Favorite Podcasts

I will first admit that this is going to be rather short, as I am new to the world of podcasts. I had tried a year or so ago to get into podcasts, after my boyfriend recommend one to me. Well that particular podcast, Dan’s Hardcore History, was an extremely long podcast. Some of the episode were about five hours long, and with someone who gets distracted easily it just didn’t work. So I gave up podcasts as something that was just not meant for me.

Well this summer I’ve decided to get it another go. This time I sought out podcasts which revolved around one of my guilty pleasures, true crime. So far I have found three podcasts which I really love and do want to share with you. Two of them are fairly new shows so I’ve already binged their episodes. The third has been around since February of last year so I’m still making my way through their past episodes. Once I get caught up though, I anticipate seeking out more shows to add to my subscription list.

1.) Cold Case Files: The Podcast

This podcast is my favorite out of the three on the list. As soon as a new episode appears I must stop what I’m doing and listen. I’m addicted. It’s narrated by Brooke Gittings, and produced by A&E so the production quality is fantastic. Brooke does a wonderful job of storytelling, while maintaining respect and compassion for those involved. She promises that the stories will always have a resolution, so your not left feeling unsatisfied or empty. This is one of the newer podcasts, as the first episode aired at the end of May. It will take you no time at all to catch up on all the episodes. New shows air every week on Tuesdays. I would highly recommend this one to any true crime fan.

2.) Best Case Worst Case

This is another fairly new podcast, as currently there are only six episodes out. The hosts are former FBI profiler Jim Clemente & former federal prosecutor Francey Hakes. Jim has worked as a technical consultant on many different crime shows, such as Criminal Minds and Quantico. I was a little heart-broken to learn that he took part in the The Case of: JonBenét Ramsey, which I felt was extremely distasteful. Francey ‘s career was in Child Protection cases, which I feel are the toughest to hear about. The first two episodes consisted of the two hosts discussing their best and worst cases. From there they have guests in law enforcement on their show to share one case, either their best or worst. I have noticed that the guests seem a little stiff when the podcasts starts but quickly warm up once they begin discussing their cases.

One reason I love this show is it does give a realistic look at how flawed the justice system works, not at fault to any particular person, but the system as a whole. Jim also discusses the training and mindset of law enforcement agents which I feel is not discussed when it needs to be. It shows how flawed tv shows can be at trying to portray crime cases, which is interesting considering Jim’s consulting work. I guess you can’t be too accurate with a 40 minute time slot. Anyway this show has a weekly format with shows airing on Fridays.

3.) The Trail Went Cold

This podcast is narrated by Robin Warder, who is a self-proclaimed Unsolved Mysteries aficionado. Which I recently discovered the old show is up on Amazon Prime, and I’m tempted myself to go back and watch. I feel that a second viewing may ruin my memories of enjoying the show as a child. Most of Robin’s material stems from old Unsolved Mysteries episodes. If you have issues with unresolved mysteries and cases left unsolved, then this is not for you. I will admit some of the cases discussed are so bizarre that it gets frustrating when the episode ends. I have been bouncing back and forth between old episodes and the newly released ones. It’s interesting to see the slight style changes as well as the improvement in production quality.

This show has a unique format in which it rotates between full episodes (40 mins) to mini episodes (20 mins). This means you get a new episode every week and it’s nice having short shows to listen to when your time is limited. I will say that the first half of the episode is Robin giving the facts, then the rest is pure speculation about what he thinks happened. He is upfront with this, and I think it’s also interesting to see if I agree with him or not. Unlike the first show though, with the speculation sometimes it’s not always done compassionately.

That’s my current podcast list. As I said I’m sure it will grow once I catch up with The Trail Went Cold. I would love to hear what other people are listening too and all suggestions are welcome!

Thanks for reading,
AurorWillow