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Serial: Daily Summaries Delivered
by Serial Productions & The New York Times
"Serial" began in 2014 as a spinoff of the public radio show "This American Life." In 2017, we formed Serial Productions when we launched the podcast “S-Town.” Since then, Serial Productions has produced every season of “Serial” along with shows like “Nice White Parents,” “The Trojan Horse Affair,” “The Coldest Case in Laramie,” “The Retrievals” and more. In 2020, we joined the New York Times Company.
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- Mar 26, 2026narrative28 min3-min read
The Idiot - Chapter 5
Allen will almost certainly be released in a few years. What should M.’s family do with a guy who refuses to own up to his own crime? Can he be re-integrated into the family? Should he be? While M. has grown increasingly compassionate toward Allen, they learn their family has been moving in the opposite direction. Meanwhile, Priscilla has been trying to make a life without Allen. But Allen’s mom has other plans. Our newest podcast, “The Idiot” is out now. Search for it wherever you get your podcasts. To get full access to this and other Serial Productions and New York Times podcasts on Apple Podcasts and Spotify, subscribe at nytimes.com/podcasts. To find out about new shows from Serial Productions, and get a look behind the scenes, sign up for our newsletter at nytimes.com/serialnewsletter. Have a story pitch, a tip, or feedback on our shows? Email us at serialshows@nytimes.com Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
- Mar 26, 2026narrative1h 2m3-min read
The Idiot - Chapter 4
Allen finally agrees to talk … and talk and talk, for 35 hours of interviews. M. wants to understand Allen on his own terms, to try and figure out how this scion of bohemian intellectuals ended up hiring someone to kill his ex. It’s hard for M. to believe everything Allen says, but over the course of their conversations, M. comes to feel for their cousin. And they think they understand what drove him to go so far. Our newest podcast, “The Idiot” is out now. Search for it wherever you get your podcasts. To get full access to this and other Serial Productions and New York Times podcasts on Apple Podcasts and Spotify, subscribe at nytimes.com/podcasts. To find out about new shows from Serial Productions, and get a look behind the scenes, sign up for our newsletter at nytimes.com/serialnewsletter. Have a story pitch, a tip, or feedback on our shows? Email us at serialshows@nytimes.com Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
- Mar 26, 2026narrative50 min3-min read
The Idiot - Chapter 3
M. attends Allen’s trial in San Francisco. The FBI’s star witness, an agent who went by “David," plays his undercover recordings of Allen. They reveal how Allen’s scheme to deport Priscilla turned into a murder-for-hire plot. Allen is his own star witness, but his attempts to defend himself fall flat in court. M. begins to wonder why they loved seeing Allen humiliated on the stand. Our newest podcast, “The Idiot” is out now. Search for it wherever you get your podcasts. To get full access to this and other Serial Productions and New York Times podcasts on Apple Podcasts and Spotify, subscribe at nytimes.com/podcasts. To find out about new shows from Serial Productions, and get a look behind the scenes, sign up for our newsletter at nytimes.com/serialnewsletter. Have a story pitch, a tip, or feedback on our shows? Email us at serialshows@nytimes.com Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
- Mar 26, 2026interview49 min3-min read
The Idiot - Chapter 2
Priscilla, a Zimbabwean woman from a prominent family, endured years of psychological and physical abuse in her marriage to Alan, a manipulative and controlling man with deep ties to his domineering mother, Lena. After she left him, Alan retaliated by abducting their son, stripping Priscilla of her assets, and orchestrating a campaign of harassment and false accusations across multiple countries—culminating in his 2022 arrest for attempting to hire someone to murder her.
- Mar 26, 2026narrative21 min4-min read
The Idiot - Chapter 1
For decades, M. simply disliked Allen. They saw him as a fool, a pompous “international businessman” who bragged about shady deals and drove fancy cars while living in Eastern Europe and Africa. But one day Allen suddenly shows up at their father’s home in Cape Cod with his mother and 5-year-old son. He says he has separated from his wife, whom he has left behind in Moscow. M. suspects this could be a kidnapping, but their family seems to disagree. But finally Allen does something so bad, even M.’s family can’t ignore it. Our newest podcast, “The Idiot” is out now. Search for it wherever you get your podcasts. To get full access to this and other Serial Productions and New York Times podcasts on Apple Podcasts and Spotify, subscribe at nytimes.com/podcasts. To find out about new shows from Serial Productions, and get a look behind the scenes, sign up for our newsletter at nytimes.com/serialnewsletter. Have a story pitch, a tip, or feedback on our shows? Email us at serialshows@nytimes.com Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
- Mar 19, 2026narrative1 min4-min read
The Idiot - Trailer
M. Gessen's new podcast The Idiot explores the shocking true story of their cousin Alan, who became entangled in a murder plot, blending personal family history with dark humor and a deep dive into moral ambiguity. What begins as a familial curiosity becomes a profound reckoning with complicity, truth, and the limits of understanding.
- Oct 30, 202558 min
The Preventionist - Ep. 3
What’s the harm of “better safe than sorry” in cases where abuse is ambiguous? One mother’s story is our answer to that question. Our newest podcast, “The Idiot” is out now. Search for it wherever you get your podcasts. To get full access to this and other Serial Productions and New York Times podcasts on Apple Podcasts and Spotify, subscribe at nytimes.com/podcasts. To find out about new shows from Serial Productions, and get a look behind the scenes, sign up for our newsletter at nytimes.com/serialnewsletter. Have a story pitch, a tip, or feedback on our shows? Email us at serialshows@nytimes.com Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
- Oct 30, 202549 min
The Preventionist - Ep. 2
One pediatrician’s path to Pennsylvania, and the rise of a powerful new field in child medicine. Our newest podcast, “The Idiot” is out now. Search for it wherever you get your podcasts. To get full access to this and other Serial Productions and New York Times podcasts on Apple Podcasts and Spotify, subscribe at nytimes.com/podcasts. To find out about new shows from Serial Productions, and get a look behind the scenes, sign up for our newsletter at nytimes.com/serialnewsletter. Have a story pitch, a tip, or feedback on our shows? Email us at serialshows@nytimes.com Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
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About Serial
"Serial" began in 2014 as a spinoff of the public radio show "This American Life." In 2017, we formed Serial Productions when we launched the podcast “S-Town.” Since then, Serial Productions has produced every season of “Serial” along with shows like “Nice White Parents,” “The Trojan Horse Affair,” “The Coldest Case in Laramie,” “The Retrievals” and more. In 2020, we joined the New York Times Company.
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