It’s been ten years since the release of the first series of Serial, a true crime podcast about Adnan Syed, who was convicted of murder in 1999. In many ways, the series was considered a turning point for the podcast genre, as it pioneered a now tried-and-tested format of episodic storytelling that kept listeners coming back for more with its drip-feeding of the reconstructed narrative. Serial helped bring true crime podcasts into the mainstream, at the time becoming the fastest podcast to reach five million downloads on iTunes and receiving multiple awards.
The case has continued to enrapture listeners and fuel the news cycle due to its tangible impact on real life: Syed was given a new trial based partly on evidence uncovered through the investigative series and after having spent more than 20 years in prison, was released in 2022. In the latest turn of events, the case is now being sent to a lower court for a new hearing on whether or not it will finally be thrown out.
It’s now a decade on from Serial’s release and the true crime genre continues to speak to listeners. According to data by Pew Research Center, true crime podcasts accounted for a quarter of 451 top-rated English-language podcasts in 2022. Analysts looked at daily rankings on Spotify and Apple Podcasts between April 1 and September 30 to find this result.
The next most popular genres were politics and government (10 percent), entertainment/pop culture and the arts (9 percent), self-help and relationships (8 percent) and sports (6 percent). Talk shows were counted in the group ‘multiple topics’ which accounted for a 12 percent share of the most-listened to podcasts.
