‘Pod Save America’ Producer Crooked Media Prepares Native American Documentary Podcast ‘This Land’
Pod Save America producer Crooked Media is doubling down on documentary-style podcasts with the launch of This Land, a true-crime series exploring two seemingly unrelated Oklahoma murders that occurred over 150 years apart.
The company, which is run by ex-President Obama staffs Jon Favreau, Tommy Vietor and Jon Lovett, the latter who also wrote on The Newsroom, is launching the seven-episode podcast, hosted by journalist and Cherokee Nation citizen Rebecca Nagle on June 3.
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It is the company’s second doc-style podcast following the launch of The Wilderness, which explored the history and future of the Democratic Party.
This Land will look at a murder case that prompted a high-stakes investigation into who legally owns half the land in Oklahoma. It explores Native American rights and tribal sovereignty through Nagle’s lens as a Native woman with a personal connection to the story’s characters. In addition to examining the history of land rights, This Land will look at the potential impact of the Carpenter v. Murphy case that is currently before the Supreme Court with a final decision expected to be handed down in June.
The podcast is produced with a Native crew including Chickasaw Classical Composer, Jerod Tate, engineers and filmmakers from FireThief Productions and visuals by Cherokee artist Keli Gonzales. New episodes will drop each week.
“This Land is an incredible story that spans generations of my family and will delve deep into how one unique murder case could have a profound impact on the rights of five tribes in Oklahoma, including mine,” said Nagle. “With this ground-breaking podcast, Crooked is one of the only mainstream media outlets producing Native stories right now. I’m thrilled to collaborate with Crooked Media to share it with audiences.”
Crooked Media’s Chief Content Officer Tanya Somanader added, “This is not a story you’re likely to hear because there are too few people who can tell it. Rebecca has spent her life trying to share the history of her tribe and others, and what happened to the land that belongs to them. But such truths are so often marginalized or ignored by the very people who need to hear them most. That’s why we at Crooked are so proud to have collaborated with Rebecca to share her perspective, and her connection to this story, in a meaningful way. As Americans, it’s our history too and as This Land will show, there will be larger political consequences if we fail to hear it now.”
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