Review: Salgado Investigations
In this blog post, I will be giving my opinion of Salgado Investigations, a true-crime podcast that discusses a different unsolved murder or disappearance each episode.
Salgado Investigations has been on the air for just over two years. The show is hosted by investigative journalist Santiago Salgado and is produced by Radio Ambulante in collaboration with NPR.
The podcast costs $2.99 per month to subscribe to its RSS feed, but can also be listened to for free through iTunes or Radio Ambulante's website for those who live outside of the United States or who don't have an Apple device.
The show's webpage is at http://salgadopod.com/
First to be discussed in the podcast was the mysterious disappearance of 14-year-old Lisa Irwin in December of 2010. This disappearance has been called "the world's most famous missing child". Her mother, Jayne Fife, and stepfather, Jeremy Irwin were never found but were seen leaving their home hours before she was reported missing. Salgado investigates the case and presents evidence that suggests that Lisa may have been abducted by a predator who had been stalking her for months beforehand. This is an interesting case due to the domestic aspect of it and the fact that both Lisa's parents were working at their jobs at the time she disappeared. The disappearance of Lisa Irwin was also a factor in Jayne Fife being named one of People magazine's 50 Most Beautiful People in 2009, though that didn't lead to any further success in finding her daughter.
Another unsolved mystery discussed in this podcast is Casey Anthony, who had been convicted for the murder of her 2-year-old daughter Caylee. Casey had previously been charged for driving under the influence and for possessing marijuana, and was sentenced to probation. On July 10, 2008, her daughter went missing and was reported missing by Casey's mother. Her mother also called out the police to search for Caylee on July 15, 2008. Police dogs later traced both Casey Anthony's scent from a trash bag where she had hidden duct tape with chloroform as well as her scent from a utility room where Caylee had last been seen alive to a wooded area near the Anthony home, where Caylee's body was found five months later. Case Anthony was arrested after police searched her home a week after finding Caylee's body. She was later charged with murder of her own daughter, as well as aggravated child abuse and misleading a police investigation. Casey had initially pleaded not guilty to all the charges. She later changed her plea to "Not Guilty by Reason of Insanity", but in 2011, she was found not guilty by a jury. This case is fascinating because it is the first time in United States history that a mother has been acquitted for murdering her own daughter.
One of Salgado's most recent episodes deals with the story of a young girl named Natascha Kampusch, who at age 10 was kidnapped by Wolfgang Priklopil. Natascha was rescued from Wolfgang's basement room in time, and he was later convicted of kidnapping the girl. Salgado looks at Natascha's case with the help of a psychologist, an expert on human trafficking, and Natascha herself. One of the most interesting parts of this episode is when both Natascha and Wolfgang are interviewed in separate locations and what they have to say about each other.
For those who are interested in learning more about Salgado Investigations, Radio Ambulante has uploaded many of its episodes to iTunes under the title "Salgado Investigaciones Para Despertar Una Conciencia". A list of episodes can be found here . The episodes are in Spanish, but English subtitles are available.
I recommend Salgado Investigations to those who enjoy true crime stories, especially those with an international twist. The podcast also gives a glimpse into the lives of people affected by murder and missing persons cases, which is an aspect I enjoy learning about through reading. In my opinion, Salgado Investigaciones is better than some other similar podcasts because it is never overly focused on one case and always has several cases covered in each episode. The production quality of the podcast is also high and Santiago Salgado's narration (as well as translations) make this podcast easy to listen to.
I rate Salgado Investigations 4/5 stars. If you are interested in listening to this podcast, I recommend subscribing to its RSS feed , and checking it out on iTunes or Radio Ambulante's website. I hope you all enjoy this podcast as much as I do!
Title: Review: The Black Tapes Podcast
(In no particular order)
One of the first podcasts I would rate is The Black Tapes . This was a podcast that inspired me to start this blog, as well as keeping me in the dark about some interesting facts related to unsolved murders. The show's creator is Josh Fadem, and he interviews people who either worked for or were involved with paranormal investigations. The podcast is hosted by the fictitious character Alex Reagan, who is a former skeptic turned believer. Alex is always interviewing people, but more on her investigation of strange phenomena as well as her father's death shortly after she was born. These interviews include detectives, paranormal experts, and people who have had experiences with the supernatural. The podcast's website can be found at https://www.blacktapespodcast.com/ .
The production quality of The Black Tapes Podcast is what really makes it unique to other podcasts in the genre. It is dark and mysterious, which adds to the feeling that Alex's investigations are important and worth listening to all at once. The narration is done by Alex, and it really makes the story come to life.
Other things that are unique about The Black Tapes Podcast are the facts that appear in each episode. Often times, the facts about a real-life case will be told before the investigation begins, but even more often than not the podcast won't discuss any real-life murders or disappearances until an episode nears its end. This keeps listeners interested by switching up how they hear and think about stories of people who have been murdered or disappeared without being able to discern what kind of information will be presented in each episode. I feel like this is what The Black Tapes Podcast does best. The show does not follow the same format each episode, or even the same type of cases every time. On their website, the podcast has a section called "Podcast Origins" where they talk about how the show came to be.
This podcast is well-worth listening to. If you are interested in learning more about famous stories from history that have been overlooked and written out of history books, as well as hearing reported stories of people who have reportedly had some sort of supernatural experience, The Black Tapes Podcast is for you!
I have heard that The Black Tapes Podcast is not an isolated topic on which this podcast focuses exclusively. Fandom has created YouTube videos that cover similar topics.
Conclusion
I hope this blog has helped you understand the popular podcasts that are available and that I have opened your eyes to some interesting stories. If you are interested in learning more about any of these topics, please subscribe to my blog. Thanks for reading!
I haven't been writing as much recently because I am preparing for a state exam, but I have been keeping up with the news! A few weeks ago, a documentary was released that is centered around the life of Amy Mihaljevic and the search for her killer. The 2014 movie features interviews with her family members and friends as well as officers who worked on Amy's case.