Apple Debuts True-Crime Podcast 'Hooked' as First Standalone Original

Apple today debuted "Hooked," a true-crime podcast, seemingly as the company's first wholly standalone original podcast series.

apple original podcast hooked
While Apple has already begun its venture into original podcasts with the likes of "Oprah's Book Club" and "For All Mankind: The Official Podcast," Hooked is the first Apple Original podcast that is seemingly not tied to an Apple TV+ series in any way.

"The Line" debuted earlier this year as an independent podcast, but it is set to be accompanied by an ‌Apple TV+‌ documentary series of the same name later in the fall. Hooked, on the other hand, has no apparent link to an ‌Apple TV+‌ series. Hooked is still published by ‌Apple TV+‌ in Apple Podcasts and it remains unclear if Apple will create a dedicated channel for Apple Original podcasts. Hooked is produced by Campside Media, and Apple describes the series as follows:

When Tony Hathaway was arrested outside a Seattle bank in February 2014, it brought an end to one of the most prolific bank robbery streaks in American history. Hathaway robbed 30 banks in a single year, all within a 30-mile radius of his suburban home. But that’s not the most surprising part of this story. Before Hathaway was a masterful bank robber—a shape-shifting professional who confounded multiple police departments and the FBI—he was a top design engineer at Boeing, one of America’s most important companies. Hathaway traveled the world in business class, working on the 747, while hiding a gigantic secret: an OxyContin addiction that ultimately unraveled his life. Based on three years of conversations between Hathaway and journalist Josh Dean, Hooked is a different kind of crime story that takes listeners on an exceptional and very personal tour of America’s opioid epidemic.

Apple has ramped up its podcast production output over the past year and is rumored to be working on a podcast streaming subscription service to better compete with Spotify. Hooked appears to be another step toward bolstering ‌Apple Podcasts‌' ability to rival Spotify.

The first three episodes of Hooked are available now in the Apple Podcasts app or via RSS in other podcast players, with new episodes becoming available on Wednesdays.

Yesterday, ‌Apple Podcasts‌ gained two new subscription-based channels: BBC Studios and Slate. BBC Studios gives subscribers in the U.S. and Canada access to shows that were previously only accessible in the UK.

Top Rated Comments

dannyyankou Avatar
18 months ago
I beg to differ, Steve Jobs had the first Apple original podcast-

Score: 12 Votes (Like | Disagree)
BlakeSchneider Avatar
18 months ago

Hooked
Wow that's certainly an original name:
All media named Hooked:
Titles named "Hooked" ('https://www.google.com/search?client=firefox-b-1-d&q=imdb+hooked')
The podcast is based on a book of the same title.
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
SFjohn Avatar
18 months ago

I prefer to read as well. It allows you to conjure up the image in your own head. However, I can never find the time to read so tend to when I’m in bed and because my eyes get so tired I have to listen to audio books otherwise I can only read about one page before my eyes start closing! Annoying!
I actually use this as a tool to let me know when to call it a night. I read on my iPad Air, late at night in bed, and when I’m really sleepy my iPad hits me in the forehead. I shut it down at that point and sleep is very nearly instantaneous. It’s my alarm clock for bedtime. ?
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)
CarlJ Avatar
18 months ago

Woo hoo! I’m so hooked! Can’t wait to watch this.
Watch? Do you stare at sound often?
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
TheYayAreaLiving ? Avatar
18 months ago
Woo hoo! I’m so hooked! Can’t wait to watch this.
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)
SFjohn Avatar
18 months ago
This podcast has no interest for me. I actually prefer reading.
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)

Popular Stories

iPhone 15 Pro Buttons CAD Leak

iPhone 15 Pro Leak Reveals Unified Volume Button and Mute Button

Monday March 20, 2023 8:33 am PDT by
As previously rumored, the next-generation iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max will feature a unified volume button and a mute button, according to leaked CAD images shared in a video on the Chinese version of TikTok and posted to Twitter by ShrimpApplePro. Instead of separate buttons for volume up and volume down, the iPhone 15 Pro models are expected to have a single elongated button for...
iOS 16

iOS 16.4 for iPhone Nearing Launch With These 5 New Features

Monday March 20, 2023 11:50 am PDT by
Apple says iOS 16.4 is coming in the spring, which began this week. In his Sunday newsletter, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman said the update should be released "in the next three weeks or so," meaning a public release is likely in late March or early April. iOS 16.4 remains in beta testing and introduces a handful of new features and changes for the iPhone. Below, we have recapped five new features ...
original iphone auction

Factory-Sealed Original iPhone Sells for $55,000 at Auction

Friday March 17, 2023 1:08 pm PDT by
A first-generation iPhone still sealed inside its box sold for $54,904 at auction, which is more than $54,000 over the original $599 price tag of the device when it was released in 2007. The original iPhone was put up for sale by RR Auction on behalf of a former Apple employee who purchased it back when it first came out. Back in February, an original, sealed iPhone sold for over $63,000,...
voice isolation

iOS 16.4 Adds Voice Isolation for Cellular Phone Calls

Tuesday March 21, 2023 11:01 am PDT by
The iOS 16.4 update that is set to be released to the public in the near future includes voice isolation for cellular calls, according to notes that Apple shared today. Apple says that Voice Isolation will prioritize your voice and block out the ambient noise around you, making for clearer phone calls where you can better hear the person you're chatting with and vice versa. Voice...
iPhone 12 Pro vs iPhone 15 Pro Feature

iPhone 12 Pro vs. 15 Pro: New Features to Expect if You've Waited to Upgrade

Friday March 17, 2023 10:29 am PDT by
While year-over-year iPhone upgrades are not always groundbreaking, new features can begin to stack up over multiple generations. For example, the iPhone 15 Pro will be a notable upgrade for those who still have a three-year-old iPhone 12 Pro. If you are still using an iPhone 12 Pro and are considering upgrading to the iPhone 15 Pro when it launches later this year, we have put together a...
top stories 18mar2023

Top Stories: iPhone 15 Pro Pricing, New iOS 16.4 Beta, Siri vs. ChatGPT, and More

Saturday March 18, 2023 6:00 am PDT by
Apple's high-end iPhone models have started at $999 in the U.S. since they first launched back in 2017 with the iPhone X, but could this finally be the year that starting price sees an increase? This week also saw some more rumors about Apple's upcoming headset and the company's explorations in the booming AI industry as well as the release of a new round of beta updates, so read on for all...
smart monitor m8 samsung

Deals: Samsung's iMac-Like Smart Monitor M8 Drops to Lowest Price of Year So Far With $250 Discount

Monday March 20, 2023 8:27 am PDT by
Samsung today kicked off a special "Discover Samsung" event, which will be a week-long savings event focusing on Samsung monitors, smartphones, TVs, appliances, and more. While some deals will stick around the entire week (through March 26), others will refresh every day. Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with Samsung. When you click a link and make a purchase, we may receive a small...