Michigan Radio’s Believed podcast continues to receive accolades from media outlets around the country. In the series, reporters Kate Wells and Lindsey Smith looked at how former MSU and USA Gymnastics team doctor Larry Nassar was able to abuse hundreds of women and girls for decades. The story was told from the perspective of several women who survived his abuse.
The nine episode series has topped year-end ‘best of’ lists among both national and niche media communities. Last week, The Boston Globe declared, in the “overwhelming” abundance of binge-worthy audio projects offered this year, Believed is one of its “10 podcasts that stood out in 2018.”
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The Athletic, a sports news website focused on pro and college teams and news across North America, named Believed “Sports Podcast of the Year” in the site’s 2018 Media Awards. The website applauded the Believed team saying, “This type of reporting and production is time-consuming and costly but what Michigan Radio and these two reporters have done is a service to the public on the signs of serial sexual abuse.”
While sports organizations around the country have been spurred to reflect on their practices for protecting young athletes from harm, the Nassar case was ultimately about the crimes of one man. Believed has been able to stand out among the wide coverage of the court case and exploration of how Nassar was able to evade justice for so long. The arts and entertainment website, Vulture, also gave Believed a top spot on their list, The 10 Best True Crime Podcasts of 2018. The culture critics at Vulture called the series “a spectacular and powerful voyage” which delved into the most important questions surrounding the case and its survivors.
You can listen to the full Believed podcast series and explore additional content related to the survivors, the court case, and the production of this series at the Believed website.
