Podcast #1 : Scamanda

 This is my first podcast post as I am not a frequent podcast listener but this was recommended to me by a friend. I finished it up today on my walk and the whole thing made me mad. If I ever meet this Amanda girl, I swear. The podcast was produced in May 2023 by Charlie Webster. She talks us through the whole situation. Do not get thrown off by the fact that she is British, this incident occurs in the US. It is a true crime case that has you asking so many questions.

The case starts with an email sent to Nancy, an investigative journalist who states that a woman by the name of Amanda C. Reilly does not have cancer. Nancy begins her deep dive into Amanda's blog which posts daily updates of her treatments. Amanda is constantly asking for donations as well for either chemo or new drug trials or to pay for her house. Amanda has 2 boys with her husband Corey and a "bonus daughter" named Jessa, who is Corey's daughter with his ex-wife Alitta. Alitta also has another daughter named Jamie who struggled with childhood cancer. Nancy continues to deep dive with the support of Alitta and uncovers lies spanning 7 years. 

I don't want to give too much away because the podcast has many twists and turns and even a slight cliffhanger ending. Charlie interviews also every single person who has come into contact with Amanda to ask about their relationship with Amanda. Each person shared how she was super kind and they wanted to help her as much as possible. People watched her kids, paid for her meals, and more. 

One aspect that I thought was interesting was the religious aspect. Amanda was a frequent churchgoer and became very popular with other members. She even led youth groups and spoke in front of the entire church. She essentially used people's faith and goodwill to gain money which is just horrible. She manipulated everyone there.

In the final episode, I almost cried. It was just heartbreaking to hear everyone's story about how their lives had been touched by cancer and how this situation with Amanda gave them immense trust issues. It made me think about how my own life had been touched by cancer. I was furious with Amanda and I felt like people were being to nice to her in the end. Would not have been me.

I highly recommend this podcast. It is an easy listen with only 8 episodes in English available on Spotify. The episodes are about 40 minutes expect the last one which is 90 minutes. Happy listening!