Best Buy found itself in hot water Thursday after posting an ill-conceived tweet relating to the popular true crime podcast “Serial,” which investigates the real-life murder of a Baltimore teenager in 1999.
“We have everything you need. Unless you need a payphone. #Serial,” the tweet read, a reference to the murder investigation featured in the show, in which prosecutors alleged that the crime took place at a Best Buy parking lot, and that a call was placed from a pay phone near the store afterward.
The podcast devotes some time to investigating whether or not a pay phone existed at the Best Buy in question in 1999. To some “Serial” listeners, the tweet felt like an inside joke that only other listeners would understand. To many others, however, it felt insensitive in light of the fact that the story isn’t fictional — it discusses a real crime that affected real people’s lives.
After receiving a swift outpouring of criticism from Twitter users, Best Buy deleted the tweet and posted an apology. “We deeply apologize for our earlier tweet about Serial. It lacked good judgment and doesn’t reflect the values of our company. We are sorry,” the company’s account said.
“Serial,” which is hosted by Sarah Koenig, a producer on the popular radio show “This American Life,” is a podcast that follows a single story over multiple episodes. The podcast has become a cultural phenomenon, quickly surpassing more than 5 million iTunes downloads to become the most popular podcast in the history of the medium.
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The podcast follows the story of the 1999 murder of Baltimore teenager Hae Min Lee, a high school senior. Her ex-boyfriend, Adnan Syed, of her murder, was convicted of the crime, and he has been in prison ever since. Syed has maintained his innocence throughout, and family friends reached out to Koenig to ask her to investigate the case, leading to the creation of the podcast.









