Dateline NBC

Dateline NBC climbed to #4 on March 15, 2026, as its latest cold case reinvestigation drew 2.9 million unique listeners, capitalizing on the show's dual TV-to-podcast pipeline. NBC News leverages its archival footage and exclusive interviews to produce weekly episodes that average 48 minutes, outperforming the typical true-crime podcast runtime of 35 minutes by 37%. While it trails #3 Crime Junkie in raw downloads by 15%, Dateline benefits from a broader demographic reach—its audience skews 10% older and includes 40% more listeners over 55—thanks to its trusted broadcast legacy. This cross-platform advantage drives a 90% repeat listenership rate, the highest among the top 5.