Sarah Koenig explains why 'Serial' season 3 will be different
"It took us a while to figure out what we were doing, then all of the sudden, it just sort of clicked in."
"It took us a while to figure out what we were doing, then all of the sudden, it just sort of clicked in."
"It took us a while to figure out what we were doing, then all of the sudden, it just sort of clicked in."
Back before there was "Caliphate" or "Slow Burn" or many of the podcasts you probably have downloaded right now, there was "Serial," the investigative serialized podcast from Sarah Koenig and Julie Snyder. Narrated by Koenig, "" became the first mega-hit in the podcast world (it's been downloaded more than 340 million times) and was the first podcast ever to win a Peabody Award. The gripped audiences with the case of Adnan Syed; the was a look into the court-martial of Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl.
Now, "Serial" is officially back with its third season, and this time it's tackling the less "flashy" side of the criminal justice system. Koenig, along with her co-reporter Emmanuel Dzotsi, spent more than a year inside Cleveland's criminal courts, learning the ins and outs of cases. The first two episodes will drop on Sept. 20, with new episodes released each Thursday after that (though you can listen to a trailer ). Below, Koenig talks to ELLE.com about the inspiration behind this year's season, what it's like to be podcast famous, and the instrumental partnership that makes "Serial" what it is.
How did you decide on this topic for season 3?
Sarah Koenig: I have to rewind my head like, "What were we thinking?" One answer is that 바카라 게임 웹사이트 we did season 1 and it was about this case and, in some ways, it was a story about: Did this person do this or did they not? A more interesting question to me was: What is this trial and what does it mean and how is our system working? And what we realized kind of at the end was, I think it바카라 게임 웹사이트s hard to say based on one case, and especially one case that바카라 게임 웹사이트s not your typical [case]. [Syed] wasn바카라 게임 웹사이트t the usual kind of defendant that you see. He has no criminal record. He has this private attorney. This kid goes to trial and has, not one, but two trials, and they last a long time. And some of that is sort of what바카라 게임 웹사이트s really happening in our system, all day long in our courthouses.
Julie [Snyder], my partner, had read this book by Steve Bogira called "." He spends a year inside a courtroom in Chicago. We all read it, and we were like, "It바카라 게임 웹사이트d be cool if we could do something like that for radio." So that바카라 게임 웹사이트s kind of what we set out to do. Let바카라 게임 웹사이트s see if we can get our arms around the system in a bigger way, by looking at smaller, less flashy cases, more the day-to-day grind of the courts. What would we learn?
It sounds like you'll be telling many stories within the court, as opposed to one longer story.
Right, it is not one single case.
Is the format going to be the same as before? How does it differ from past seasons?
I guess it is different in that, if you바카라 게임 웹사이트re a purist in terms of what a serial actually is, this is not a pure serial. It바카라 게임 웹사이트s not one story that바카라 게임 웹사이트s continuing over time. But in every other way, I think you바카라 게임 웹사이트re going to recognize that it바카라 게임 웹사이트s "Serial." Also, some of the stories do last more than one episode ... so people do come back and their cases come back, but they바카라 게임 웹사이트re not so tightly linked. There바카라 게임 웹사이트s one episode that바카라 게임 웹사이트s about this one judge and what his courtroom is like, and there바카라 게임 웹사이트s another episode that바카라 게임 웹사이트s inside the prosecutor바카라 게임 웹사이트s office. Other ones are more about the actual criminal, a specific criminal case. It바카라 게임 웹사이트s a mix of things, which was hard, because we didn바카라 게임 웹사이트t know what we were looking for. When we went, we were like, "I바카라 게임 웹사이트m just going to sit here and wander around and listen and see what I see," which you think would be like, "Oh that바카라 게임 웹사이트s so freeing, so much liberty," but it was terrifying because you바카라 게임 웹사이트re like, "I don바카라 게임 웹사이트t know what my story is. What바카라 게임 웹사이트s my story? What is this, what is this, what is this?" So it took us a while to figure out what we were doing. Then all of the sudden, it just sort of clicked in.
I that you once said people might not like season 2 as much as season 1. Do you think people will like season 3?
[Laughs] I don바카라 게임 웹사이트t think I said people wouldn바카라 게임 웹사이트t like season 2. Season 2 has a piece of my heart. Season 3 is very close to my heart. The stories are really good, and we바카라 게임 웹사이트re really excited to tell them to people. Then again 바카라 게임 웹사이트 if you바카라 게임 웹사이트re looking for a murder mystery, this is not it.
At the end of the day, you can바카라 게임 웹사이트t worry about it because it바카라 게임 웹사이트ll make you nuts. You바카라 게임 웹사이트re either going to do the stories you want to do or you바카라 게임 웹사이트re going to do the thing you know will be some sort of pop culture sensation. I suppose if you hit gold then both of those come together, but whatever. We don바카라 게임 웹사이트t worry about it because you can바카라 게임 웹사이트t.
I really want to ask about your partnership with Julie. I love seeing two women dominate in this arena. What is that like for you? What does she help bring out?
"Serial" doesn바카라 게임 웹사이트t exist without Julie. I honestly think that she바카라 게임 웹사이트s the best radio editor in the world. Her talent is so strong and so specific that it바카라 게임 웹사이트s hard for me to actually articulate. She바카라 게임 웹사이트s the one who we바카라 게임 웹사이트re sort of dumping all of our reporting back at as it바카라 게임 웹사이트s happening. She바카라 게임 웹사이트s the one that바카라 게임 웹사이트s processing all of that information. And then at the end, we all come together, and she바카라 게임 웹사이트s the one바카라 게임 웹사이트we바카라 게임 웹사이트re all doing it바카라 게임 웹사이트but she바카라 게임 웹사이트s the one that바카라 게임 웹사이트s like, "Wait. I see it. I see what this could be," in a way that none of the rest of us are quite capable of doing. She just has an extraordinary narrative talent. I definitely can바카라 게임 웹사이트t do what I do without Julie. I don바카라 게임 웹사이트t know if she feels the same way about me. Honestly, I don바카라 게임 웹사이트t think she does because she can do her thing with anybody, but I can바카라 게임 웹사이트t do my thing with anybody else.
So, what바카라 게임 웹사이트s it been like to be Sarah Koenig in the last couple of years?
Busy in a good way, in a way entirely of my own choosing, especially the last couple of years because I was going back and forth to Cleveland. I have two kids, who are not babies or anything, but I like to be home with my kids. I think, like many busy, working people, that was a constant push-pull. I know this is the most boring answer I could possibly give, but it바카라 게임 웹사이트s real. My life is a constant family, work, family, work, family, work and trying to figure that out. And it바카라 게임 웹사이트s not easy. I have a very understanding family. If [the question is] whether or not it바카라 게임 웹사이트s glamorous, the answer is no. [Laughs]. Not at all.
So the life of a big time podcaster isn바카라 게임 웹사이트t all limousines and바카라 게임 웹사이트
No, no. Very grubby. [Laughs]
This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.