True-crime podcasts topped the Associated Press’ podcasts of 2019 list. To Live And Die In LA was the AP’s top pod of the year, and 22 Hours: An American Nightmare was named #2. The former covers the disappearance of Adea Shabani, while the latter details the 2015 slaying of four people inside their D.C. mansion.

Other true-crime shows that got AP approbation: Confronting: O.J. Simpson with Kim Goldman (#4), Gladiator: Aaron Hernandez & Football Inc. (#5), and Believed (#7). In other words, true crime DOMINATED BAYBEE). You can see the AP’s full list of their favorite podcasts here. -- EB

If you haven’t thought enough about various police departments’ true-crime efforts, the Columbia Journalism Review has now taken the case. CJR often lends its eye to matters of ethics in journalism, and their concern here is that NYPD podcast Break in the Case “resembles many popular true-crime podcasts. There’s a sober-toned host who introduces each episode, and a rugged veteran reporter on the story.” That makes it feel like it contains reporting, even though it’s hardly unbiased.

In fact, argues CJR scribe Sarah Weinman, the podcast “trumpets the prowess of law enforcement, specifically New York City law enforcement, at a time when deep, and deserved, distrust of police is ever more present in coverage of the department.” Her subsequent critique of Break in the Case contextualizes it with Serial, Crime Junkie and In The Dark. It’s worth a read, when you have a moment. -- EB

Just Mercy, the dramatic adaptation of attorney Bryan Stevenson’s defense of Death Row inmate Walter McMillian, is getting mixed early reviews. The movie, which is based on Stevenson’s memoir, stars Michael B. Jordan as the lawyer and Jamie Foxx as McMillian. According to Slate reviewer Inkoo Kang, the film creates a Stevenson who is “studiously featureless despite Jordan’s considerable charisma and ready command of simmering rage” and “only sees its characters as heroes, victims, or obstacles, not as rational beings who might have their own reasons to knowingly commit terrible acts.” The film hits theaters on January 10. -- EB

What’s your state’s favorite true-crime podcast? Infosecurity company Kastle has ranked the top true-crime pod for each state using search volume data on Spotify and Apple Podcasts, with the results visible above. They also broke the info down by region (the Midwest apparently prefers In The Dark while the Northeast is Dirty John country), and says that based on their information, Generation Why is the most popular true crime podcast overall. You can see all of Kastle’s findings here. -- EB

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