One of the most groundbreaking podcast series in history, Serial is about to go through a bit of a shift that will leave its addicted fans hurting for more.
Rather than continuing down its incredibly successful weekly path, the creators have said that additional time is needed to research some additional content, resulting in a longer run for Serial, both in terms of time and number of episodes.
The second season of Serial follows US Sgt Bowe Bergdahl, who was held prisoner by the Taliban in Afghanistan for a number of years.
Already four episodes in, the fifth was to be released tomorrow (14 January) but new developments mean that’s being pushed back a week – with the show set to air on a biweekly basis from here on out.
That’s because, given the show’s success, additional people have come forward to speak with the makers, resulting in more content, more time needed to conduct research and, ultimately, more episodes.
Speaking in The New York Times this week, Julie Snyder, executive producer of Serial, said that there are “more paths” to be gone down in the show.
“There are more paths we need to go down,” Ms Snyder said. “Since we started broadcasting the show, we have gotten more people willing to talk and, because of that, it has opened up more avenues of reporting.
“We have narrative developments. I hesitate on calling them news developments.”
In a blog post, producer and host Sarah Koenig said: “I know! I know… it’s maybe not what you wanted to hear. But, there’s a good and exciting reason, which is that we’re adding more material.”
The realisation that there are yet more strands of narrative to go down means Koenig and her team are really pressed for time. She admits “at least one extra episode” is being added but to do it right will take time.
“So to be clear: The next episode of Serial will come out on Thursday, 21 January During in-between weeks, we’ll have new posts and graphics on our website.
“We’ll keep you updated on all of that via our social media accounts. And thank you, everyone, for listening to the show. Your response has been terrifically encouraging.”
Serial image via Casey Fiesler on Flickr
