Absolutely one of the worst podcasts I have listened to. A 45 minute episode is like 17 min after all the repetitive ads. Made it through 2 episodes.

I really prefer one host podcasts because I don’t like nonsense talk that is unnecessary. Just tell the story and give the details. I had high hopes for this one but couldn’t get past the odd low background music. Had to turn my radio down a few times to make sure it was on the podcast. Now I don’t even want to listen to part 2&3 of the show.

Red Collar and Blood Money are so much better. Why not stick to those? Also please edit your podcasts.

Might want to try again. Concluded a suicide without half of the facts

I’ve listened since the beginning. I’m over all the politics. Bringing politics into your podcast when there is entirely too much political division is a no no. I can’t listen any longer. We need a break from all the political bull!

What happened to this podcast?

I’ve listened to Hell and Gone since the beginning. I’ve also been listening to Murder Line since it began but in the past year I started noticing the repetitive info in episodes. And I mean every episode. And now that I’ve noticed it, I can’t un-notice it. The writing should be done in such a way that the information flows fluidly. You don’t need to keep reminding us of info during a 30 min podcast. As a crime reporter/PI/Investigative Journalist you should be able to write your scripts in a way where you aren’t having to constantly repeat info in every episode. Trust me, we can follow along. I love listening to Catherine Townsend but I can’t do it anymore. Unfollowed. 😞

Can’t understand phone interview

GLP-1 commercial pushing ‘natural’ and it’s a lie. Gives misinformation about the ‘myths’. If this is your choice to promote. I will find better.

The host should know that “supposebly” is not a word.

So you and your partner Amy need to be doing a second story to the podcast you done on my son. We paid for a second autopsy. They do them for the FBI and there findings are not the same as state police. The officer beat a guy in the head with his pistol a month ago on body cam. So y’all really don’t have any information on this case other than what you took from state police. Amy you processed to tell one individual that I was crazy. How dare you call a grieving mother crazy. I will be sending you updated info as it goes in front of the attorney general.

I can forgive the very thick Southern accent but not the 4+ minute long ads. Makes it un-listenable.

Catherine is THE best. Her investigative knowledge & compassion comes through in every episode. As a follower of the OG Red Collar, this is a go to in my weekly rotation of podcasts. Highly recommend!

This ad is so terrible. How did this even get cleared? Hello, podcast world, why are we so cheery about a human trafficking ad?? Soooo bad. Ick.

The overuse and improper use of the words “quote” and “end quote” make this unlistenable. It’s just constant over and over and over. Just tell the story!

I love this show. But really wish it would go back to one case seasons.

Miss the old H&G where they focused on one case. Also 4 minutes before tue actual episode even starts. IHeart has the worst ads.

Love the podcast, but not the anti-choice propaganda ads, or the AI focused ads for that matter! Pretty disappointing. Catherine does a great job as host though! I prefer the original format, but the newer episodes are still worth a listen imo!

It's just another sellout where they're making money off ads and clicks. Went from an actual podcast to episodes since I think they just regurgitate newspaper clippings? Don't bother.

I used to really love this, but I’ve noticed that every episode she uses the words “brutal” or “brutally” to describe something - a beating, a murder, etc, and it really stands out. I feel like it’s lazy writing to just reuse the same descriptors when others could also convey a point. If everything is “brutal”, then it lessens the impact. Just something that sticks out to me every time!

Nice stories but too many ads in the middle if the episode and move slowly to the point

Hello. I listen to your podcast everyday at work! I would love for you to maybe cover the case of Anne Presley from Little Rock. It’s not unsolved but there are many things I think that never got spoken about. She was killed in her home and brutally beaten.

So many ads in season 6. Seriously reduces actual listening content.

I adore this podcast and the mission it is on. I’m just finishing season 5. Obviously there is shift in content. Murder line is a lot more about showcases stories versus months long investigations. And I understand this is a way to share a lot more cases. But I hope that you are able to do both. Though I know it’s not realistic. One thing I would suggest with more sharing and less investigation on the group level is this. I would love to see you analyze cases that have been solved. It meets the need im sure most of my fellow fans need is to have a resolution. Breaking down the matthew shepherd investigation is one example of something I would love to know more about but has a resolution. Thank you so much for the work you do! You are a champion for the voiceless!

Let me get this straight. Doug Janis was in his 40s when he started “dating” a 13 year old who later became his wife? Look, he might not have deserved to be shot in the head (some would say this is debatable) but dude was a straight predator. The way the Townsend highlighted what an interesting “character” this creep was and included his wife’s age as if it were an afterthought is grotesque and irresponsible. The more I consider that there is zero discussion of grooming and child abuse the angrier I become. Shameful, hack journalism

I really wanted to love this one, but the terrible sound issues in the early episodes just turn me right off. Sounds like she’s talking to ppl from inside a tin can.

I LIVE for this podcast; Townsend does the work and presents each episode without victim shaming, without dropping her own opinions & doesn’t allow rumors to muddy the investigative waters. THIS is true crime podcasting done right.

I’ve always been really impressed at the quality of investigation and factual evidence. However, this week it was claimed that Nona Dirksmeyer (said incorrectly without the s every time) attended the University of Arkansas, and was somehow reminding Catherine of this week’s case. Nona attended Arkansas Tech University in Russellville 2 hours away. This case has been covered extensively and many people are still living to verify facts of the case. Now I’m questioning if other things are factual if this information about Nona is wrong and it’s a case so close to home. Love the podcast, just hoping for a correction as I believe Nona is worth the correct information.

I really want to enjoy this podcast. I’ve tried listening multiple times. The content is great but I can’t stand the constant “he said, she said, they said” narrative. It kills me hearing he said/she said every other sentence.

/ Episode length: 43 min. / Ads + Fluff ⭕️ ⬆️: 14 min. / Avg time between ads: 11 min. / Based on episode: S5E3. ============================ Really horrible hyper-babble ads. Every 11 minutes. The most AD HEAVY podcast on my list so far. The episodes are also confusing. Ex. Christina Pipkin, Episodes 12 to 14 are Parts 1 to 3. Then we hop over to Episode 16 for Part 4… WTH? Season 5 has 52 episodes that bounce back and forth between Christine Pipkin and various unrelated stories. Geez.

Ads killed the podcast star. Way too many ads. I get you need to make money, but this podcast leads the league in ads

I find the material very interesting and enjoy learning about the steps taken to investigate the cases. For multi episode cases, it would be very helpful to have the number of episodes (or at least an estimated number) specified in the show notes.

There are more ads than show. I had to stop listening after a coupe episodes.

I’ve listened to this podcast from the beginning, it was local to me and that’s what got my attention. I like Katherine Townsend she is a good reporter but I didn’t like the fact she called AWP a distraction in the Brooke Allentown episode. Jared and Doug and their team are an asset to missing cases and have solved more cold cases than Katherine could dream of helping. Over 22 cold cases closed because of Adventure with Purpose

I love the podcast. I have been listening since Catherine did Red Collar. I think the ads are crazy long though. I wish they were broken up maybe a little more.

Love what you are doing and your honest passion. Thank you H&G Team!!

I love the stories and the research they do. It’s compelling and interesting. However, sometimes the audio quality of third parties is poor and difficult to understand.

The background music is awful. It’s extremely distracting. Please adjust the levels so it’s not the focus of these episodes. Far too many ads for a podcast of this length. And they’re not aligned with the nature of the podcast’s content. If you’re telling a story in multiple parts but not dropping those episodes at the same time… for the love of god put that info in the episode notes. People consume lots of different podcasts and it’s hard to keep story details straight week to week. If you label your episodes thoroughly, that will greatly improve the listener experience.

All this host chick does is make everything about herself not any victims, it just about her boosting her own ego. Every single episode description is about “Catherine” not the victims. These bored, talentless people with nothing to do but exploit others tragedies because the host needs attention

I’d really be interested in the story but had to give up and unfollow halfway through the second episode because the music was so annoying. Just couldn’t do it.. 🙁

30-40 min pod with at least 1/4 ads. Good research, details, but info is repeated so it’s slow to go anywhere in the short podcasts with almost more ads than podcast.

Catherine is a thoughtful and insightful journalist. She genuinely cares about the families whose stories she tells.

Very odd back-round bass & piano. Also tired of hearing the narrator brag about herself at the start of every episode. Please

I am all for Podcasts getting their money through ads. But when I listen to a 45 minute episode and only 10 minutes of that is the actual content I’m not sticking around. I listened to every season up to season four. Couldn’t finish that one cuz of ads, tried to start season five and couldn’t even make it past episode one without Tapping off and finding a different Podcast.

I’ve seen a lot of reviews about the ads that is not why I’m only giving a two star review that is not the Podcaster’s fault. If you don’t like the ads pay the $35 for a years subscription cheapskate! However, I was enjoying season six then the fifth episode came along, and it was a totally different case??? I felt like I was just beginning to understand the first one.

As many people of said, the number of ads is out of control. In a 35 min episode there is about 13 minutes of ads. To go from hearing about the worst day of a family’s life to an ad for something like a cocktail machine or nicotine is pretty jarring. I can’t fault anyone for wanting to make some money, but there are plenty of other true crime podcasts to choose from that don’t have a million ads.

I love this show so much, I sleep to it every night. I am now addicted to Catherine’s voice. Keep it going!

I've tried listening to this several times, but after a few attempts, as well as attempts at other I Heart podcasts, the excessive ads are just too much. Every ten minutes or so - in a 35-minute-long episode - there are at least two ads. The podcast may be good, but it's not good enough to pay for when money is so tight. The other issue I have with this podcast is something I've encountered is bizarre to me: rather than get someone to read, or to summarize facts and put the resources in show notes, they insist on playing very poor audio, complete with muffled voices and very low volume. Please just stop doing that. If you put your sources in the notes, I will trust that you aren't making something up. I have tried but this podcast just doesn't cut it.

I enjoy the content but there are way too many ads to continue listening.

Podcasts are a lot of work, and creating them takes courage most people don’t have. Most of the Karens in the comments don’t acknowledge this podcast’s great content or the effort required to crank out so many small town stories this quickly. That said, a couple of tweaks I’ll echo from others: the sound is a major issue, maybe lower the volume or reduce the frequency of music played. Also, the ads. Wow. Make your money, girl, we get it, but how about doing longer commercials at the beginning and end and remove the middle breaks? Same amount of ad time with fewer breaks. The average listener cannot fork out hundreds of dollars/month to listen to all their favorite podcasts. Annoying people multiple times during a single episode is not how to gain new paid subscribers. Great podcast overall, based on the stories and details provided.