In the Dark
In the Dark: Madeleine Baran's Investigative True Crime Podcast
An award-winning investigative series that reopens criminal cases the official record considers closed.
In the Dark is an award-winning investigative podcast hosted by Madeleine Baran, built around complex criminal cases and stories that have never been fully told. Since its launch in 2016, the series has examined a number of high-profile cases, among them the abduction of Jacob Wetterling, the conviction of Curtis Flowers and the Haditha killings. What they share is a method: sustained journalistic scrutiny applied to mysteries that still demand answers.
Each season and special report is built on painstaking investigative work. Interviews, archival research and reporting from the places where the events actually happened are combined to surface overlooked details and to test official explanations against the evidence. Rather than retelling a case as it was first reported, the series returns to the source material and asks what the record can and cannot support.
The podcast has been widely recognised for its commitment to thorough investigation and for its ability to shed light on cases the public has either forgotten or misunderstood.
In the Dark is available on the major platforms, including Apple Podcasts and Audible, and continues to release new seasons and special reports. Recent releases include season 3, from 2024, as well as "The Runaway Princesses." The series reflects The New Yorker's commitment to in-depth audio storytelling.
About the podcast
HostMadeleine Baran
NetworkThe New Yorker / Condé Nast
PodcastIn the Dark
HostMadeleine Baran
First broadcast2016
Available onApple Podcasts, Audible
Latest seasonSeason 3 (2024)
PublisherThe New Yorker
Notable casesAbduction of Jacob Wetterling, conviction of Curtis Flowers, Haditha killings
Episodes
11
The Journey Update: The D.A. Brings Charges
In the Dark returns three weeks after The Journey with news that Guojun Xuan and Silvia Zhang have been arrested and charged with child abuse.
October 13, 2026
The Journey, Episode 5: The Children
Episode 5 of In the Dark's series The Journey follows a judge's custody ruling and Ava's discovery inside a confidential court file.
October 13, 2026
Season 2 Update: Curtis Flowers Has Died
In the Dark delivers a short update confirming the death of Curtis Flowers, central figure of the show's Season 2 investigation, found dead at age fifty-six.
October 9, 2026
The Journey, Episode 4: The Courts
A surrogate secretly brings home the baby she carried, and may have an unprecedented chance to keep her, in this In the Dark episode.
October 6, 2026
The Journey, Episode 3: The Industry
The Journey, Episode 3: The Industry from In the Dark looks at how weak regulation of the surrogacy industry allowed a couple's plans to unfold.
September 29, 2026
The Journey, Episode 2: Intended Parents
In the Dark's Intended Parents follows Ava investigating a couple inside the Arcadia mansion and why they want so many children.
September 22, 2026
The Journey, Episode 1: Gifts
A Texas woman agrees to carry a child for a wealthy California couple and ends up a whistle-blower in this In the Dark episode.
September 15, 2026
American Podcast Reopens 40-Year-Old British Murder Case
A major investigative podcast from The New Yorker's Heidi Blake has launched a six-part examination of Britain's White House Farm murders, presenting evidence that could challenge Jeremy Bamber's four-decade conviction for killing five family members in 1985.
March 17, 2026
The White House Farm Murders: A Family Destroyed
On the night of 6–7 August 1985, five members of the Bamber family were shot dead at White House Farm near Tolleshunt D'Arcy in Essex, England. Jeremy Bamber was convicted of the murders in 1986, but his case remains mired in controversy, with claims of police misconduct and disputed evidence keeping the case in the public eye.
March 17, 2026
27 Years in the Dark: How Podcasts Documented Jacob Wetterling's Case
Jacob Wetterling was 11 years old when he vanished while cycling home from a convenience store in rural Minnesota in October 1989. Twenty-seven years later, DNA evidence and a confessional plea deal would finally reveal what happened to him—and podcasters would document every twist of this watershed case.
March 17, 2026
In the Dark: How a Podcast Exposed Systemic Justice Failures
Since launching in September 2016, *In the Dark* has become one of the most consequential true crime podcasts, using meticulous investigative journalism to examine not the crimes themselves, but the systemic failures that allow injustice to persist. Now produced by *The New Yorker* and Condé Nast Entertainment, the series has prompted legislative reform and overturned convictions.
May 26, 2025
Share this post:
Follow this podcast
Get an email when a new episode of In the Dark: Madeleine Baran's Investigative True Crime Podcast is released.