About This Episode
Svenska Mordhistorier, Sweden's most-listened true crime podcast, faced a severe credibility crisis in 2023 when Swedish state television discovered extensive plagiarism across its episodes and adapted book series.
Launched in 2016, the podcast became a phenomenon in Scandinavia, accumulating over 200 million listens and establishing itself as the region's dominant true crime audio series. Produced by Creedcast for the Podme platform, the show was originally hosted by Sebastian Krantz, who later stepped back from the role. Christopher Holmberg now hosts recent episodes.
The scandal erupted when SVT's investigation documented widespread plagiarism from Swedish news outlets, articles, and blogs. The copied material appeared in both the podcast's episodes and a book adaptation created by Cyril Hellman. Rather than conducting original journalism or clearly crediting sources, the podcast had systematically lifted content without proper attribution.
Following the investigation's publication, Krantz issued an apology, acknowledging the plagiarism accusations. However, the damage to the podcast's reputation—built on trust with millions of listeners—proved significant. The incident raised questions about editorial standards in the rapidly expanding true crime podcast industry, where creators face pressure to produce frequent episodes with limited resources.