In 1999, a young girl was murdered in Baltimore. Hae Min Lee disappeared after school and turned up dead in a park with no explanation. After six weeks of investigating, police arrested her ex-boyfriend Adnan Syed. Adnan claimed that he is an innocent man, but sadly for him, he did not remember where he was or what he was doing on the night of Hae Lee’s disappearance. After going to trial, Adnan was found guilty of the murder of Hae Lee. However, there is very little physical evidence that shows Adnan committed this horrific crime.
The podcast "Serial" explores this crime and what happened before and after it. Host Sarah Koenig takes listeners on a journey to find the truth about what happened to Adnan. Throughout the course of the podcast, many different people and events are introduced.
People learn that the prosecution's main case against Adnan relied on the witness testimony from an acquaintance of, Jay Wild. Jay claims that Adnan made Jay assist him in burying Hae’s body. Cell phone records also show that Adnan was up to something during the time that Hae was killed. So much of this story, however, is gray.
Over the course of the twelve episodes, Koenig does as much research as she can to see if Adnan is truly guilty. She has many conversations with him over his prison phone. She employs the help of Deirdre Enright, director of the Innocence Project of the University of Virginia School of Law.
Yes, the facts of this case are extremely interesting, but what makes this case different than the thousands of cases that are opened every year? Why has this story intrigued so many people? "Serial" has become not only a popular podcast but is also now considered an aspect of pop culture. The reason millions of ordinary people are so fascinated by this story is because they are a part of it.
"Serial" has changed what people think of when they think podcast. The podcast is laid out is like a television series. Weekly, a new episode would air that would take listeners further into the cases story. What the producers of "Serial" have done is capture an audience's interest by allowing them to form their own opinions about the case.
Koenig does her best to remain unbiased throughout the twelve episode season. She informs the audience of the facts of the case and states when she believes something is wrong, but she never says she supports specific side. That crucial aspect is why the crime podcast has been such a hit. It has become a topic of conversation that people can disagree on and discuss.
Also, since the Koenig’s investigation is still going on, no one knows what the truth is. It has done what crime television shows have been doing for years but makes the audience feel like they are apart of it. Anyone can look up the people mentioned and see their relationships with anyone involved with the case.
New York Times stated “Serial” has been downloaded or streamed on iTunes more than five million times — at a cost of nothing — and averages over 1.5 million listeners an episode.” Podcasts have always had loyal followings, but none as vast as this. People of all professions are on the edge of their seat waiting for more information.
Also, the emotional investment of followers is much greater than most fabricated stories on television. Real people’s lives are being affected by this and their real stories are being told. Listeners want to know more one because they are interested and two because they know that the outcome truly does matter.
