Top Documentary Podcasts

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Documentary

Inconceivable Truth – Wavland

Investigative reporter Matt Katz has been searching for his biological father since he was a little kid. But it wasn't until his 40s that he realized he was on the wrong journey altogether. The true story is wrapped in confusion and secrecy, and in the end it upended the truth about who he is – raising questions about identity, fatherhood, medical ethics and what family really means. But will finding answers make him whole, or just make things even more complicated? Inconceivable Truth is an 8-episode series with new episodes publishing Thursday mornings. Read More
Investigative reporter Matt Katz has been searching for his biological father si Read More
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Documentary

American Scandal – Wondery

Every scandal begins with a lie. But the truth will come out. And then comes the fallout and the outrage. Scandals have shaped America since its founding. From business and politics to sports and society, we look on aghast as corruption, deceit and ambition bring down heroes and celebrities, politicians and moguls. And when the dust finally settles, we’re left to wonder: how did this happen? Where did they trip up, and who is to blame? From the creators of American History Tellers, Business Wars and Tides of History comes American Scandal, where we take you deep into the heart of America’s dark side to look at what drives someone to break the rules and what happens when they’re caught. Hosted by Lindsay Graham. Follow American Scandal on the Wondery app or wherever you get your podcasts. You can binge new seasons of American Scandal early and ad-free on Wondery+. Join Wondery+ in the Wondery app or on Apple Podcasts.  Read More
Every scandal begins with a lie. But the truth will come out. And then comes the Read More
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Documentary

Radiolab – WNYC Studios

Radiolab is on a curiosity bender. We ask deep questions and use investigative journalism to get the answers. A given episode might whirl you through science, legal history, and into the home of someone halfway across the world. The show is known for innovative sound design, smashing information into music. It is hosted by Lulu Miller and Latif Nasser. Read More
Radiolab is on a curiosity bender. We ask deep questions and use investigative j Read More
4
Documentary

Throughline – NPR

The past is never past. Every headline has a history. Join us every week as we go back in time to understand the present. These are stories you can feel and sounds you can see from the moments that shaped our world.Subscribe to Throughline+. You'll be supporting the history-reframing, perspective-shifting, time-warping stories you can't get enough of - and you'll unlock access bonus episodes and sponsor-free listening. Learn more at plus.npr.org/throughline Read More
The past is never past. Every headline has a history. Join us every week as we g Read More
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Documentary

Freakonomics Radio – Freakonomics Radio + Stitcher

Freakonomics co-author Stephen J. Dubner uncovers the hidden side of everything. Why is it safer to fly in an airplane than drive a car? How do we decide whom to marry? Why is the media so full of bad news? Also: things you never knew you wanted to know about wolves, bananas, pollution, search engines, and the quirks of human behavior. Join the Freakonomics Radio Plus membership program for weekly member-only episodes of Freakonomics Radio. You’ll also get every show in our network without ads. To sign up, visit our show page on Apple Podcasts or go to freakonomics.com/plus. Read More
Freakonomics co-author Stephen J. Dubner uncovers the hidden side of everything. Read More
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Documentary

Something Was Wrong – Broken Cycle Media | Wondery

Something Was Wrong is an award-winning docuseries about the discovery, trauma, and recovery from crime, shocking life events and abusive relationships. Read More
Something Was Wrongis an award-winning docuseries about the discovery, trauma, Read More
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Documentary

Criminal – Vox Media Podcast Network

Criminal is the first of its kind. A show about people who’ve done wrong, been wronged, or gotten caught somewhere in the middle. Hosted by Phoebe Judge. Named a Best Podcast of 2023 by the New York Times. Part of the Vox Media Podcast Network. Read More
Criminal is the first of its kind. A show about people who’ve done wrong Read More
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Documentary

Twenty Thousand Hertz – Dallas Taylor

A lovingly crafted podcast that reveals the stories behind the world's most recognizable and interesting sounds.
A lovingly crafted podcast that reveals the stories behind the world’s mos Read More
9
Documentary

Finally! A Show – iHeartPodcasts

Come hang out in a different woman’s life on each episode. It’s everything you love about reality TV,  just on the radio, with 100% more reality. Just women sharing their actual morning to night — days that are anything but ordinary. Curated and crafted by Jane Marie (The Dream, This American Life, Michelle Obama: The Light Podcast) and Joanna Solotaroff (TeamCoco, 2 Dope Queens, Scattered). Try on some other lives while you do whatever you want with yours. Read More
Come hang out in a different woman’s life on each episode. It’s everything y Read More
10
Documentary

The Why Files: Operation Podcast

The Why Files covers mysteries, myths and legends. We tell stories and seek the truth in a fun and lighthearted way. Our content is heavily researched; we don't release an episode unless we're sure we can bring something new to a topic. Read More
The Why Files covers mysteries, myths and legends. We tell stories and seek the Read More
11
Documentary

Unobscured

Each season of Unobscured digs deep into one of history's darkest and most misunderstood moments, and sheds light on the true story beneath the myth. 

Explore the Salem witch trials (S1), the Spiritualist Movement (S2), Jack the Ripper (S3), and Grigori Rasputin (S4) through the narrative storytelling of Aaron Mahnke, along with prominent historian interviews.

 

 

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Each season of Unobscured digs deep into one of history’s darkest and most Read More
12
Documentary

Sword and Scale – Sword and Scale

Sword and Scale is a true crime podcast covering the dark underworld of crime and the criminal justice system’s response to it. The first episode launched January 1st, 2014 and feature stories of murder, abduction, rape, and even more bizarre forms of crime. It’s the purest form of true-crime where the raw uncensored audio tells the story. Everything from 911 calls to court testimony, interviews with victims and sometimes with perpetrators give listeners a 360 degree look at the seedy underbelly of human nature and so-called civilized society. Told from an everyman's point of view, Sword and Scale goes beyond the news clips and the sensationalist headlines to hold up a mirror to the audience and ask, "Is it us versus them? Or are we just like 'them' too?" Sword and scale proves that the worst monsters are real. Read More
Sword and Scale is a true crime podcast covering the dark underworld of crime an Read More
13
Documentary

Sold a Story

Millions of kids can't read well. Scientists have known for decades how children learn to read but many schools are ignoring the research. They buy teacher training and books that are rooted in a disproven idea. Emily Hanford investigates four authors and a publishing company that have made millions selling this idea. Read More
Millions of kids can’t read well. Scientists have known for decades how ch Read More
14
Documentary

British Scandal

In a country obsessed with gossip, the great and the good fear one thing more than any other - scandal.

British scandals change the course of history. They bring down governments, overthrow the rich and cause the mighty to fall. Some are about sex, others about money. In the end, they’re all about power. 

But often at the heart of a scandal, there are ordinary human stories. Stories of those caught up in the swirl of outrage. 

Who was really to blame for what happened? Why did they do it? And when all is said and done, did anything really change?   

From the creators of Business Wars, American Scandal and Ghost Story, comes British Scandal. Each week, hosts Alice Levine and Matt Forde delve into the murkier side of the British elite, from Phone Hacking to Profumo to the short-lived premiership of Liz Truss. Because sometimes the truth doesn’t set everyone free…

New episodes come out every Wednesday for free, or 1-week early and ad-free for Wondery+ subscribers or on Amazon Music with a Prime membership or Amazon Music Unlimited subscription.

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In a country obsessed with gossip, the great and the good fear one thing more th Read More
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Documentary

Legends of the Old West – Black Barrel Media

Wyatt Earp, Jesse James, and Butch and Sundance. Lakota, Comanche and Apache. Wars, gunfights and robberies. This show covers the toughest lawmen, the wildest outlaws, and the deadliest towns — all the people and events that shaped the American West. Read More
Wyatt Earp, Jesse James, and Butch and Sundance. Lakota, Comanche and Apache. Wa Read More
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Documentary

In The Dark – The New Yorker

In the Dark, hosted by Madeleine Baran, is an award-winning investigative-journalism podcast that started in 2016. Its first season looked at the mysterious abduction of Jacob Wetterling in rural Minnesota and the lack of accountability that sheriffs face when they fail to solve cases. Season 2 examined the case of Curtis Flowers, who was tried six times for the same crime. In 2020, In the Dark released a special report on the coronavirus pandemic in the Mississippi Delta. In 2023, In the Dark joined The New Yorker and Condé Nast. “The Runaway Princesses,” In the Dark’s first collaboration with a New Yorker staff writer, is a four-part series that asks why the women in Dubai’s royal family keep trying to run away. Season 3 of In the Dark is currently in production.In the Dark is a two-time Peabody Award winner and, in 2019, became the first podcast to win a George Polk Award, one of the top honors in investigative journalism. The program has also received an Edward R. Murrow Award and a Robert F. Kennedy Journalism Award. Read More
In the Dark, hosted by Madeleine Baran, is an award-winning investigative-journa Read More
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Documentary

Tides of History

Everywhere around us are echoes of the past. Those echoes define the boundaries of states and countries, how we pray and how we fight. They determine what money we spend and how we earn it at work, what language we speak and how we raise our children. From Wondery, host Patrick Wyman, PhD (“Fall Of Rome”) helps us understand our world and how it got to be the way it is.

New episodes come out Thursdays for free, with 1-week early access for Wondery+ subscribers. Listen ad-free on Wondery+ or on Amazon Music with a Prime membership or Amazon Music Unlimited subscription.

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Everywhere around us are echoes of the past. Those echoes define the boundaries Read More
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Documentary

A Matter of Degrees – Dr. Leah Stokes, Dr. Katharine Wilkinson

Give up your climate guilt. Sharpen your curiosity. Join Dr. Leah Stokes and Dr. Katharine Wilkinson as they tell stories about the powerful forces behind climate change — and the tools we have to fix it. This show makes sense of big climate questions and critical topics. Our episodes are filled with stories of bold climate leadership, groundbreaking campaigns, and people doing their best to be part of the solution. A Matter of Degrees is produced in partnership with FRQNCY Media, The 2035 Initiative at UC Santa Barbara, and The All We Can Save Project. Read More
Give up your climate guilt. Sharpen your curiosity. Join Dr. Leah Stokes and Dr. Read More
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Documentary

Blindspot

HIV and AIDS changed the United States and the world. In this series, we reveal untold stories from the defining years of the epidemic, and we’ll consider: How could some of the pain have been avoided? Most crucial of all, what lessons can we still learn from it today? Blindspot is a co-production of The HISTORYⓇ Channel and WNYC Studios. Read More
HIV and AIDS changed the United States and the world. In this series, we reveal Read More
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Documentary

Next Question with Katie Couric – iHeartPodcasts

Katie Couric is back on the mic with a new season of intimate, urgent and unexpected conversations – this time with a new twist. Along with her signature in-depth one-on-one interviews, she’ll be joined by a number of special guest-hosts for a series of “Katie Plus One” episodes. Together they’ll get to know some of the world’s most interesting and influential people and explore the big ideas percolating in the zeitgeist--but with a focus on slowing down, diving deep, and connecting with each other, a reprieve from a culture obsessed with hot takes and surface-level small talk. Tune in every Thursday and join Katie Couric and her guests for a conversation that feels like a warm hug and a seat at the table. Read More
Katie Couric is back on the mic with a new season of intimate, urgent and unexpe Read More
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Documentary

Truth Be Told Presents: She Has A Name

She Has A Name blends elements of investigative journalism and memoir to tell the story of Anita, a sister that host Tonya Mosley learned about more than a decade after she went missing. Set against the backdrop of the drug epidemic in 1980s Detroit, She Has A Name is a story of loss and redemption, mending broken family ties, and facing the trauma experienced by countless individuals who've lost loved ones to violence. Read More
She Has A Name blends elements of investigative journalism and memoir to tell th Read More
22
Documentary

Buried Bones – a historical true crime podcast with Kate Winkler Dawson and Paul Holes – Exactly Right Media – the original true crime comedy network

On Buried Bones, journalist Kate Winkler Dawson and retired investigator Paul Holes dissect some of history’s most compelling true crime cases from centuries ago. Together, they explore these very old cases through a 21st century lens. With their years of expertise and knowledge of modern forensics, they reflect on how far science has come and bring new insight to old mysteries.  Together, Kate and Paul have examined many cases including the 1932 Lindbergh baby kidnapping, the first time fingerprinting was used as evidence in a courtroom and a possible serial killer in 1960s Nashville. They ask, was the right person convicted or was someone wrongfully accused? See pictures, diagrams and evidence from each case on Instagram @buriedbonespod. Buried Bones is part of the Exactly Right podcast network that provides a platform for bold, creative voices to bring to life provocative, entertaining and relatable stories for audiences everywhere. The Exactly Right roster of podcasts covers a variety of topics including true crime, comedic interviews, news, science, pop culture and more. The network is home to My Favorite Murder hosted by Karen Kilgariff and Georgia Hardstark, This Podcast Will Kill You, That's Messed Up: An SVU Podcast, Tenfold More Wicked and more. Read More
On Buried Bones, journalist Kate Winkler Dawson and retired investigator Paul Ho Read More
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Documentary

Rescue – Sony Music Entertainment

The world’s most astonishing rescue stories; told by the people who were there. Join host Donny Dust, Marine Corps veteran and world-renowned survival expert, as we marvel at the magnitude of the human spirit and those who refuse to surrender in the face of impossible odds. From seasoned search and rescuers to everyday heroes, we go on their journey as they brave treacherous arctic waters, tsunamis, mountains, collapsed mines and even space, to preserve the most sacred of all – life. A Sony Music Entertainment production. Find more great podcasts from Sony Music Entertainment production at sonymusic.com/podcasts and follow us on @sonypodcasts To bring your brand to life in this podcast, email podcastsales@sonymusic.com Read More
The world’s most astonishing rescue stories; told by the people who were there Read More
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Documentary

ChannelB پادکست فارسی – Ali Bandari

در هر اپیزود پادکست فارسی چنل‌بی گزارش یک ماجرای واقعی را به نقل از یک رسانه‌ی معتبر انگلیسی‌زبان برای شما تعریف می‌کنیم. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Read More
در هر اپیزود پادکست فارسی چنل‌بی گزارش یک م Read More
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Documentary

Very Special Episodes

On the Very Special Episodes podcast, we tell one incredible story each week. Stranger-than-fiction tales about normal people in extraordinary situations. Stories that make you say, “this should be a movie.” Follow us down a different rabbit hole every Wednesday.

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On the Very Special Episodes podcast, we tell one incredible story each week. St Read More