Spotlight
5.0/5
Critic Rating
Spotlight: Snitch City brings listeners inside the clandestine world of police informants through the story of one police department. Investigative reporter Dugan Arnett uncovers rampant misconduct and explores how, in a nation addicted to drugs, police have become addicted to informants.
Critic Reviews
Score: 5
Rebecca Lavoie, Kevin Flynn, Lara Bricker & Toby Ball • Crime Writers On • Apr 17, 2025
"(Season: Snitch City) Lara said she listened twice to "Spotlight: Snitch City," a superior investigation...Kevin said it's easier to have elite journalists make true crime podcasts than have true crime fans dabble in journalism. Toby said it avoids the mistakes of many newspaper-produced series which fail to lean into the strengths of audio."
Score: 5
Fiona Sturges • Financial Times • Mar 23, 2025
"Despite these obstacles, Snitch City — now on its third episode — is a remarkable piece of reporting, and not just because of Arnett’s ability to get people, including informants and ex-officers, to talk. It tells of police drunk on power, informants hung out to dry and officials closing ranks to protect their own. Arnett also takes his microphone outside to talk to locals and get their perspective on the city’s drug and policing problems. The tension of this multi-layered, expertly crafted series lies not in exposing the bad guys but in seeing what the so-called good guys do to get results — and the extraordinary damage left in their wake. …"
Score: 5
Alice Florence Orr • PodcastReview.org • Mar 10, 2025
"Snitch City is stylish, compelling, and the product of top rate journalism."
