It has been a decade since the true crime genre was forever changed with the release of the first season of Serial, a podcast that wanted to solve the mystery of “where a high school kid was for an hour after school one day in 1999.” This was Sarah Koenig’s attempt to answer a larger question—was there a miscarriage of justice in the conviction of Adnan Syed for the murder of Hae Min Lee?
Over the course of twelve episodes, listeners joined Koenig as she looked into the case. They even heard directly from Syed, whose phone calls from prison were recorded for the show. Koenig informed listeners that she is not a detective, but her goal was to look at the evidence like one. Despite her lack of investigative training, new evidence was uncovered and additional questions were raised. But the system of justice is slow, so the season ended without a definitive answer.
In the ten years since Koenig entranced listeners with her voice and engaging narrative, Serial has been identified as a cultural turning point. One cannot talk about modern true crime without discussing its impact. Since this podcast influenced my own work as well, I wanted to take a look at its influence over the past ten years.
Adnan Syed’s Legal Battle
The road to justice is not only slow, it is also tricky. There are many factors that can come into play. When Syed was convicted of murder, it was assumed that the system had done its job. But not all believed that to be true. When the case found its way to Koenig and became the material for Serial, she asked if justice had been rightfully achieved and was admittedly unsure of the answer. During the investigation, new evidence was found. Yet, a decade later Syed is still battling to be absolved of this crime.
Between 2015 and 2019, Syed held out hope for a successful appeal. In 2015, the Maryland Supreme Court agreed to hear Syed’s appeal and by the end of the year, they had granted him a hearing in which the new evidence could be admitted. But after a series of legal decisions, including the U.S. Supreme Court denying to hear Syed’s appeal, he was back at the starting point.
In 2022, a new state law gave prosecutors the discretion to reexamine cases in which the convicted was under 18 at the time of the crime and had served more than 20 years of their sentence. This decision was related to the advances made in DNA testing, which helped spur an era of innocence in the United States in which the number of exonerated grew exponentially. One of the cases the prosecutors reviewed was Syed’s. The new DNA testing indicated the existence of two additional suspects in the murder of Lee and the decision was made to vacate Syed’s conviction. Syed was released, but was placed under house arrest until the prosecutors made the decision of whether to refile the charges against him. In the light of the new evidence, the charges were dropped. This decision, however, did not free him from this legal abyss.
In 2023, a higher court judged that the victim’s family was not properly notified of the hearing and a new hearing was ordered. A decision that Syed’s legal team appealed; however, in 2024, the Maryland Supreme Court upheld the decision of the lower-court. Meaning Syed is still waiting for closure.
When Syed’s case was vacated, I was asked, “what role do you think Serial played?” My initial response was despite locating an alibi witness, it did not have an impacted on his release. The appeals process following the podcast was not successful; it was a new state law and DNA testing. But I think that answer is too simplistic. Serial and other true crime programs that followed his case help keep the case alive as his legal team was fighting for him. While we may never know for sure, the continued attention to the case over the years may have played a role.
Serial and Modern True Crime
In my book, Fear, Justice, & Modern True Crime (Lynn Reiner Publishers, 2020), I examined the popularity of true crime, its content, implications, and role in society. In it I wrote about the “Serial effect,” which I (and admittedly others) use to describe the impact of Koenig’s narrative on the genre of true crime.
Serial sparked a generation of true crime podcasters who wanted be like Koenig and, in general, is one of the main catalysts for developments in the modern true crime genre—an extremely popular and profitable industry filled with docuseries, podcasts, events, and merchandising. It is also a cultural icon, having been parodied on Saturday Night Live and serving as inspiration for Only Murders in the Building in general and the character Cinda Canning (Tina Fey) more specifically.
The podcast industry itself has grown and changed, yet true crime remains one of the top genres. According to the 2024 True Crime Podcast Listener Landscape Report, this genre is the fifth most popular, following comedy, news, sports, and political talk shows.
In Fear, Justice, & Modern True Crime I discuss the fact that true crime stories can teach us about crime and justice. As I previously observed,
… the specific true-crime narratives a person chooses to indulge in and how they interact with it will combine with their personal experiences to shape their perceptions of crime and justice. The general effect of true crime remains the same—it results in people feeling more knowledgeable about criminal behavior and being reassured that the justice system is effectively fighting crime and keeping them safe. Some true-crime fans will also experience heightened fear of victimization and learn protective and avoidance behaviors that they can incorporate into their own lives (Cecil, 2020, p.160).
Despite the influence of Serial, today most true crime continues to send typical messages that overemphasize violence (especially serial killers), focus on ideal victims, and highlight the effectiveness of the justice system. Other creators, however, took a page from Serial and sought to question justice, as well as look deeper into missing persons and unsolved murder cases. And, a few of them have successfully helped achieve justice in individual cases, such as In the Dark Season 2 and Your Own Backyard.
It is in regard to these stories that I wrote in my book of another potential impact of Serial:
They [true crime fans] may consume the types of true-crime narratives that leave them concerned about miscarriages of justice and willing to fight for those whose stories are highlighted in these narratives, as well as for victims and their families. This information may impact the people they elect or how they look at the cases when they are called to serve on a jury. Perhaps it will inspire some to become justice crusaders themselves, working to help people and to try to reform a fractured system of justice that at times overemphasizes the win over the truth. And for many fans of true crime, Serial and shows like it will have serves as the initial catalyst for changing the way they view crime and justice (Cecil, 2020, p. 160).
Essentially, I was optimistic that true crime stories like Serial could help change the narratives people use to understand crime and justice. Recent research suggests that the true crime podcast community may have been impacted in this way. Edison Research and audiochuck recently found that those who consume true crime podcasts are more likely to become involved in the justice process by promoting cases, calling in tips, and signing petitions on related-causes. They are also more likely to donate money to these causes and to victims and their families. In addition, podcast listeners reported that they were more likely to listen to victim-centered stories. I do not know of a similar study on docuseries consumers, so it is not known if this is a universal effect of modern true crime or specific to podcasts; however, other research suggests that the listening experience provided by podcasting engages our minds in unique ways that can bring us closer to the subject and induce empathy.
True crime is something that existed in different forms for centuries. Just as Truman Capote’s In Cold Blood helped spark genre transitions in the 20th century, Serial left its impact on the 21st century reiteration of true crime. Quality and impactful true crime podcasts might not exist today if it were not for this program. And, the legacy of Serial continues. A fourth season of Serial was released in 2024 and with the creation of Serial Productions (which was bought by The New York Times in 2020) they produce other stories as well that are not limited to true crime.
For me, Serial will always be the podcast that reignited my interest in true crime and shaped the type of stories that I prefer to consume.