Dateline’s Josh Mankiewicz Takes You Inside the True Crime Machine

In part two of her series on true crime and disability, Imani Gandy interviews Dateline correspondent Josh Mankiewicz about true crime as a machine that decides whose stories get told—and whose don’t. From missing Black women, to missing and murdered Indigenous people, to the near invisibility of disabled victims, they talk about what true crime shows—and what it leaves out.

Because attention itself is a form of power.

(And yes, there’s a Bill Hader moment.)

Expert Repro Journalism That Inspires. 

Episodes like this take time, research, and a commitment to the truth. If Boom! Lawyered helps you understand what’s at stake in our courts, chip in to keep our fearless legal analysis alive. Become a member today.

Imani’s column, AngryBlackLady Chronicles is back in 2026! Sign up for her newsletter here to read it first.

Expert Repro Journalism That Inspires. 

Episodes like this take time, research, and a commitment to the truth. If Boom! Lawyered helps you understand what’s at stake in our courts, chip in to keep our fearless legal analysis alive. Become a member today.

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