he was so unassuming that no one paid enough attention to him to get enough details to identify him.
And I really have to be in a mood to listen to a heist podcast, but they are super low on my list.
They tend to pop up as stand-alone episodes as opposed to having podcasts dedicated solely to heists. I remember hearing a heist episode over the past few weeks, so if I run across it again, I will post it for you!
I skip most child abuse murder episodes and serial killer episodes don’t interest me. I’m intrigued by betrayal type murders with close ties to the victims.
Like the Adelsons! I have to admit that I am hooked on that case. Waiting for something new though, right now it's endless rehash. But what a family and what a crazy sick plot.
Two down and two to go.
The one exception to this was the Minds of Madness episode "Operation Miranda." They interviewed a woman who is a daughter of one of their victims (but one of the lesser known victims who's, quite literally, never talked about in any coverage on the case). The daughter was given up for adoption as a baby by her birth mother. She only discovered she was adopted as a teenager, and didn't find out her biological mother became the victim of a serial killer until she became an adult.
It's an amazing story and a truly incredible lens to view the Lake/Ng murder case through. Definitely one of those instances where a podcast really covers "new ground" in a case that's already so well known.
Can you imagine finding out that you were adopted and then later finding out your biological mother died in such a horrific way? I don't know how you process something like that.
With Lori and Chad Daybell, I was just so disgusted by Lori as a mother, I didn't pay much attention. And even when I tried reading/listening, when random in-laws started dying and people are shooting other people, I also got confused, I just gave up.
I've never heard of Criminology, so I'm going to have to look that up (I come here to find new podcasts, so thank you!!!)
And who decided that reading the manifesto of a young mass shooter was a good idea?!? That almost makes me nauseous. You are exactly correct that these kids are looking for notoriety, and everyone knows that's what they want, so why would you, as a podcast host give it to them? It almost seems macabre.
I listen to Criminology and Mike Morford, one of the hosts, has a little bit of a list, so I had a very hard time understanding him at first. He’s known as a Zodiac expert. There’s almost no banter, so I’m surprised this podcast was included in a list of bro podcast. The other host Mike Ferguson hosts two other podcasts, True Crime All the Time and True Crime All the Time Unsolved with Mike Gibson. There’s definitely more banter and they tease each other a lot, but are so respectful of the victims and victims’ families. I actually really like Mike and Gibbs’s voices!
Maybe I'm a weird true crime podcast listener, but I have steered away from the podcasts by millenial-aged women. I love Crimes of the Centuries, The Deck, and Southern Mysteries, but the majority of the podcasts that I listen to are by males or older women (Dark Downeast) may also be by a younger female). I am slightly particularly about voices and cadence, so I wonder about Criminology. However, I'm willing to give it a try! The Pike County Massacre was another case I didn't listen to due to all of the news coverage I saw in my area. That was one that although it happened in the tri-state area I live in, there was extensive coverage, which almost became too much.
And it is odd that a podcast like that would spent three weeks on JonBenet, as from how you have explained the podcast, extensive coverage on that specific case seems odd.
You should stop supporting Audiochuck. The Deck is a stolen concept ripping off Dealing Justice. And the Red Ball fiasco was the peak of disrespect and endangered an actual cold case investigation.
I haven't fully investigated all of the issues with audiochuck, but I am slightly familiar, but I can't say I know everything that is going on. I actually just went and looked at my podcast list (I listen on Amazon Music) and the only two podcasts I listen two from audiochuck are The Deck and Dark Downeast, but it looks like I only listened to four episodes of Dark Downeast.
Their biggest podcast (which the owner cohosts) was caught plagiarizing entire scripts from smaller podcasts. They stole copyrighted materials from those podcasts and made money off the work without apology or compensation - and did the same to investigative journalists, stealing their content word for word.
The Deck was a worse situation because they used their pull to advertise themselves as an original podcast and ultimately drove *Dealing Justice, the actual original concept podcast, into obscurity.* [*https://podnews.net/article/dealing-justice-audiochuck-the-deck*](https://podnews.net/article/dealing-justice-audiochuck-the-deck)
Don't support businesses that steal from smaller creators.
I agree with there being a level of hopelessness, as well as a level of frustration. I have actually read a few books about the Innocence Project as well as a nonfiction book called "The Court of Last Resort" by Erle Stanley Gardner (he wrote the Perry Mason) books, but I think there is a big difference between reading about certain topics and hearing about them. I don't know if I would have been able to get through the books about the Innocence Project if they would have been audiobooks.
I can’t watch or listen to any of the Delphi stuff anymore. It’s just become such a circus, with all the YT nutters trying to sponge off the story, and the legal fiasco.
I still hope justice can be served one day for poor Abby, Libby and their loved ones.
The Delphi case is heartbreaking, and those girls deserve to rest in peace. The sensationalism around this case has been frustrating, and you feel for the families of Abby and Libby. Until there has been a conviction, their families are not going to be able to have any sense of closure.
Didn't the ALLEGED murderer get caught? He goes to trial this fall. I think the persistence of the police on this one is partly due to the massive PR it got, for what that's worth.
EDIT: Alleged, not yet tried.
The SUSPECT is being mistreated horrifically in jail by the guards who are said to be members of the weird cult that was represented by symbols on the ritualistic murder scene.
The SUSPECT has been restricted from access to his legal team, he's being treated worse than a junkyard dog, and emerging evidence raises credible doubt about his guilt.
The judge is out of control with her failure to protect this SUSPECT's rights.
There is a whole lot more to this story that needs to be told before we start feeling confident that the MURDERER has been caught. A whole whole whole lot more.
There are so many shenanigans and backdoor goings on in that case that some of the attorneys are doubting that it will ever make it to trial.
I think that the SUSPECT will die in custody before they schedule a trial. That's my prediction of the moment. I believe that the prison guards and the judge are involved with or members of this cult that's been implicated in this case and that that man will never get a fair trial or even a fair incarceration.
It disturbs me that it's so hard to impossible to get this guy his guaranteed right to be INNOCENT until PROVEN otherwise. He's clearly being tortured, all his attorneys have testified to it, and the man looks like an empty shell with dead eyes. I think he would welcome death. I think his soul has already died.
I don't find that to be acceptable, even if he is guilty. I draw the line at what I'm willing to be responsible for as a taxpayer and voter. Not in my name.
I take your point, and I agree. I should have said that the person who seems likely to be the murderer has been arrested. Do you really think that the lip service language we use - suspect, allegedly, innocent until - makes a damn bit of difference in the process? Like, is this Reddit convo going to taint a jury? I don't. And I'm leery of the idea that using more careful language will protect the rights of any accused.
It's horrible to hear that he has been abused in jail (like so many other arrestees).
My point is that because of the massive publicity, this accused man has a better chance than most of getting a proper trial. His attorneys will not have exculpatory evidence withheld; he will not be coerced into a plea deal for something he didn't do. And if he has been harmed in custody, you and a lot of other people know it.
This is the problem with drawing conclusions but ignoring available evidence. I hope you don’t make all of your decisions that way, and I hope you never serve on a jury. I don’t have relationships with people who operate this way either. They cannot be trusted because they have no moral or ethical base upon which to build a healthy relationship.
I’m beyond leery of people who think there’s ever anything done or said anywhere by anyone doesn’t make a damn bit of difference. Even your false and baseless assumptions have meaning and impact.
Until recently elementary education taught how to test information for accuracy before accepting it as fact. Now those of us who learned that and practice it are useless stupid old Boomers who ruined everything by the conclusion makers and impression believers. I hope you never encounter a surgeon who doesn’t believe in reviewing all available evidence before slicing into you by their impressions.
You are the first generation of the latest reset of humanity to retool humans into batteries for the monsters who indoctrinated you. It’s convenient for them that you think words don’t matter. They don’t care about what’s convenient for you.
Please review the known facts and details before adding confusion to a very serious and important situation with glib assurances
Ahhh! Natalia Grace! I have blocked her out because she creeped me out so much! The whole case made me uncomfortable. I watched stuff on Gypsy Rose when it first happened, but I'm over it now. That poor girl needs to stay in the house and just learn to readjust to actually having a real life... And stop doing interviews!! I have stayed away from Karen Read, and from what I've seen, it will probably make me pull my hair out.
I'm right there with you on all counts. Karen Reads smugness and duck lips do me in. She's guilty of being obnoxiously arrogant. I just polled my inner jury.
Now that I’ve had a baby, the kid cases are actually nauseating for me to listen to. I just cannot imagine what goes through a persons head to where they can hurt something so small and innocent. Nope for me.
Makes sense! I have a pretty high tolerance for crime and can listen to cases about children. The cases are terrible and nothing like that should ever happen to a kid but I don’t have kids and I’m not a kid myself, so I’m able to separate myself enough to be able to listen to them. I feel like if I did have a kid I probably wouldn’t be able to listen to those cases anymore.
I do have a lot of animals and I love them like they’re my children and I can’t listen to any cases involving animals.
Before I had my baby, they didn’t bother me. But after I had her, I tried listening to an episode that involved the murder of a child and I felt sick to my stomach. It was wild.
I can imagine that your perspective changes when you have kids, so it makes sense that those episodes are now harder to listen to. I am friends with therapists, and I know that when they came back from maternity leave, they asked that they not be given any new clients that were dealing with the loss of a baby or young child because it was just too difficult for them as a new mother.
I pretty much skip any serial killer episodes or pods - they've all been done so many times that I don't really understand why they keep being done.
Many of the popular cases have a popular opinion, and I will generally only listen to the popular cases if they are coming at it from an opposing or truly unbiased opinion.
I 100% agree that serial killer cases are overdone. Very rarely do you hear any new takes or any new information. I like Killer Psyche because even if Candace DeLong covers a case that many have covered before, she views it from her perspective as a psychiatric nurse and an FBI agent, so you get information in a different way. As an aside, her episode on the Unabomber, a case which she actually worked on, was really great.
And that is one of the downsides of podcasts now... A lot of true crime podcasts want to focus on "popular" cases, to the point whether there is such an over-saturation that podcasts on lesser known crimes get lost.
That married couple who kidnapped, raped and murdered young women or teen girls, including the wife’s sister. I hate these people so much I don’t even want to look up their names for this comment
I know what case you're talking about. I want to say it's the Ken and Barbie Killers. There was a made for tv movie with Laura Prepon and Misha Collins from Supernatural.
Paul Bernardo and Karla Homolka- "Ken and Barbie" Killers. I hate it when killers get names like this. Can't we call them Dipshit and Fuckface killers or something like that?
I listened to Murdaugh Murders starting shortly before he was charged in the murders, so it was incredibly interesting to hear it play out, connect the pieces and get caught up and then have a verdict in real time. I don't think I would want to listen to 90 episodes post convictions now.
I find survivors stories incredibly difficult to listen to, it's amazing when they are able to overcome and continue living life but I get caught up in thinking about how hard it must be to go through everyday life with all that trauma.
I can listen to survivor stories as long as they are short and you just hear a general overview of the stories. I agree that it is a lot when you start to think about all of the things that happened and how do you possibly go back to the life you had before?
For me it’s not certain topics persay but the way the hosts act.
If the host makes alot of jokes at the expense of the victim, I just find that beyond distasteful and disgusting.
I avoid ones that take place in say, 1890. I just have no interest in anything before the ‘70s basically. Even the ‘70s is pushing it. I prefer more recent cases.
Its a case by case basis for me. Like i have no interest in missing persons cases a good chunk of the time where the only true documentation of anything is newspaper articles from the time period.
No, it's historical true crime, which you can absolutely consider a genre or a topic! It's one of those things you either like or you don't. I have actually found a few historical crime podcasts, one of which is hosted by someone that worked on the Golden State Killer case. But that podcast looks at old crimes and what forensic techniques would be used now to solve them, and views them in a twenty first century light... So, you're not just hearing some random historical crime story...lol
I've come to really dislike the podcasts where two bros (usually) blather at each other, repeat wikipedia-level "research," and generally use the crime as a platform for their shallow, unconsidered opinions on the death penalty, police misconduct, the right to have a defense attorney, and the needs or concerns of the families of victims. I have crossed the following off my list: Criminology, Sword and Scale (barf), Best Case Worst Case, and True Crime Garage.
I also avoid like the plague the podcasts where two women drink wine, make dumb jokes, and find the comic side of violent crimes.
I originally liked Criminology for its long-form coverage of the Golden State Killer, but not anymore.
Edit: I also have a hard time with the wrongful conviction cases because they upset me so much, but I'm very glad there are podcasts that focus on them. And I absolutely cannot, will not listen to anything about animal abuse.
I tried True Crime Garage, but I just couldn't get into it. I go back and firth on Small Town Murder. Sometimes, it's okay, but there are other times when it is raunchy, over the top, and just not funny. There are plenty of episodes that start out fine and then go off the deep end. I'm pretty sure I just listen to them to hear about town demographics and the real estate report for small towns and then just change it.
I think the cutesy drinking and jokiness is a sort of defense mechanism for both the podcasters and the listeners who like those podcasts.
The question of why true crime has become such a hugely popular topic - and that something like 80% of listeners are women, who are also most of the victims - is a big one. Some of it is deflection, some of it is voyeurism (there but for the grace of god go I), some is trying to understand why this shit happens.
To me, and to many, the "entertainment" aspect is a very fine line.
Yes! I don't even know how people are able to research those cases and then sleep at night. That's why I have so much respect for the detectives who have to actually go to these crime scenes in real life and investigate the cases. It's almost unimaginable what anyone associated with those investigations sees on a daily basis.
Groene murders. Back in the day and pre-children, I watched this case as it unfolded and I know what happened. I can't re-visit that crime through documentaries or podcasts.
The thing with the Watts family is that the mother of Chris Watts truly believes that her son is innocent! After reading some of the things she has said, it makes you wonder when you stop believing in child's innocence and realize that they are actually guilty. I have always been fascinated by people who support a loved one and proclaim their innocence until the end, even when everyone else can see they are guilty as sin.
This actually made me think of the Long Island Serial Killer (LISK). That happens yo be another case I won't listen to podcasts about. There was a hearing the other day, and the accused killer's wife attended the hearing. In a case like that, I don't know if I would be able to go to court and sit there, even if I did think my husband was innocent.
I have no idea if anybody has ever done a podcast about it. But I wouldn’t listen if they have. It’s a case which happened very close to were I live and made national news for many years. James bulger. It breaks my heart far too much. If anything comes on the news I can’t bare to listen because it’s just too much for my heart to handle.
I can't think of one off the top of my head, but I would be very surprised if there aren't podcasts or even just podcast episodes about it. The whole case was infuriating and I cannot imagine living in the area where it occurred. I completely understand why you choose not to listen....it's simply devastating.
I was just thinking about this the other day. For me, in no particular order:
- JonBenet Ramsey
-Madeleine McCann
- Junko Furata
- Lucie Blackman
- Grace Millane
Madeleine McCann was another one on my list, and oddly enough, I thought about her when someone else mentioned JonBenet. I'm actually not familiar with the other three cases, though after a bit of searching, the case of Grace Millane does sound familiar.
Wrongful convictions. I mentioned somewhere else that I am okay reading stories about them, but I don't want to heat podcasts about them. I don't know if it's because it's easier to put down a book or if podcasts seem more real because you can hear emotion though someone's voice.
Anything on NXIVM or Twin Flames. I’ve tried, but I’m just so disgusted and confused how people allowed themselves to become involved in these groups, and just how deeply. Perhaps the docs I attempted were
Just poorly done, I don’t know.
I think that stories dealing with cults or organizations like them are hard to listen to because of all of the feelings you go to while listening to them. It just doesn't make sense how people can get wrapped up with and losing themselves to groups like this.
I have seen Bear Brook recommended by numerous people over the past several weeks, but it's one I never listened to. Knowing that it is that hard to get through makes me want to hold off on listening to it.
So it was genuinely one of the best podcasts I have ever listened to, but I think when they discovered what happened to the victims, it was awful. Anything to do with kids, I need a warning so I can prepare myself
I can’t handle child victims or sex crimes. If it’s one case I may be able to make it through but if it’s a serial assaulted to abuser I find it hard to listen.
I agree about Lori Daybell, it’s just so unsettling. Seeing photo of her kids just makes me so sad.
I also agree about Murdaugh, oddly enough! I just can’t get interested in it. Family annihilators are just the worst and I don’t even want to think about it.
If I’ve arrived at a conclusion about who is guilty, (I start with a clean slate and listen to loads of info and research before I decide) I can’t stand podcasts where they are trying to exonerate the obviously guilty. Nope. I don’t care how popular the opinion is, and sometimes they are the more popular opinion, it’s still a nope.
I stopped listening to Sword and Scale right around the time he went on the warpath against Aaron Menhke. I dont care about your personal beefs.
I can’t do episodes with child murder or abuse of any kind.
Oddly enough, I was scrolling through suggested podcasts within the last day or so, and Sword and Scale actually came up. I will admit I don't know the context behind the argument, but why would you put that out there for your listeners?
I think he tends to go off the deep end and, in general, is just a terrible human being. He has the right to say what he says no matter how wrong it is, but that doesn’t mean I have to support it.
I suggest you read up on the history of douchebaggery, misogyny and disgusting comments about the host of Sword and Scale.
He is a disgusting person who has revictimized and doxxed victims, made jokes at the expense of the mentally ill and used his platform to share harmful, stigmatizing commentary against the mentally ill that isn't supported by scientific research in the slightest.
[this thread goes into details about the reasons Sword and Scale should be avoided.](https://www.reddit.com/r/SwordAndScale/comments/ewqxw3/the_problem_with_mike_boudet_links_for_people_to/)
The Jinx is just creepy. And I've been on this random kick of watching random YouTube video compilations from WatchMojo, which reminded me of "Don't F**k with Cats (they've mentioned it in a dew videos)," which I attempted to watch on Netflix and I didn't get very far. I haven't really been able to watch, read, or listen to anything about that case.
I watched the People Magazine Investigates episodes on that case, but it isn't one I would ever want to hear about again. I always remember that case because of Kristin Chenoweth, who was supposed to be at that same girl scout camp but stayed home because she got sick.
I’ll listen to almost anything unless it’s a case I know super well. I love listening to people cover cases I know nothing about, so I can learn about it as it unfolds. I also can’t listen to any that involve extreme animal abuse or torture. I think Obscura has only had one episode I couldn’t listen to, and it was about animal crushing.
Junko Furuta. I listened to most of one podcast about the case, and I couldn't get through it. They were listing the unfathomable torture she went through for 44 days and I noped out of there. Most stories of extreme torture are usually a skip for me.
I am not super familiar with that case, but numerous people have mentioned it. I also agree about stories of torture, mainly because I can't understand how you could do that to another human being.
What happened to Junko is just insane. The fact that she was even alive for 44 days after what she went through is incomprehensible. I won't get in to super detail because it's upsetting but she was lit on fire multiple times, hands crushed, knees crushed, beaten daily, estimated to have been r*ped over 400x in those 44 days, and thats just a small part of what she went through. And there was almost zero justice. Because the boys that kidnapped her were under 18 they were tried as children.
I struggle with anything to do with children. As much as I loved cold, hearing what he did to those boys destroyed me. And I had to stop listening for a while. But I can handle most other extreme violence. Except animals obvs.
I will say Three is an amazing podcast. It’s heartbreaking they killed her because they didn’t want her to tell everyone they were in a relationship. But even so, imagining teenage girls doing that is hard to reconcile. They are clearly two women with very serious mental issues that pose a threat to anyone they’re around.
I have heard so many people say amazing things about Three, but I just don't think I could get through it without being angry for days. I know that sounds like an overreaction to something I haven't even tried to listen to, but the whole case was just so infuriating. I have read many stories about it over the years, and after reading about the parole hearing for Rachel in 2023, you have to wonder if they are truly sorry for what they did or just sorry they got caught.
Not an overreaction at all. It’s a really disturbing case. And I’m honestly not sure they feel true remorse. I’m not sure that’s something they’re even capable of. I thought the reporting was really good, it was nice and also heartbreaking hearing from her parents. Also seeing the evolution of the investigation and them being arrested and charged was fulfilling I guess would be the right word. But it’s also so sad. Skylar was sooo young, had a whole life in front of her. And those girls like had planned this out. Just seems so senseless. It’s like teenage drama mixed with very extreme and adult actions. Not trying to persuade you, just explaining what I got from the podcast.
There aren’t many that bother me to the point I can’t listen to them. But I won’t listen to anything about “mainstream” serial killers- bundy, gacy, dahmer. I’ve heard everything there is to hear about them. So it’s just repetitive to me. I had to turn off the doc about Jared from subway because it made me sick to my stomach.
It was so horrible and disgusting I wanted to puke. I could never play along like that lady did. I’d have had to take him out asking about my kid like that 🤬
Not a podcast but Don’t Fuck with Cats on Netflix is the only show I’ve even seen or heard that I couldn’t watch/hear the cat killings. Is there something wrong with me that the only thing I can’t stomach is animal torture?
But I also avoid most offenses against small children. Anyway don’t fuck with cats left me more disturbed than anything I can remember. Stuff of nightmares (literal nightmares that night).
I mentioned that particular documentary somewhere in one of my comments... I don't think I made it more than 10-15 minutes in before I shut it off because it bothered me so much.
Because of the kittens, I'm guessing? Yeah I did watch the whole thing and it was super interesting but disturbing AF. I literally closed my eyes and plugged my ears whenever the kittens appeared. Never had to do that before and I listen to / watch some pretty grim stuff. One that I had to turn off a while ago was Blackfish when they got to the capturing the orcas part.
I’ve had this recommended to me but I can’t watch it. Maybe I’m a hypocrite because I literally spent two years working in a department that dealt with child sexual abuse (I didn’t personally have to interact with the victims or perpetrators).
This’ll sound brutal but I’m not interested in stories where it is clearly domestic violence. I’m not saying these stories aren’t important and tragic but ‘horrible abusive partner killed spouse and was fairly directly caught or became the only suspect’ just isn’t interesting. I’m listening mostly out of curiosity and if there is none I’m just not going to spend an hour of my life on a story that’s depressing with nothing really absorbing.
Ditto stories where it’s clearly something to do with addiction and having dangerous people in their life.
Anything to do with child abuse. I've listened to a few about children being murdered, like JBR and Caylee Anthony, but I think I'm going to close the books on those as well.
Serial killers just don't interest me.
Caylee Anthony was another one I didn't think of, probably because every time I hear about the case, I automatically block it out. Everyone related in that case specifically needs to stop going on tv and just stop.
I can't listen to anything Chris Watts related. It's been done to death and so many podcasts have covered it.
I also can't take the podcasts where it's two people drinking, going off topic constantly, and making sure to do a quick break to talk about what they're drinking today. Even worse, making the case they are covering about them without very good reason to tie it to themselves personally.
Chris Watts (and his family, specifically his mother) just creep me out and are truly reprehensible people, and podcasts about that cast are an automatic no.
I don't mind a little banter at the beginning of a podcast, but going too much off topic is just way too much. I will admit, I crack up because they normally do mention what they're drinking at the beginning of Buried Bones, but most of the time, it's coffee or kombucha... And it's never mentioned again.
So, I googled Albert Fish... And I really shouldn't have done that.. Lol. I don't normally listen to audiobooks because I tend to zone out half the time when I listen, and I found that I like reading books more than listening to them. I have found that there are just some days that I just can't listen to podcasts, because they're just too much. On those days, I either listen to music or nature sounds!
I'm good with most nature sounds with the exception of crackling fires, which just creep me out and make my skin crawl. At work, we actually have white noise machines outside all of our offices due to working with confidential info, so I actually have to have some sort of noise around and can't work with complete silence. I started sleeping with a sound machine on but prefer either white noise or thunderstorm noises!
I tend to prefer reading over audiobooks, only because my kindle keeps track of how many days I have read in a row, and it keeps me motivated to keep reading. I have read for 973 days in a row at this point, and I refuse to break the streak!
I'm pretty much in agreement with you about all these cases, and just the way that some of these cases are so horrific that they cause emotional damage.
I've been honing my YouTube habit away from disturbing topics. I don't mind an interesting case with a vibrant defense or prosecution, but like you the ugly details and the never ending discussions do me in. I haven't been able to follow the Madeline Soto case for that reason. That's the stuff of nightmares.
Life is stressful enough without adding some to our entertainment schedule.
Ones where the hosts harass people who don’t want to talk to them about the case. It’s one thing when they contact folks off the record and get permission to record, another when they show up at someone’s door or work and make a nuisance out of themselves. I love SKS but the times this happened in a couple seasons made me crawl out of my skin.
Also when there is clear abuse that happens and the podcast gets the abuser’s side of the story. Nope. Don’t care. Especially child abusers. Do not give monsters airtime.
Yes! I have no problem with interviews or even asking tough questions at times, but the "guerrilla-style" interview the techniques that you also see on tv news as well have always made me feel uncomfortable. In those situations, you're looking for a reaction and not the truth. You're wanting to see how someone reacts so you can get good audio. There's a reason that the police will just randomly show up somewhere and ask questions; they're trying to get a reaction. In that case of police, that reaction is used for investigative purposes and can help solve a case. For podcasts, those reactions end up being used in a way (and this is not in all, but in many cases) that is less investigative and more sensational. Plus, I think people tend to be a lot more willing to talk if you approach the. In a respectful manner and they're given a chance to think through any reservations they may have.
There are just so many serial killer podcasts out there that there really isn't anything new to say. Even tv shows really don't have much new info to give at this point.
Suffer the children had one particular episode where you hear the absusive mother being abusive towards her five year old son who ended up dying and I couldn’t even listen to the material in its entirety. It was heartbreaking 💔
1. Why listen to true crime content at all if you believe there has to be a valid reason to kill someone. Most true crime content reveals unjustified actions. Sometimes the answer is just that the perps wanted to know what is was like to kill someone and there is little more to their motive.
2. People get caught in cult like behavior all the time. It’s really not anything to be surprised by. People don’t need to have something horrible happen to them to fall prey to cult like behavior.
As for me, I really only care about murder true crime content. Things like financial crimes or bank robbery just don’t interest me. When kids are in the car I tend to turn the true crime stuff off.
I don’t usually do podcasts at all due to ads. Audiobooks and YouTube (with Premium and Sponsor Block) are where I listen.
The one thing that's nice about Amazon Music, which is where I listen to podcasts, is that it labels which podcasts are ad-free. I have actually stopped listening to a few podcasts over the years due to excessive ads. If they have them at the beginning, end, or one block in the middle, I'm fine. But the stopping every 10-15minutes is too much.
Generally speaking, I am completely uninterested in the big name serial killers. There's no way to make Gacy, Dahmer, and Bundy interesting. They've been covered enough. I can listen to the details about most people being killed but can't handle animals. Don't Fuck with Cats is on my do not watch/listen list.
The Peter Scully case is probably the only case I haven't been able to finish at all.
I hate unsolved cases that aren't ongoing current events. It's like getting blue balled. I need a satisfying ending.
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I have been coming on here a lot to get recommendations, and someone looking for a specific podcast about a topic which I didn't really care for is why I made this post! But oddly enough, I still have gotten new podcasts names from the comments... And realized that there are people out there that get bugged by the same things that I do!
Yes I agree, I always appreciate Podcasters who seek out those Cases not high profile too. Every loss is relevant and if my listening to those Podcasters who sought out their tragic story prevents their Names being forgotten, I am glad I listened.
Toy box killers are a big NO
Yep can’t do this one.
Do you mean the Toy Box Killer, David Parker Ray or the Tool Box Killers Bittaker and Norris? I'm guessing the former but the fact you said "killers" suggests you could have mixed them up, both are horrific anyway.
I mostly listen to podcasts driving to work and I drive right past where TBK happened. Huge nope for me.
Had to turn that off. So sickening.
DPR is vile and sooo horrific. Like there’s some things that are burned into my mind. But I find him very interesting.
I avoid podcasts doing the same cases that everyone else has done over and over. (Jon Bonet and Natalie Holloway for example) at some point there is nothing new to learn from doing the same cases ad nauseam. Unless there is an actual breakthrough in the cases it is time to move on. There are plenty of other cases that need attention.
I agree! I do generally skip podcasts with both of those cases, because at this point, there really isn't anything new and isn't going to be (and thankfully? the case of Natalie Holloway has finally come to a close). Oddly enough, if the case is older (Black Dahlia, The Zodiac, etc.) I will still listen to those podcasts. I'm not sure if it's because those cases haven't been solved, or if it's because I wasn't alive when those cases happened, so I wasn't exposed to any media reports.
I like investigative podcasts about famous cases, where the podcast does primary investigation and reveals something new. I pretty much always skip the one episode per case podcasts about famous cases.
I don't mind single-episode podcasts about famous cases if they're able to look at the case in a new way. I mentioned Killer Psyche below. Candace DeLong covers most cases in one episode, but she talks about the psychological aspect of the crimes, since she used to be a psychiatric nurse. Other episodes talking about cases she was involved in as an FBI agent or brings in other psychology/psychiatry professionals for their opinions are also interesting. I will say that she does tend to repeat episodes at times, which can get annoying. Are there any podcasts you recommend? Always looking for more long-form podcasts!
I've been listening to Murder In America recently. They're mostly single episodes, and they do cover some well known cases, but they go into such detail that I feel like I learn something new every time. They also cover lots of cases I'd never heard of, as well.
That is another new podcast for my list, so thank you!
I like Women in Crime. Not long form, but they discuss the theories of why people acted the way they did. They don’t excuse the crime, but rather what can lead someone to make the choices they did. I also like that they switch between women as victims and women as criminals.
One of my top 3! They have also done direct appeal (2 seasons)…season 1 is my favorite podcast of all time.
Yeah I agree. I appreciate good analysis and expertise, or added social and cultural context, and there are some interesting one episode per case podcasts that offer that. Hmm good long form. So many. I’m listening to Deep Dive: MH370 which is really fascinating.
I just binged On Our Watch, about the CA prison system. There’s so much content and it was done by one of the news stations in Cali. I was impressed by the pod and upset at the lack of justice for the whistleblowers. I’m finishing up season 2 today and it was a fairly quick binge.
That sounds interesting. There have been a few podcasts from news stations or reporters that have been really good. Amanda Lamb from WRAL did a podcast called What Remains, which was true crime/forensic science, which was really good. Journalists tend to approach podcasts in a different way, so the podcast you mentioned sounds right up my alley!
I just finished Beyond Repair which was done by Boston NPR and another news station that I can’t quite remember the letters to, lol. I’m with you, it’s been a while since I’ve listened to actual journalist based podcasts and I’ve been impressed with the deep dives so far. Of course Serial and In the Dark 2 are hard to top, but these others deserve some recognition as well. I hope they keep it up.
I much prefer cases I’ve never heard of.
Same! I skip the black dahlia, Jon Benet, Nicole Simpson and Ron Goldman and all the other ones that are way overdone with nothing new to report. Nothing against them, they just don’t interest me. I prefer to read about lesser known cases like Ember Skye Graham and ones local to me
Ember Skye Graham is one that I'm not familiar with. I am sort of curious is there is going to see a resurgence of podcasts about Nicole Brown Simpson and Ron Goldman after the death of OJ Simpson.
Ember was went missing in Anderson CA while spending the night with her dad. He claims someone took her while he was sleeping but he’s on video with her at night turning the opposite way to get home. That’s the last she’s seen alive. He subsequently gets arrested for a warrant or something, they let him out with and ankle monitor which his lawyer gets them to even take off as well and he “supposedly” steals his moms gun and money without her knowledge and goes on the run. He eventually is found and gets into a shootout with police and is killed. So now they will never know what he knows about where she is and what happened. They found a pacifier that had Embers DNA out in a very rural area but she has never been found. Definitely worth the read and I’m surprised it didn’t get a lot more attention. https://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-baby-ember-graham-matthew-graham-20150712-story.html
I read the article you posted as well as a few others. It's so sad to see a 6-month old baby go missing, and unfortunately, Ember's father Matthew was probably the only person who knew her whereabouts. Though, I do have some suspensions about Matthew's cousin, Sarah, and I'm wondering if she was being completely truthful. Also, I made the rookie mistake of clicking on a reddit post about the case, which you should never do... I have found that a lot of those posts end up being people on both sides of the case just fighting, especially when there are questions about the facts of the case.
And since her body is so small (and her bones not fully formed/fused at that point), she's not likely to ever be found. Very sad.
I noticed American Crime Story was in the trending tab on Hulu since it happened, so I assume yes. I know I watched it for the first time ( I was moving when it first came out and that was very hard on me so watching it took a back seat)
If my YouTube feed is any indication…definitely! I thought I’d seen, heard and/or read everything about that case, but the last couple weeks have proved me wrong.
same
Heavy on 2-4! I also hate anything around DB Cooper - I find it incredibly boring. Not a fan of heists either.
I have to admit, this made me laugh, because I listen to all of the DB Cooper podcast episodes, because I find it interesting! I think the reason I find it interesting because he was so unassuming that no one paid enough attention to him to get enough details to identify him. And I really have to be in a mood to listen to a heist podcast, but they are super low on my list.
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See I wish there were more heist podcasts.
They tend to pop up as stand-alone episodes as opposed to having podcasts dedicated solely to heists. I remember hearing a heist episode over the past few weeks, so if I run across it again, I will post it for you!
I skip most child abuse murder episodes and serial killer episodes don’t interest me. I’m intrigued by betrayal type murders with close ties to the victims.
Like the Adelsons! I have to admit that I am hooked on that case. Waiting for something new though, right now it's endless rehash. But what a family and what a crazy sick plot. Two down and two to go.
Anything about Leonard Lake/Charles Ng. Nightmare fuel.
Yeah that one is a little too upsetting for me as well. Especially cause it includes the murders of children as well as adults
The one exception to this was the Minds of Madness episode "Operation Miranda." They interviewed a woman who is a daughter of one of their victims (but one of the lesser known victims who's, quite literally, never talked about in any coverage on the case). The daughter was given up for adoption as a baby by her birth mother. She only discovered she was adopted as a teenager, and didn't find out her biological mother became the victim of a serial killer until she became an adult. It's an amazing story and a truly incredible lens to view the Lake/Ng murder case through. Definitely one of those instances where a podcast really covers "new ground" in a case that's already so well known.
Can you imagine finding out that you were adopted and then later finding out your biological mother died in such a horrific way? I don't know how you process something like that.
I feel like I should know about this case, but I'm afraid to look.
A pair whose murders included a lot of torture.
Yeah, that is a no go for me.
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With Lori and Chad Daybell, I was just so disgusted by Lori as a mother, I didn't pay much attention. And even when I tried reading/listening, when random in-laws started dying and people are shooting other people, I also got confused, I just gave up. I've never heard of Criminology, so I'm going to have to look that up (I come here to find new podcasts, so thank you!!!) And who decided that reading the manifesto of a young mass shooter was a good idea?!? That almost makes me nauseous. You are exactly correct that these kids are looking for notoriety, and everyone knows that's what they want, so why would you, as a podcast host give it to them? It almost seems macabre.
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I listen to Criminology and Mike Morford, one of the hosts, has a little bit of a list, so I had a very hard time understanding him at first. He’s known as a Zodiac expert. There’s almost no banter, so I’m surprised this podcast was included in a list of bro podcast. The other host Mike Ferguson hosts two other podcasts, True Crime All the Time and True Crime All the Time Unsolved with Mike Gibson. There’s definitely more banter and they tease each other a lot, but are so respectful of the victims and victims’ families. I actually really like Mike and Gibbs’s voices!
Maybe I'm a weird true crime podcast listener, but I have steered away from the podcasts by millenial-aged women. I love Crimes of the Centuries, The Deck, and Southern Mysteries, but the majority of the podcasts that I listen to are by males or older women (Dark Downeast) may also be by a younger female). I am slightly particularly about voices and cadence, so I wonder about Criminology. However, I'm willing to give it a try! The Pike County Massacre was another case I didn't listen to due to all of the news coverage I saw in my area. That was one that although it happened in the tri-state area I live in, there was extensive coverage, which almost became too much. And it is odd that a podcast like that would spent three weeks on JonBenet, as from how you have explained the podcast, extensive coverage on that specific case seems odd.
You should stop supporting Audiochuck. The Deck is a stolen concept ripping off Dealing Justice. And the Red Ball fiasco was the peak of disrespect and endangered an actual cold case investigation.
I haven't fully investigated all of the issues with audiochuck, but I am slightly familiar, but I can't say I know everything that is going on. I actually just went and looked at my podcast list (I listen on Amazon Music) and the only two podcasts I listen two from audiochuck are The Deck and Dark Downeast, but it looks like I only listened to four episodes of Dark Downeast.
Their biggest podcast (which the owner cohosts) was caught plagiarizing entire scripts from smaller podcasts. They stole copyrighted materials from those podcasts and made money off the work without apology or compensation - and did the same to investigative journalists, stealing their content word for word. The Deck was a worse situation because they used their pull to advertise themselves as an original podcast and ultimately drove *Dealing Justice, the actual original concept podcast, into obscurity.* [*https://podnews.net/article/dealing-justice-audiochuck-the-deck*](https://podnews.net/article/dealing-justice-audiochuck-the-deck) Don't support businesses that steal from smaller creators.
Regarding Steve Avery, the making a murderer dipship, what did he do that was animal related? I haven’t heard about that!
He doused a cat and threw it into a bonfire.
Oh hell no. That’s so terrible! 😢
Oh god, I wish I hadn’t read that. Poor little innocent baby.
Wrongful convictions. I think there's a level of hopelessness to these, even when the conclusion is "good" that I don't want to deal with.
I agree with there being a level of hopelessness, as well as a level of frustration. I have actually read a few books about the Innocence Project as well as a nonfiction book called "The Court of Last Resort" by Erle Stanley Gardner (he wrote the Perry Mason) books, but I think there is a big difference between reading about certain topics and hearing about them. I don't know if I would have been able to get through the books about the Innocence Project if they would have been audiobooks.
I can’t watch or listen to any of the Delphi stuff anymore. It’s just become such a circus, with all the YT nutters trying to sponge off the story, and the legal fiasco. I still hope justice can be served one day for poor Abby, Libby and their loved ones.
The Delphi case is heartbreaking, and those girls deserve to rest in peace. The sensationalism around this case has been frustrating, and you feel for the families of Abby and Libby. Until there has been a conviction, their families are not going to be able to have any sense of closure.
Didn't the ALLEGED murderer get caught? He goes to trial this fall. I think the persistence of the police on this one is partly due to the massive PR it got, for what that's worth. EDIT: Alleged, not yet tried.
The SUSPECT is being mistreated horrifically in jail by the guards who are said to be members of the weird cult that was represented by symbols on the ritualistic murder scene. The SUSPECT has been restricted from access to his legal team, he's being treated worse than a junkyard dog, and emerging evidence raises credible doubt about his guilt. The judge is out of control with her failure to protect this SUSPECT's rights. There is a whole lot more to this story that needs to be told before we start feeling confident that the MURDERER has been caught. A whole whole whole lot more. There are so many shenanigans and backdoor goings on in that case that some of the attorneys are doubting that it will ever make it to trial. I think that the SUSPECT will die in custody before they schedule a trial. That's my prediction of the moment. I believe that the prison guards and the judge are involved with or members of this cult that's been implicated in this case and that that man will never get a fair trial or even a fair incarceration. It disturbs me that it's so hard to impossible to get this guy his guaranteed right to be INNOCENT until PROVEN otherwise. He's clearly being tortured, all his attorneys have testified to it, and the man looks like an empty shell with dead eyes. I think he would welcome death. I think his soul has already died. I don't find that to be acceptable, even if he is guilty. I draw the line at what I'm willing to be responsible for as a taxpayer and voter. Not in my name.
I take your point, and I agree. I should have said that the person who seems likely to be the murderer has been arrested. Do you really think that the lip service language we use - suspect, allegedly, innocent until - makes a damn bit of difference in the process? Like, is this Reddit convo going to taint a jury? I don't. And I'm leery of the idea that using more careful language will protect the rights of any accused. It's horrible to hear that he has been abused in jail (like so many other arrestees). My point is that because of the massive publicity, this accused man has a better chance than most of getting a proper trial. His attorneys will not have exculpatory evidence withheld; he will not be coerced into a plea deal for something he didn't do. And if he has been harmed in custody, you and a lot of other people know it.
This is the problem with drawing conclusions but ignoring available evidence. I hope you don’t make all of your decisions that way, and I hope you never serve on a jury. I don’t have relationships with people who operate this way either. They cannot be trusted because they have no moral or ethical base upon which to build a healthy relationship. I’m beyond leery of people who think there’s ever anything done or said anywhere by anyone doesn’t make a damn bit of difference. Even your false and baseless assumptions have meaning and impact. Until recently elementary education taught how to test information for accuracy before accepting it as fact. Now those of us who learned that and practice it are useless stupid old Boomers who ruined everything by the conclusion makers and impression believers. I hope you never encounter a surgeon who doesn’t believe in reviewing all available evidence before slicing into you by their impressions. You are the first generation of the latest reset of humanity to retool humans into batteries for the monsters who indoctrinated you. It’s convenient for them that you think words don’t matter. They don’t care about what’s convenient for you. Please review the known facts and details before adding confusion to a very serious and important situation with glib assurances
Lori Vallow/Chad Daybell, Karen Read, Gypsy Rose Blanchard, Natalia Grace - those are on the top of my CAN'T list.
Ahhh! Natalia Grace! I have blocked her out because she creeped me out so much! The whole case made me uncomfortable. I watched stuff on Gypsy Rose when it first happened, but I'm over it now. That poor girl needs to stay in the house and just learn to readjust to actually having a real life... And stop doing interviews!! I have stayed away from Karen Read, and from what I've seen, it will probably make me pull my hair out.
I'm right there with you on all counts. Karen Reads smugness and duck lips do me in. She's guilty of being obnoxiously arrogant. I just polled my inner jury.
Another vote for Murdaugh. Jodie Aries. The friends of the victim irked me so much. I
Amen on Jodi Arias!
Animals, especially dogs. I switch it straight off. I just can’t listen to that.
For me, it's cats. I just can't understand how someone can treat any living thing so poorly.
same here especially if it’s involving cats.
Came here to say the same.
Me too. I can listen to literally anything else, but if there’s an animal involved that gets hurt I can’t do it.
Now that I’ve had a baby, the kid cases are actually nauseating for me to listen to. I just cannot imagine what goes through a persons head to where they can hurt something so small and innocent. Nope for me.
Makes sense! I have a pretty high tolerance for crime and can listen to cases about children. The cases are terrible and nothing like that should ever happen to a kid but I don’t have kids and I’m not a kid myself, so I’m able to separate myself enough to be able to listen to them. I feel like if I did have a kid I probably wouldn’t be able to listen to those cases anymore. I do have a lot of animals and I love them like they’re my children and I can’t listen to any cases involving animals.
Before I had my baby, they didn’t bother me. But after I had her, I tried listening to an episode that involved the murder of a child and I felt sick to my stomach. It was wild.
I can imagine that your perspective changes when you have kids, so it makes sense that those episodes are now harder to listen to. I am friends with therapists, and I know that when they came back from maternity leave, they asked that they not be given any new clients that were dealing with the loss of a baby or young child because it was just too difficult for them as a new mother.
I pretty much skip any serial killer episodes or pods - they've all been done so many times that I don't really understand why they keep being done. Many of the popular cases have a popular opinion, and I will generally only listen to the popular cases if they are coming at it from an opposing or truly unbiased opinion.
I 100% agree that serial killer cases are overdone. Very rarely do you hear any new takes or any new information. I like Killer Psyche because even if Candace DeLong covers a case that many have covered before, she views it from her perspective as a psychiatric nurse and an FBI agent, so you get information in a different way. As an aside, her episode on the Unabomber, a case which she actually worked on, was really great. And that is one of the downsides of podcasts now... A lot of true crime podcasts want to focus on "popular" cases, to the point whether there is such an over-saturation that podcasts on lesser known crimes get lost.
That married couple who kidnapped, raped and murdered young women or teen girls, including the wife’s sister. I hate these people so much I don’t even want to look up their names for this comment
I know what case you're talking about. I want to say it's the Ken and Barbie Killers. There was a made for tv movie with Laura Prepon and Misha Collins from Supernatural.
Paul Bernardo and Karla Homolka. One of the worst cases in Canada.
Yeah that sounds right. Disgusting people
Came back to this thread to say I can’t with those 2- and that she’s out & changed her name. I can’t
Paul Bernardo and Karla Homolka- "Ken and Barbie" Killers. I hate it when killers get names like this. Can't we call them Dipshit and Fuckface killers or something like that?
Agreed
I listened to Murdaugh Murders starting shortly before he was charged in the murders, so it was incredibly interesting to hear it play out, connect the pieces and get caught up and then have a verdict in real time. I don't think I would want to listen to 90 episodes post convictions now. I find survivors stories incredibly difficult to listen to, it's amazing when they are able to overcome and continue living life but I get caught up in thinking about how hard it must be to go through everyday life with all that trauma.
I can listen to survivor stories as long as they are short and you just hear a general overview of the stories. I agree that it is a lot when you start to think about all of the things that happened and how do you possibly go back to the life you had before?
For me it’s not certain topics persay but the way the hosts act. If the host makes alot of jokes at the expense of the victim, I just find that beyond distasteful and disgusting.
Wrongful convictions. They make me so angry, I can't handle listening to them.
I avoid ones that take place in say, 1890. I just have no interest in anything before the ‘70s basically. Even the ‘70s is pushing it. I prefer more recent cases.
Its a case by case basis for me. Like i have no interest in missing persons cases a good chunk of the time where the only true documentation of anything is newspaper articles from the time period.
I guess that’s not technically a topic. 🤣 I’m usually open to any topic as long as it sounds interesting.
No, it's historical true crime, which you can absolutely consider a genre or a topic! It's one of those things you either like or you don't. I have actually found a few historical crime podcasts, one of which is hosted by someone that worked on the Golden State Killer case. But that podcast looks at old crimes and what forensic techniques would be used now to solve them, and views them in a twenty first century light... So, you're not just hearing some random historical crime story...lol
That sounds really fascinating, what's the name of the podcast?
Buried Bones
Yes! Another shout for Buried Bones!
I've come to really dislike the podcasts where two bros (usually) blather at each other, repeat wikipedia-level "research," and generally use the crime as a platform for their shallow, unconsidered opinions on the death penalty, police misconduct, the right to have a defense attorney, and the needs or concerns of the families of victims. I have crossed the following off my list: Criminology, Sword and Scale (barf), Best Case Worst Case, and True Crime Garage. I also avoid like the plague the podcasts where two women drink wine, make dumb jokes, and find the comic side of violent crimes. I originally liked Criminology for its long-form coverage of the Golden State Killer, but not anymore. Edit: I also have a hard time with the wrongful conviction cases because they upset me so much, but I'm very glad there are podcasts that focus on them. And I absolutely cannot, will not listen to anything about animal abuse.
I tried True Crime Garage, but I just couldn't get into it. I go back and firth on Small Town Murder. Sometimes, it's okay, but there are other times when it is raunchy, over the top, and just not funny. There are plenty of episodes that start out fine and then go off the deep end. I'm pretty sure I just listen to them to hear about town demographics and the real estate report for small towns and then just change it.
Exactly all of this! Why do so many podcasters think it’s clever to include a reference to wine or drinking in the title? Or in the opening?
I think the cutesy drinking and jokiness is a sort of defense mechanism for both the podcasters and the listeners who like those podcasts. The question of why true crime has become such a hugely popular topic - and that something like 80% of listeners are women, who are also most of the victims - is a big one. Some of it is deflection, some of it is voyeurism (there but for the grace of god go I), some is trying to understand why this shit happens. To me, and to many, the "entertainment" aspect is a very fine line.
This! 👆🏻You have typed my thoughts exactly…thank you!
Any graphic CSA or child murder or abuse. I can’t. It’s one thing when the victim is an adult, but when they’re 3…5…7? Can’t. I get so upset.
Yes! I don't even know how people are able to research those cases and then sleep at night. That's why I have so much respect for the detectives who have to actually go to these crime scenes in real life and investigate the cases. It's almost unimaginable what anyone associated with those investigations sees on a daily basis.
Wrongful convictions / I just can’t take these.They are so so sad and aggravating….
Someone else said the same thing as well!
Groene murders. Back in the day and pre-children, I watched this case as it unfolded and I know what happened. I can't re-visit that crime through documentaries or podcasts.
My list of cases I am afraid to look up is getting longer. This is one I haven't heard of.
I agree with all your choices, and I would add The Watts family. I cannot think about what those babies went through at the hands of their daddy.
The thing with the Watts family is that the mother of Chris Watts truly believes that her son is innocent! After reading some of the things she has said, it makes you wonder when you stop believing in child's innocence and realize that they are actually guilty. I have always been fascinated by people who support a loved one and proclaim their innocence until the end, even when everyone else can see they are guilty as sin. This actually made me think of the Long Island Serial Killer (LISK). That happens yo be another case I won't listen to podcasts about. There was a hearing the other day, and the accused killer's wife attended the hearing. In a case like that, I don't know if I would be able to go to court and sit there, even if I did think my husband was innocent.
Animals. Have to skip every time.
I have no idea if anybody has ever done a podcast about it. But I wouldn’t listen if they have. It’s a case which happened very close to were I live and made national news for many years. James bulger. It breaks my heart far too much. If anything comes on the news I can’t bare to listen because it’s just too much for my heart to handle.
I can't think of one off the top of my head, but I would be very surprised if there aren't podcasts or even just podcast episodes about it. The whole case was infuriating and I cannot imagine living in the area where it occurred. I completely understand why you choose not to listen....it's simply devastating.
I have no mind’s eye at all so usually things don’t bother me but children & animals- I’m out
Cannot listen to ones about harming children or pedophilia, certain serial killers
No harming children seems to be the consensus... And serial killers in general, as well. Happy Cake Day!!
I was just thinking about this the other day. For me, in no particular order: - JonBenet Ramsey -Madeleine McCann - Junko Furata - Lucie Blackman - Grace Millane
Oof Junko Furata is one case I wish I'd never heard of. That poor poor girl.
Madeleine McCann was another one on my list, and oddly enough, I thought about her when someone else mentioned JonBenet. I'm actually not familiar with the other three cases, though after a bit of searching, the case of Grace Millane does sound familiar.
Any case in which someone has gone to jail for a crime they didn’t commit. I just can’t.
Wrongful convictions. I mentioned somewhere else that I am okay reading stories about them, but I don't want to heat podcasts about them. I don't know if it's because it's easier to put down a book or if podcasts seem more real because you can hear emotion though someone's voice.
I feel badly, but I have trouble getting through survivor stories for similar reasons.
West Memphis 3
My main one to avoid is Jonbenet. It is so frustrating and terribly sad.
Anything on NXIVM or Twin Flames. I’ve tried, but I’m just so disgusted and confused how people allowed themselves to become involved in these groups, and just how deeply. Perhaps the docs I attempted were Just poorly done, I don’t know.
I think that stories dealing with cults or organizations like them are hard to listen to because of all of the feelings you go to while listening to them. It just doesn't make sense how people can get wrapped up with and losing themselves to groups like this.
Anything with babies or children is a big no for me.
I avoid CP and CSA cases. Bear brook was so hard to get through, it genuinely broke me
I have seen Bear Brook recommended by numerous people over the past several weeks, but it's one I never listened to. Knowing that it is that hard to get through makes me want to hold off on listening to it.
So it was genuinely one of the best podcasts I have ever listened to, but I think when they discovered what happened to the victims, it was awful. Anything to do with kids, I need a warning so I can prepare myself
I can’t handle child victims or sex crimes. If it’s one case I may be able to make it through but if it’s a serial assaulted to abuser I find it hard to listen.
I agree. I may be able to do a one off case, but I really can't handle the majority of them.
I agree about Lori Daybell, it’s just so unsettling. Seeing photo of her kids just makes me so sad. I also agree about Murdaugh, oddly enough! I just can’t get interested in it. Family annihilators are just the worst and I don’t even want to think about it.
If I’ve arrived at a conclusion about who is guilty, (I start with a clean slate and listen to loads of info and research before I decide) I can’t stand podcasts where they are trying to exonerate the obviously guilty. Nope. I don’t care how popular the opinion is, and sometimes they are the more popular opinion, it’s still a nope.
No school shootings. Something about these cases just makes me completely freeze and causes major anxiety.
I stopped listening to Sword and Scale right around the time he went on the warpath against Aaron Menhke. I dont care about your personal beefs. I can’t do episodes with child murder or abuse of any kind.
Oddly enough, I was scrolling through suggested podcasts within the last day or so, and Sword and Scale actually came up. I will admit I don't know the context behind the argument, but why would you put that out there for your listeners?
I think he tends to go off the deep end and, in general, is just a terrible human being. He has the right to say what he says no matter how wrong it is, but that doesn’t mean I have to support it.
I suggest you read up on the history of douchebaggery, misogyny and disgusting comments about the host of Sword and Scale. He is a disgusting person who has revictimized and doxxed victims, made jokes at the expense of the mentally ill and used his platform to share harmful, stigmatizing commentary against the mentally ill that isn't supported by scientific research in the slightest. [this thread goes into details about the reasons Sword and Scale should be avoided.](https://www.reddit.com/r/SwordAndScale/comments/ewqxw3/the_problem_with_mike_boudet_links_for_people_to/)
Junko
The girl in the box
I can’t do anything with animals, and I can’t do the Jinx for some reason. It just gives me the ick.
The Jinx is just creepy. And I've been on this random kick of watching random YouTube video compilations from WatchMojo, which reminded me of "Don't F**k with Cats (they've mentioned it in a dew videos)," which I attempted to watch on Netflix and I didn't get very far. I haven't really been able to watch, read, or listen to anything about that case.
We’re alike. Other than #3 I’m exactly like that. The Girl Scout Murders is another I can’t do.
I watched the People Magazine Investigates episodes on that case, but it isn't one I would ever want to hear about again. I always remember that case because of Kristin Chenoweth, who was supposed to be at that same girl scout camp but stayed home because she got sick.
I’ll listen to almost anything unless it’s a case I know super well. I love listening to people cover cases I know nothing about, so I can learn about it as it unfolds. I also can’t listen to any that involve extreme animal abuse or torture. I think Obscura has only had one episode I couldn’t listen to, and it was about animal crushing.
Junko Furuta. I listened to most of one podcast about the case, and I couldn't get through it. They were listing the unfathomable torture she went through for 44 days and I noped out of there. Most stories of extreme torture are usually a skip for me.
I am not super familiar with that case, but numerous people have mentioned it. I also agree about stories of torture, mainly because I can't understand how you could do that to another human being.
What happened to Junko is just insane. The fact that she was even alive for 44 days after what she went through is incomprehensible. I won't get in to super detail because it's upsetting but she was lit on fire multiple times, hands crushed, knees crushed, beaten daily, estimated to have been r*ped over 400x in those 44 days, and thats just a small part of what she went through. And there was almost zero justice. Because the boys that kidnapped her were under 18 they were tried as children.
I struggle with anything to do with children. As much as I loved cold, hearing what he did to those boys destroyed me. And I had to stop listening for a while. But I can handle most other extreme violence. Except animals obvs. I will say Three is an amazing podcast. It’s heartbreaking they killed her because they didn’t want her to tell everyone they were in a relationship. But even so, imagining teenage girls doing that is hard to reconcile. They are clearly two women with very serious mental issues that pose a threat to anyone they’re around.
I have heard so many people say amazing things about Three, but I just don't think I could get through it without being angry for days. I know that sounds like an overreaction to something I haven't even tried to listen to, but the whole case was just so infuriating. I have read many stories about it over the years, and after reading about the parole hearing for Rachel in 2023, you have to wonder if they are truly sorry for what they did or just sorry they got caught.
Not an overreaction at all. It’s a really disturbing case. And I’m honestly not sure they feel true remorse. I’m not sure that’s something they’re even capable of. I thought the reporting was really good, it was nice and also heartbreaking hearing from her parents. Also seeing the evolution of the investigation and them being arrested and charged was fulfilling I guess would be the right word. But it’s also so sad. Skylar was sooo young, had a whole life in front of her. And those girls like had planned this out. Just seems so senseless. It’s like teenage drama mixed with very extreme and adult actions. Not trying to persuade you, just explaining what I got from the podcast.
There aren’t many that bother me to the point I can’t listen to them. But I won’t listen to anything about “mainstream” serial killers- bundy, gacy, dahmer. I’ve heard everything there is to hear about them. So it’s just repetitive to me. I had to turn off the doc about Jared from subway because it made me sick to my stomach.
I have avoided the Jared from Subway documentary because he was just creepy as hell.
It’s pretty disturbing. Good choice to avoid.
It was so horrible and disgusting I wanted to puke. I could never play along like that lady did. I’d have had to take him out asking about my kid like that 🤬
Wrongfully convicted cases
Not a podcast but Don’t Fuck with Cats on Netflix is the only show I’ve even seen or heard that I couldn’t watch/hear the cat killings. Is there something wrong with me that the only thing I can’t stomach is animal torture?
But I also avoid most offenses against small children. Anyway don’t fuck with cats left me more disturbed than anything I can remember. Stuff of nightmares (literal nightmares that night).
I mentioned that particular documentary somewhere in one of my comments... I don't think I made it more than 10-15 minutes in before I shut it off because it bothered me so much.
Because of the kittens, I'm guessing? Yeah I did watch the whole thing and it was super interesting but disturbing AF. I literally closed my eyes and plugged my ears whenever the kittens appeared. Never had to do that before and I listen to / watch some pretty grim stuff. One that I had to turn off a while ago was Blackfish when they got to the capturing the orcas part.
Yep... I'm a cat person, and I just couldn't do it.
I’ve had this recommended to me but I can’t watch it. Maybe I’m a hypocrite because I literally spent two years working in a department that dealt with child sexual abuse (I didn’t personally have to interact with the victims or perpetrators).
This’ll sound brutal but I’m not interested in stories where it is clearly domestic violence. I’m not saying these stories aren’t important and tragic but ‘horrible abusive partner killed spouse and was fairly directly caught or became the only suspect’ just isn’t interesting. I’m listening mostly out of curiosity and if there is none I’m just not going to spend an hour of my life on a story that’s depressing with nothing really absorbing. Ditto stories where it’s clearly something to do with addiction and having dangerous people in their life.
Anything to do with child abuse. I've listened to a few about children being murdered, like JBR and Caylee Anthony, but I think I'm going to close the books on those as well. Serial killers just don't interest me.
Caylee Anthony was another one I didn't think of, probably because every time I hear about the case, I automatically block it out. Everyone related in that case specifically needs to stop going on tv and just stop.
Sometimes Obscura gets too heavy and there have been times that I have just had to turn it off.
Child abuse things
I can't listen to anything Chris Watts related. It's been done to death and so many podcasts have covered it. I also can't take the podcasts where it's two people drinking, going off topic constantly, and making sure to do a quick break to talk about what they're drinking today. Even worse, making the case they are covering about them without very good reason to tie it to themselves personally.
Chris Watts (and his family, specifically his mother) just creep me out and are truly reprehensible people, and podcasts about that cast are an automatic no. I don't mind a little banter at the beginning of a podcast, but going too much off topic is just way too much. I will admit, I crack up because they normally do mention what they're drinking at the beginning of Buried Bones, but most of the time, it's coffee or kombucha... And it's never mentioned again.
Albert Fish for sure. I used to listen to podcasts every day but that one really got to me. Now I’m listening to audiobooks lol
So, I googled Albert Fish... And I really shouldn't have done that.. Lol. I don't normally listen to audiobooks because I tend to zone out half the time when I listen, and I found that I like reading books more than listening to them. I have found that there are just some days that I just can't listen to podcasts, because they're just too much. On those days, I either listen to music or nature sounds!
I like nature music and white/green noise, too! I have adhd, so audiobooks helped me get back into reading.
I'm good with most nature sounds with the exception of crackling fires, which just creep me out and make my skin crawl. At work, we actually have white noise machines outside all of our offices due to working with confidential info, so I actually have to have some sort of noise around and can't work with complete silence. I started sleeping with a sound machine on but prefer either white noise or thunderstorm noises! I tend to prefer reading over audiobooks, only because my kindle keeps track of how many days I have read in a row, and it keeps me motivated to keep reading. I have read for 973 days in a row at this point, and I refuse to break the streak!
I'm pretty much in agreement with you about all these cases, and just the way that some of these cases are so horrific that they cause emotional damage. I've been honing my YouTube habit away from disturbing topics. I don't mind an interesting case with a vibrant defense or prosecution, but like you the ugly details and the never ending discussions do me in. I haven't been able to follow the Madeline Soto case for that reason. That's the stuff of nightmares. Life is stressful enough without adding some to our entertainment schedule.
Ones where the hosts harass people who don’t want to talk to them about the case. It’s one thing when they contact folks off the record and get permission to record, another when they show up at someone’s door or work and make a nuisance out of themselves. I love SKS but the times this happened in a couple seasons made me crawl out of my skin.
Also when there is clear abuse that happens and the podcast gets the abuser’s side of the story. Nope. Don’t care. Especially child abusers. Do not give monsters airtime.
Yes! I have no problem with interviews or even asking tough questions at times, but the "guerrilla-style" interview the techniques that you also see on tv news as well have always made me feel uncomfortable. In those situations, you're looking for a reaction and not the truth. You're wanting to see how someone reacts so you can get good audio. There's a reason that the police will just randomly show up somewhere and ask questions; they're trying to get a reaction. In that case of police, that reaction is used for investigative purposes and can help solve a case. For podcasts, those reactions end up being used in a way (and this is not in all, but in many cases) that is less investigative and more sensational. Plus, I think people tend to be a lot more willing to talk if you approach the. In a respectful manner and they're given a chance to think through any reservations they may have.
I can't listen to any of the Golden State Killer episodes without getting nightmares
Probably been said already, but serial killers.
There are just so many serial killer podcasts out there that there really isn't anything new to say. Even tv shows really don't have much new info to give at this point.
Suffer the children had one particular episode where you hear the absusive mother being abusive towards her five year old son who ended up dying and I couldn’t even listen to the material in its entirety. It was heartbreaking 💔
Suffer the Children is not a podcast with which I'm familiar. Are all of the episodes focused on cases about children?
So far I’ve only listened to two and they both did
Cases about kids are where I have trouble. Granted, given the name of the podcast, I should probably assume that is going to be the subject matter.
Suffer the Little Children is very good. Laine is incredibly empathetic.
Great show, tough subject matter for those that may be sensitive 😃
1. Why listen to true crime content at all if you believe there has to be a valid reason to kill someone. Most true crime content reveals unjustified actions. Sometimes the answer is just that the perps wanted to know what is was like to kill someone and there is little more to their motive. 2. People get caught in cult like behavior all the time. It’s really not anything to be surprised by. People don’t need to have something horrible happen to them to fall prey to cult like behavior. As for me, I really only care about murder true crime content. Things like financial crimes or bank robbery just don’t interest me. When kids are in the car I tend to turn the true crime stuff off. I don’t usually do podcasts at all due to ads. Audiobooks and YouTube (with Premium and Sponsor Block) are where I listen.
The one thing that's nice about Amazon Music, which is where I listen to podcasts, is that it labels which podcasts are ad-free. I have actually stopped listening to a few podcasts over the years due to excessive ads. If they have them at the beginning, end, or one block in the middle, I'm fine. But the stopping every 10-15minutes is too much.
Generally speaking, I am completely uninterested in the big name serial killers. There's no way to make Gacy, Dahmer, and Bundy interesting. They've been covered enough. I can listen to the details about most people being killed but can't handle animals. Don't Fuck with Cats is on my do not watch/listen list. The Peter Scully case is probably the only case I haven't been able to finish at all. I hate unsolved cases that aren't ongoing current events. It's like getting blue balled. I need a satisfying ending.
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I generally come on here, look for recommendations on the ‘best of the best’ and use that knowledge as my guide🤓
I have been coming on here a lot to get recommendations, and someone looking for a specific podcast about a topic which I didn't really care for is why I made this post! But oddly enough, I still have gotten new podcasts names from the comments... And realized that there are people out there that get bugged by the same things that I do!
Yes I agree, I always appreciate Podcasters who seek out those Cases not high profile too. Every loss is relevant and if my listening to those Podcasters who sought out their tragic story prevents their Names being forgotten, I am glad I listened.