Someone Knows Something - Podcast Rankings and reviews

I love true crime podcasts and this is my absolute favorite due to host David Ridgen. He not only knows how to get to the bottom of a mystery - he knows how to treat people and their stories with compassion. In an ocean of true crime podcasts that are hosted by clunky and sometimes rash armchair sleuths, David stands apart in his unfailing desire to achieve justice while also treating his case subjects - family members, friends, and even suspects - as humans. Truly amazing content!

I binge listened to seasons 1-5 and now cannot wait for every new episode. David’s voice is not only soothing, but he tells the stories in a way that does not induce fear, despite the difficult content. There is so much vulnerability and compassion in each show. I truly enjoy the raw but considerate insight into the lives of each of the participants. The language allows me to visualize so much. Excellent job.

I love true crime podcasts so I listen to quite a few of them. “Someone Knows Something” is my favorite. David is an excellent story teller. I love how he explains the science behind the investigations, such as how cadaver dogs are used, DNA, etc. The detail is great, and each season has a story that truly draws you in. Each episode leaves you wanting more. Definitely recommend!

I’ll tell you what, David Ridgen is a brilliant story teller and exemplary documentarian but it’s his humanity, caring and attunement to his subjects that really elevate Someone Knows Something. That said, the cases he covers are fully disturbing and meet that need in all true crime junkies, and SKS doesn’t mince words. Really gripping journalism and beautifully fleshed out portraits of people, cultures and places. 100% recommend!

I have listened to a lot of true crime podcasts over the years and this one is by far the worst.

Every cardinal podcasting sin you can think of, this series commits. 30 minutes of actual true crime stretched out into 10 hours? Check. Hours of unnecessary interviews that lead to nothing? Check. Glacial pacing? Check. Attributions of malice and wrong doing to a new person every episode only to exonerate them the next episode? You got it. Do they actually solve the case? Hah, of course not.

What makes this podcast truly terrible though is the narrator, David. To be clear, this is not a podcast about a child abduction. This is a podcast about a man child who is either genuinely seeking self actualization through a 40 year old child abduction cold case, or who is cynically using said tragedy for self aggrandizement. Nothing about this series is journalism; everything is told through David’s perspective and we get to hear every inappropriate, irrelevant anecdote that comes to his mind.

David tells us how he felt personally called to solve this case because he grew up in the same town. He frequently uses language invoking destiny and fate to aggrandize insert himself into the story of this child’s abduction. He tells us about his dreams. His DREAMS!

Over and over again David bemoans “oh what am I doing trying to solve this 40 year old case!” But nonetheless conveys a strong, conceited sense of purpose that he will finally bring closure to the victims parents. Spoiler alert: he doesn’t. What he succeeds at is using their child’s abduction for his own gain.

This podcast is his journey and quite frankly I find it cynical, self indulgent and disgusting.

I listen to a lot of true crime podcasts and this is one of the worse ones out there. I listened to each episode in Season 1, waiting each time for something interesting to happen, but no such luck. I didn’t expect the case to be solved by any means, but so little happens that there’s nothing of interest on any of the episodes. Podcast starts with boy missing in 1972, podcast ends with boy still missing and no additional clues or leads. Don’t bother with this one.