After listening to the first episode of serial, “The Alibi”, I craved for more! It was a very interesting podcast. In my experience, I occasionally listen to podcasts for pleasure. So when given an assignment which entails listening to a podcast, I was ecstatic. I love murder mysteries or unsolved mysteries, however, I typically consume that kind of content on a different medium, like on Netflix or YouTube . With many different types of podcasts I’ve listened to , so far the first episode of Serial “The Alibi” was incomparable.
A little background about the first episode of serial, “The alibi”. A high school day of the year 1999, a student named Hae Min Lee, disappeared after school and was found a month later in a forest. Her boyfriend, Adnan Syed, was arrested and later sentenced to prison for life. Only one witness had a case against Adnan, his best friend Jay. Which he testified that Adnan had allegedly asked him to bury Hae Min Lee’s dead body. However, Adnan had a clean record and was well-liked by the school and community. Many believe in Adnan and many don’t.
This method of investigative journalism is brilliant. I think that this investigative format is really depending on the listener whether they like it or not. Although, many people might dislike it, this podcast ties in aspects that there are a lot of individuals who can relate it to. Asking questions to the listeners, using a tone that evokes emotions ,which put journalism on a level that other formats can’t easily do. It is harder to carry out emotions through reading than to actually hear the suffering, misery, pain in a podcast.
Consuming this type of content through a podcast isn’t really ideal for me. However, this podcast is an exception. The way the host, Sarah Koenig, narrated the text very effectively. With reading a text, I wouldn’t be able to consume the content without moving around, cooking, or any motion. Reading requires you stay still.
The serial podcast became very popular in no time. However, it had a negative impact Adnan’s family. The host mentions; “They told me about Adnan Syed… when he was arrested for murder, so many people who know him were stunned” (Koenig). Adnan’s family are devastated after hearing the news. I personally can’t imagine how they felt after knowing what Adnan had been through when he was asleep and taken straight to jail. This kind of memories would be impossible to forget because it is very upsetting to the family. The fact that the public knows about this case, can make it worse for the family because people will keep discussing it and nothing else to talk about other than Adnan’s case.
Memories can either be forgotten or not. The host of the podcast starts with a discussion about the challenges of memory and I think that I remember memories quite well. I tend to have a strong visual memory, especially the ones that are significant to remember. I sometimes journal about my day, and writing my memories on paper helps me remember my experiences. When I was listening to the podcast, I wonder what if Adnan had remembered the day when Hae was murdered. Adnan’s memory is the only thing that could help him get out of prison.
The big question ultimately is, did Adnan kill Min Hae Lee?
Works Cited
“About Season One.” Serial, serialpodcast.org/season-one/about.
“Investigative Journalism.” UNESCO, 7 June 2018, en.unesco.org/investigative-journalism.
“Season One.” Serial, serialpodcast.org/season-one.
Vincent, Alice. “Murder Mystery Podcast Serial Breaks Download Records.” The Telegraph, Telegraph Media Group, 19Nov.2014,www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/tvandradio/11239805/Murder-mystery-podcast-Serial-breaks-download-records.html.
RJ's English Blog 