Production
In a Q&A with BBC News, the anonymous host, a former government worker [1] with a background in graphic design and audio production, [3] claimed the inception of the podcast was motivated by the immorality of a "capitalistic culture". [4] According to the Tampa Bay Times, "A Concerned Citizen" created Swindled after failing to find an existing podcast on similar topics. [1] The host explained to MEL Magazine that the underlying theme in all of the episodes is greed and a "social culture that values getting rich as quick as possible." [5]
Each episode begins with a prelude story to the main subject, followed by the theme music consisting of stringed and brass instruments, and then a structured narrative interspersed with archival audio, suspenseful scoring, and dry humor. [6]
In addition to the writing, research, and audio production, "A Concerned Citizen" creates all of the visual artwork for the podcast. [7] The show's music is written and performed by multi-instrumentalist Trevor Harte Howard using the moniker "Deformr". [8]
Since its inception, Swindled has remained independent of podcasting networks. [9] The podcast's advertising sales are supported by AdLarge Media based in New York, New York. [10]
Reception
The show has received positive reviews from critics. Vulture named the series one of the "52 Great True-Crime Podcasts [of] the post-Serial boom". [2] The Star Tribune named the series one of its "10 must-listen true crime podcasts" in June 2018. [12] In August that year, Digital Trends included the series on its list of best true crime podcasts. [13] The Guardian also selected the series as its podcast "pick of the week" for the week of September 9, 2018 [14] and WVXU featured the episode "The Saint" on its Start Hear program in November 2020. [15] In January 2021, Canadian culture writer Scaachi Koul featured Swindled in her podcast picks for CBC Radio. [16]
Swindled has charted in the Top 100 podcasts in 5 countries, with peak ranking positions of the podcast including: Australia (18), Canada (52), Germany (46), United Kingdom (73), and United States (52). [17]
In July 2018, true crime podcast Crime Junkie adopted Swindled's episode "The Contraceptive," covering the Dalkon Shield. [18] In a profile of Crime Junkie host Ashley Flowers, Laura Barcella of Rolling Stone magazine wrote about the episode: "Flowers is at her best when dissecting complicated cases that stink of larger cover-ups and corruption." [19]
A German translation of the series titled Schmutzige Geschäfte launched on November 19, 2018. [20] A Danish translation titled Svindlerne subsequently followed in 2020. [21]
Accolades
- Listed as #10 in "Top Subscriptions" on Apple Podcasts' Best of 2021 [22] [23]
- Winner in the 2019 Discover Pods Awards for "Best True Crime Podcast" [24]
- Runner-up in the 2019 Discover Pods Awards for "Best Overall Podcast" [24]
- Runner-up in the 2018 Discover Pods Awards for "Best True Crime Podcast" [25]
- Finalist in the 2018 Discover Pods Awards for "Best New Podcast" [25]
This page is based on this
Wikipedia article Text is available under the
CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.
