Serial, a podcast by Sarah Koenig, supported by WBEZ Chicago and This American Life, is a crime podcast that takes the time to explain a new crime story, week by week. For the sake of ENG4UV Unit 2, Activity 1, the story of Hae Min Lee’s death would be the focus.
When I initially read that we were going to be listening to a podcast, I wasn’t exactly intrigued because I had attempted to listen to an audiobook in the past and I just couldn’t focus on the story. I would constantly zone out and find myself rewinding it because I would miss sections of the story as I couldn’t focus. Considering that I would be listening to this podcast for school, I would have to try my best at attentively listening to the story to be able to fully understand it and I was afraid that I would have difficulty with this activity. However, after listening to the first episode, I was very intrigued by the murder of Hae Min Lee and the possibility that Adnan Syed could have been wrongfully convicted of the crime. I actually thought that explaining such a story through the medium of a podcast provides variety. There are plenty of crime shows on television such as The First 48 where the crime reporter just sits across from the interviewee talking about what they recall about the incident. Not very exciting to watch. The idea of a podcast provides you with the information the reporter is trying to deliver while allowing the listener to visualize their own images of the information given. For example, Koenig says, “He talks to me from a bank of eight pay phones in the rec hall, a pretty large room where other guys are sitting at tables with metal seats attached to them playing chess or cards or using the microwave or watching TV. It can get a little loud sometimes.” (19:34-19:45). The listener can visualize the Syed’s fellow inmates in the rec hall, chairs scraping against the floor, the show they’re watching on TV, maybe the inmates are talking loud, having an argument. It’s all up for interpretation.
Koenig begins Episode 1 by demonstrating how unreliable our memories can be with the help of her nephew, Sam, and his friends, especially if nothing significant happened that day. In my perspective, I often have trouble remembering what the date is after waking up from a nap. I only tend to remember the events that occurred if the date is important to me in some way. (i.e. Feb 21, 2020 is the day I got my braces taken off. My appointment was at 11am and I went back to my orthodontist at 4pm that same day to pick up my retainers).
I am reminded of the idea of rationalism in which I have been discussing in my 4U Philosophy class this semester. Rationalism is the theory that reason rather than experience is what certifies knowledge. Adnan takes a rational perspective on the events that supposedly took place on the day of Hae’s death, “Whatever the motivation is to kill someone, I had absolutely– it didn’t exist in me, you know what I mean?” (21:05-21:11). He basically states that he had no reason or need to kill her so how could he have killed Hae. In relation to Koenig’s point about memory, rationalism also describes that you must have reason to do something, you cannot rely on things such as memory to verify whether something is true.
While going over the evidence and interviewing all suspects and witnesses might help the case, having it be a popular public story might cause trauma for the victim’s family. Lee was murdered in 1999, that was twenty-one years ago, shouldn’t this story go to rest rather than be used as a form of entertainment in the eyes of the listeners? From an article found on Bustle, it was said that the Lee family would like the public to remember Hae and not the person who took her life. They are satisfied by Syed’s conviction and wish that this chapter of their lives would come to an end. (Maple, 2019).
As I continue listening to this podcast, I hope that Koenig will present more possible incriminating evidence against Syed. Like the Lee family, I do believe that Syed was rightfully convicted as his character seems very suspicious when Koenig interviews him considering that Jay remembered the events of that day well while Syed was very vague and chose to focus more on trying to clear his name than recounting the events that occurred that day. However, I’m sure that as the story continues, more theories will arise and I am curious to hear what else Koenig has to say.
To listen to Serial, click here.
Works Cited
“Adnan Syed from Serial granted appeal” BBC, 2015. http://www.bbc.co.uk/newsbeat/article/31204503/adnan-syed-from-serial-granted-appeal
Maple, Taylor. “What Does Hae Min Lee’s Family Think Of ‘The Case Against Adnan Syed’? They’ve Spoken Out About ‘Serial’ & Syed’s New Trial” Bustle, 2019. https://www.bustle.com/p/what-does-hae-min-lees-family-think-of-the-case-against-adnan-syed-theyve-spoken-out-about-serial-syeds-new-trial-16815689
Robinson, Willis. “Family of ‘Serial’ victim Hae Min Lee say her convicted killer Adnan Syed ‘destroyed our family’ in emotional letter that slams the podcast’s fans for running to defend him” Daily Mail, 2016. https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3437662/Family-Serial-victim-Hae-Min-Lee-says-convicted-killer-Adnan-Syed-destroyed-family-slams-podcast-s-fans-running-defend-him.html
ENG4U 