My Favorite Murder (January 2016) is a true crime comedy podcast hosted by Karen Kilgariff and Georgia Hardstark that became a cultural phenomenon, creating a devoted fanbase called “Murderinos” and pioneering the conversational true crime format that dominated podcasting from 2016-2020.
Format Innovation
The show broke from traditional true crime’s serious tone by mixing humor, personal stories, mental health discussions, and feminist perspectives with murder cases. The hosts’ chemistry, vulnerability about anxiety and addiction, and catchphrases (“Stay sexy and don’t get murdered,” “Fuck politeness”) resonated with millennial women. Each episode featured two cases researched by the hosts rather than professional journalists.
Murderino Community
Fans formed Facebook groups in every city (over 1,000 groups by 2018), organized charity drives, and attended live shows that sold out venues like Radio City Music Hall. The #Murderino community became a safe space for discussing trauma, mental health, and survival stories. Critics noted the community’s overwhelming whiteness and occasional insensitivity to victims’ families.
Business Success
The podcast spawned a book (Stay Sexy & Don’t Get Murdered, 2019 bestseller), merchandise empire, live tours, and Exactly Right Media podcast network (2018). Karen and Georgia maintained creative control and ownership, contrasting with peers who sold to corporations. By 2019, the show generated millions annually through ads, tours, and merchandise.
Cultural Impact
MFM normalized women’s fascination with true crime (previously stigmatized), created a blueprint for conversational podcasts, and demonstrated female-led content’s commercial viability. The show influenced hundreds of imitators (Wine & Crime, Morbid, And That’s Why We Drink) and brought podcast advertising rates to new highs as brands sought the Murderino demographic.
Sources: The Atlantic, Vulture, Forbes, Exactly Right Media data, iTunes podcast charts 2016-2020