Podcast Re-Victimizes Survivors and Turns Superfans into Bullies.

Long-time Listener and True Crime Follower Challenges the Ethics of Morbid: A True Crime Podcast.

Photo by Mohamad Matri in Unsplash

True crime is the fourth most preferred genre of podcast listening, behind comedy, education and news, respectively, with true crime also falling under genres of comedy, education and news. One U.S. true crime podcast, notably falling under the category of true crime and comedy with an About page reading: “It’s a lighthearted nightmare in here, weirdos! Morbid is a true crime, creepy history and all things spooky podcast hosted by an autopsy technician and a hairstylist. Join us for a heavy dose of research and a dash of comedy thrown in for flavor.” Alaina and Ash, aunt and niece raised as sisters, together host Morbid: A True Crime Podcast and are also co-owners of the Morbid Network. The purpose of this article is to outline the show’s structure, broadcast an unethical practice of the hosts and to give a voice to the victims and survivors.

Host Ash is Alaina’s niece, raised as the little sister, she’s a hairstylist, a Gemini- you can’t miss her because she is the one that is able to find a way to make any episode detail relate back to herself. If a serial killer has something in common with herself, she’ll make it known. Commercials are usually recorded with the voice of Ash and palate cleansers recorded by her boyfriend, Drew. If you’re trying to keep up with Ash’s love-life, she’s always been with the same person. Drew had a name change. Next, we have Alaina, the autopsy technician, so naturally this makes her the only person in the episode that knows anything about science, right? Wrong.

Parents should be advised that despite the show’s rating of ‘explicit,’ but individual episode ratings of ‘clean,’ this show is does not have a single episode that would fall under Apple Podcast’s Terms and Conditions for the rating of ‘clean.’ I have never heard another podcast discuss anything traumatic, gory, or explicit without providing a verbal ‘warning: this episode is for mature audiences’ either at the start of the episode or written in the description box of the show notes. This is not the case for Morbid. Their ‘trigger warning’ is in vain and seemingly dismissive. Reviews from listeners, spanning back to 2018 listing foul language and lack of warning prior to…