• Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
TVNewsCheck, The Business of BroadcastingTVNewsCheck, The Business of Broadcasting
  • 
  • 
  • 
  • 
  • 
  • Advertise
  • Contact
  • Jobs
  • Help
  • Programming
  • Technology
  • Business/Revenue
  • Journalism
  • Digital
  • Regulation
  • Market Share
Back to Market Share HomeBack to TVNewsCheck Home

PAUL GREELEY 817-578-6324 | PAUL@NEWSCHECKMEDIA.COM | @TVMarketShare

WRAL’s Podcast Re-Examines Murder Of Michael Jordan’s Father

WRAL Raleigh, N.C., has released a new podcast that re-examines the murder of James Jordan, father of basketball star Michael Jordan. “The intimacy of audio allows us to take listeners deeply into the lives of all the central characters in this real life tragedy,” says Shelly Leslie, head of streaming and podcasting for the station’s owner Capitol Broadcasting.

by Paul Greeley August 16, 2021 6:40 EDT

WRAL, Capitol Broadcasting’s NBC affiliate in Raleigh, N.C., has released a new podcast that re-examines the murder of James Jordan, father of legendary basketball star Michael Jordan, who played at the University of North Carolina.

Michael Jordan and James Jordan

Follow the Truth is a 10-part podcast series that looks into the case against of Daniel Green, the man who was convicted of the killing.

The podcast is a follow-up to Moment of Truth, a five-part docuseries streaming on IMDB TV and Amazon Prime.

Shelly Leslie

“The podcast is the rest of the story,” says Shelly Leslie, head of streaming and podcasting for Capitol Broadcasting, who serves as executive producer on both projects.

“The intimacy of audio allows us to take listeners deeply into the lives of all the central characters in this real-life tragedy,” she says.

On July 23, 1993, the elder Jordan was murdered in Lumberton, N.C.

 

Larry Demery and Daniel Green

Daniel Green was convicted of felony murder based almost exclusively on the testimony of co-defendant Larry Demery, who took a plea deal in exchange for identifying Green as the triggerman. Both men are currently serving life sentences. Green has maintained his innocence in the killing.

 

 

Leslie says the docuseries — and now the podcast — is an exploration by Capitol Broadcasting to see if the two media can lead the company to new audiences and revenue.

She says the question underwriting these series is “can we produce quality docuseries and podcasts of interests on a national level and get them distributed outside of our market.”

But getting a docuseries like Moment of Truth licensed via a free streaming service like IMDB TV and Amazon Prime takes connections and partnerships.

“You can’t just call up Amazon and say we produced this docuseries we think is great,” Leslie says. “The streaming business is a very preferred vendor situation.”

That said, once you’re a known entity who has delivered the finished product on schedule, you’re in a great “position to do it again,” Leslie says.

The key for WRAL to producing the docuseries, Moment of Truth and the podcast, Follow the Truth, was its library of archived footage, dating back to the early 1970s and beyond, Leslie says. “We could tell that story in a way that nobody had ever attempted to tell it.”

Monetizing this archived footage was one of the goals of both the docuseries and podcast, she says. “Lots of TV stations are sitting on these huge archives.”

But being able to develop large-scale projects using it depends on being able to retrieve that archival content, she says.

Leslie is quick to point out vast differences between the video documentary and podcast. “What ends up being a two-minute or a four-minute segment in a docuseries can be 30 minutes in a podcast.”

Amanda Lamb

The podcast also has a different host, Amanda Lamb, “who has a long correspondence with Daniel Green from prison over a 10-, 12-year period,” Leslie says.

Also, there are sources in the podcast who have never spoken publicly about the murder case before.

The beauty of producing the podcasts is not being bound by the constraints of time, Leslie says. Some episodes are 22 minutes, others 45 minutes.

“You can let the story decide how long it needs to be,” she says.

But one of the best advantages of doing podcasts versus a docuseries is that you can self-publish, Leslie says. “In the docuseries world, we need a partner to get it beyond our state.”

“In podcasting, we have self-published on all platforms, using all of our company assets to promote the show,” she says.

Leslie notes the company already has plans for its next podcast, What Remains, about forensic scientists and true crime. 

“It’s all a big, grand experiment, which is fun,” she says.

NOTE:  Follow the Truth debuted at #2 on Chartable’s Global & US True Crime Trending charts and at #5 on All Podcasts.

“To have this show reaching audiences all over the world after just a few weeks proves the power of the medium, but it also demonstrates a desire for exceptional journalism with a purpose,” Leslie says.

“That’s what we’re doing with the WRAL brand.”


If you’d like us to deliver the best of Market Share to your in-box, sign up for Marketing Monday, a free new weekly newsletter from TVNewsCheck.

To suggest a story, please reach out to me at paul@newscheckmedia.com or ring me at 817-578-6324. Sign up now for Marketing Monday by creating a free membership at TVNewsCheck.com.


Marketing Architects is looking for a Director of Streaming TV. Marketing Architects is an All-Inclusive TV agency that gives performance brands access to high-quality, effective TV campaigns without the traditional high entry cost and ongoing challenges of optimization, scale, and measurement. Founded in Minneapolis, Marketing Architects has been helping companies connect with their customers in new and surprising ways for more than 20 years. Marketing Architects is an All-Inclusive television advertising agency with our home base in Minneapolis. However, you can work from anywhere that works for you including cities like Chicago, Atlanta, New York, Austin, Phoenix, and more. Click here for more specifics and how to apply. 

Tags: Amanda Lamb, Capitol Broadcasting, Daniel Green, Follow the Truth, Larry Demery, Market Share, Market Share Monday, Moment of Truth, NBC, Paul Greeley, Shelly Leslie, TVNewsCheck, WRAL

Comments (0)

Reader Interactions

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

You must be logged in to post a comment.

Primary Sidebar

RSS Classifieds

  • General Sales Manager
  • Assignment Manager, Weekend Meteorologist and Multi-Media Journalist/News Reporter
  • Executive Producer, Weekend Anchor and Local Sales Manager
  • News Correspondent and Videographer/Editor
  • News Producer, Digital Content Manager and Multimedia Journalist
  • Local Sales Manager, Investigative Reporter and Weekend Anchor/Producer
  • Director of Engineering
  • Director of Content
  • General Manager
  • Digital Sales Manager, Local Sales Manager and Anchor/Reporter
Tweets by TVMarketShare
TIP PAUL
Send breaking news to
Paul@NewsCheckMedia.com
Or call him at 817-578-6324
  • TV News Check
  • Media Job Center
  • The Tech Zone
  • Market Share Marketing and Promotions Blog
  • TV Station Directory
  • Advertise
  • Jobs
  • Become a Member
  • Join TVN Plus
  • Free Email Newsletters & Alerts

TVN Events

  • Women in Technology
  • OTT News Summit
  • NewsTECHFutures Retreat
  • Cybersecurity for Broadcasters
  • NewsTECHForum
  • TV2020: Monetizing the Future
  • Disrupt the News Challenge

Reader Services

  • Log in/Subscribe
  • My Account
  • Update password
  • Update Email Address
  • Newsletters & Alerts
  • RSS
  • Join TVN Plus
  • Help

Connect

  • 
  • 
  • 
  • 
  • 
  • About
  • Contact
  • Member Help
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms and Conditions
© Copyright 2022 NewsCheckMedia LLC, 24 West Lancaster Ave., Suite 205 Ardmore, PA 19003 | 484-412-8287
TVNewsCheck, The Business of Broadcasting
  • Programming
  • Technology
  • Business/Revenue
  • Journalism
  • Digital
  • Regulation
  • Market Share