[imagesource: Ben Kothe / BuzzFeed News; Getty Images]

One might say that we are living in the golden era of true-crime storytelling, especially in podcast form.

Thank goodness, true-crime fans might say, because it is one of the best ways to fill up that spare time.

Like a drive to work, given the dire state of South African radio.

Oh, you work from home? On your next jog, then, or while you sit on the loo. Whatever works for you.

These true-crime stories are so addictive that many have gone from being in podcast form to watchable on Netflix and other streaming services.

Like the popular TV show Only Murders In The Building, or the upcoming Will Ferrell and Paul Rudd movie The Shrink Next Door that was inspired by a podcast of the same name.

As Paste Magazine puts it, “whether it’s murder, corruption, sexual abuse or fraud, there’s no shortage of people doing bad things.”

True, and the rest of us just want to binge the stories and ponder the maddening spectrum of the human condition from a safe vantage point.

So, here are five of the best true-crime podcasts around at the moment.

Gangster Capitalism Season 3

Image: YouTube / Title IX Consulting Group

This podcast is about Liberty University’s failure to address many sexual assault cases happening on campus, and how rape, assault, anti-LBGTQ, and racism run rampant there:

Many students go to this school because of the “Liberty Way”. This is how they bill themselves as a safe, wholesome Christian University.

Since the Gangster Capitalism podcast has been released, 12 women have filed lawsuits against Liberty. They claim the school created an environment that increased the likelihood of sexual assault and rape.

You’ll hear all the shocking details, allegations and the brave women willing to tell their stories. And this just scratches the surface.

Listen here.

Suspect

Image: Suspect

Since Halloween is on the horizon, this one should definitely be on the top of your list.

It is about a gruesome murder that took place at a Halloween party in Seattle, 2008.

The mystery of Aparna Jinaga’s death haunts everyone who attended. Crime scene DNA evidence was linked to three men, but only Emanuel Fair was convicted.

He’s a black man with a prior record but had no connection to Jinaga. After serving nine years in prison maintaining his innocence, he was found not guilty of her murder and was released in 2019.

The podcast sifts through extensive interviews with partygoers, forensic experts, and the victim’s friends and family, covering everything from injustice, race, and even getting away with murder.

Listen here.

Bad Blood: The Final Chapter

Image: Bad Blood and The Drop Out

This here Final Chapter tells the story of the breathtaking rise and fall of the tech founder Elizabeth Holmes and her disastrous Silicon Valley startup Theranos.

It’s giving listeners a front-row seat at Holmes’ criminal trial, diving into the evidence against her, with rejected jurors, legal experts, former employees, and investors giving their take.

The best part is that it is hosted by John Carreyrou, the investigative journalist who broke the scandal in 2016.

Listen here.

False Idol

Image: False Idol

This one is about Oscar Pistorious and how he went from “The Blade Runner” to the guy who murdered his girlfriend:

Host Tim Rohan covers his humble beginnings, what other athletes thought of him and why this case was a national touchpoint for women and sexual assault in South Africa.

Yes, there is a lot of focus on Pistorious but False Idol makes it a point to shine a light on Steenkamp and the wonderful person she was.

It also looks at hero worship, gender-based violence, and race in post-Apartheid South Africa.

Listen here.

Dr. Death Season 3: Miracle Man

Image: Dr. Death Season 3: Miracle Man

Dr. Death is about the renowned doctor and surgeon Paolo Macchiarini, who for a long time appeared to be a medical hero performing revolutionary organ transplants, although many resulted in death.

It is also about his whirlwind romance with TV producer Benita Alexander:

She soon finds out he is not at all what he seems. He makes wild promises like how the Pope was going to marry them at the Vatican and John Legend was going to perform.

How she believed some of these wild lies is almost as big of a mystery. In the end her journalistic instinct helps expose the grifter and criminal he really is.

Listen here.

You can see Paste’s full list here.

Happy true-crime podcast binging.

[source:pastemagazine]