Disturbed: True Horror Stories

What Disturbed: True Horror Stories does

Disturbed: True Horror Stories is a privately held podcast media company that produces and distributes a true horror and true crime audio show founded in May 2020. The flagship podcast releases new episodes every Thursday and has produced 378+ episodes organized into categories such as Firsthand Experience, Unexplained, Unsolved, True Crime, Murdered, and Missing. Content is built on a community-driven flywheel: listeners submit first-person terrifying experiences via a voicemail hotline (hotline.disturbedpodcast.com), email ([email protected]), Google form, and Reddit communities (r/LetsNotMeet, r/nosleep, r/Glitch_in_the_Matrix), which are then professionally narrated by a rotating cast of voice actors with original sound design and custom music.

The underlying technology is professional podcast audio production hosted on Megaphone (megaphone.fm), with dynamic ad insertion, RSS distribution, and analytics. The company also publishes video episodes on YouTube (UC4qsEQmRs5egiS4DvjEI1gg) with Thursday evening watch parties, and operates two Patreon-exclusive sub-brands: Disturbing Calls (real 911 call recordings) and A Night By The Campfire (premium storytelling). Distribution spans Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Castbox, iHeartRadio, and RSS, with audience reach documented across USA, Canada, Sweden, and Hong Kong.

The business model combines three revenue streams: (1) host-read advertising through Megaphone with 18 active sponsors across categories (food delivery, fintech, cybersecurity, streaming, wellness) including Factor, Rocket Money, Avast, Coinbase, BetterHelp, and Shudder; (2) Patreon subscriptions at $3/month (Pro Listener: ad-free, early access, shoutouts) and $5/month (Fan Club: adds Disturbing Calls bonus episodes, 15% merch discount, and A Night By The Campfire content); and (3) merchandise sales via TeePublic (t-shirts, hoodies, crewnecks, hats). The company is operated by current host Doug with original host Chad Himmelspach credited on the 200th-episode commem

Name

Disturbed: True Horror Stories

Legal name

Disturbed: True Horror Stories

Website

https://disturbedpodcast.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2020

Operating status

Operating

Short description

Disturbed: True Horror Stories is a privately held true horror and true crime podcast founded in 2020 that produces 378+ weekly episodes narrated by professional voice actors using listener-submitted stories, monetized through advertising, Patreon subscriptions, and merchandise.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Horror Podcast

NAICS

Sound Recording Studios (51224)

akta.pro primary industry

True Crime Documentaries (MPADADAN)

akta.pro secondary industry

Reality & Factual Entertainment (Unscripted) (MPADADAO)

Keywords

• True horror podcast
• True crime storytelling
• Audio entertainment series
• Paranormal podcast
• Narrated horror content

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Digital Commerce or Content

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Supply Chain, Others

Revenue model

1. Podcast Advertising/Sponsorships: The podcast runs dynamic ads read by the host during episodes, with sponsors including Factor, Rocket Money, Avast, Daily Harvest, Coinbase, Magic Mind, Thrive Market, Native, StoryWorth, Territory Foods, Manly Bands, Canva Pro, Best Fiends, Hello Fresh, Care Of, Acorn TV, Better Help, and Shudder. These are mid-roll ads monetized through the Megaphone podcast ad network.
2. Patreon Membership (Fan Club): Two-tier Patreon at $3/month (Pro Listener: ad-free episodes, early access, shoutouts) and $5/month (additional bonus episodes including Disturbing Calls series with real 911 calls, ad-free listening, 15% off merch). Premium content show 'A Night By The Campfire' also available to Patreon supporters.
3. Merchandise Sales: Official Disturbed merchandise including t-shirts, hoodies, crewnecks, and hats sold through an online store (TeePublic/store). Includes limited-edition 200th-episode design honoring both hosts Chad and Doug. Patreon members receive 15% discount.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels6 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Disturbed: True Horror Stories is a weekly true horror and true crime podcast that publishes professionally narrated episodes featuring real listener-submitted stories about kidnappings, serial killers, paranormal experiences, and unsolved cases. The show supports its audio podcast with Patreon-exclusive premium content (ad-free episodes, bonus series including Disturbing Calls with real 911 calls and A Night By The Campfire), a YouTube video channel with watch parties, and an official merchandise store selling apparel.

Product overview

Disturbed: True Horror Stories is a podcast media company offering a core true horror/true crime podcast as its main product. The portfolio includes the flagship Disturbed podcast (with 378+ episodes across categories like Unsolved, Unexplained, Unsettling, True Crime, Firsthand Experience, Murdered, and Missing), premium Patreon-exclusive content including 'A Night By The Campfire' and 'Disturbing Calls' bonus episodes, a YouTube video channel with animated and live story adaptations, an official merchandise store, and audience submission services via the Horror Hotline voicemail system and email.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Disturbing Calls: Monthly bonus episodes available exclusively to Patreon fan club members featuring real 911 calls
• A Night By The Campfire

Quantifiable outcome

• 378+ episodes produced and published
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers1 record

Segments1 record

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• Alexandria TuckerminorOthersGuest narrator and YouTube collaborator who has contributed crossover episodes featuring content from her YouTube channel. Episodes 12 and 21 featured her YouTube content on the Disturbed platform.
• Mercury (Merc YouTube)minorOthersYouTube creator collaboration for crossover episode featuring cases solved in 2020 from the Merc YouTube channel.
• Megaphone Podcast NetworkcoreTechnology or IntegrationPodcast hosting and advertising platform (megaphone.fm) used for RSS distribution, ad insertion, and analytics. The show's RSS feed points to feeds.megaphone.fm/DISP5217287381.
• 18 Sponsors (Factor, Rocket Money, Avast, Daily Harvest, Coinbase, Magic Mind, Thrive Market, Native, StoryWorth, Territory Foods, Manly Bands, Canva Pro, Best Fiends, Hello Fresh, Care Of, Acorn TV, Better Help, Shudder)coreOthersAdvertising sponsors integrated into episodes through host-read ads. Each sponsor is promoted with unique discount codes (e.g., horrorstory50 for Factor, DISTURBED for Shudder). Sponsors span food delivery, fintech, cybersecurity, streaming, and wellness categories.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• Wondery: Wondery is a major podcast network that owns and operates multiple true crime and horror shows. It represents both a competitive incumbent and a potential acquirer/distribution partner for independent shows like Disturbed.
• Crime Junkie: Crime Junkie is one of the largest true crime podcasts in the US, hosted by Audiochuck. It competes directly with Disturbed's True Crime category but operates at significantly larger scale with established brand recognition and a dedicated network (Audiochuck).
• Last Podcast on the Left: Last Podcast on the Left covers true crime, horror, and the paranormal with a comedic edge. It overlaps with Disturbed's broad horror/true crime offering and competes for the same enthusiast listener base across multiple subcategories.
• Casefile True Crime: Casefile True Crime is a globally popular narrative true crime podcast. It competes with Disturbed on the True Crime/Murdered categories and represents a more polished, host-driven alternative within the same genre.
• My Favorite Murder: My Favorite Murder is a leading true crime/comedy podcast with a massive fanbase and live touring business. It targets the same true crime enthusiast demographic and competes for both listener attention and sponsor budgets within the genre.
• Audiochuck: Audiochuck is the production company behind Crime Junkie and other true crime podcasts. It is a relevant competitor in the true crime podcast space and a potential strategic acquirer for niche horror/true crime content properties.

Direct peers

• Let's Not Meet: Let's Not Meet is a true horror podcast and online community based on the Reddit subreddit of the same name, directly overlapping with Disturbed's content sourcing and audience. Both leverage community-submitted true encounters and target the same horror enthusiast persona.
• And That's Why We Drink: And That's Why We Drink is a true crime and paranormal podcast combining both genres in a single show, paralleling Disturbed's blended true crime/unsolved content approach. Both target the same crossover true crime/paranormal fandom.
• Lore (Aaron Mahnke): Lore is a top-ranked horror/folklore podcast covering dark historical stories, paralleling Disturbed's Unexplained and Historical categories. Both compete in the 'true horror storytelling' niche with similar production quality and audience demographics.
• No Sleep Podcast: No Sleep Podcast is a direct competitor featuring community-submitted horror stories narrated by voice actors and released weekly. It shares the same community-driven true horror format, target audience, and Patreon monetization model as Disturbed.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/disturbed_pod
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UC4qsEQmRs5egiS4DvjEI1gg
• Facebookfacebook.com/disturbedpodcast
• Instagraminstagram.com/disturbedpodcast

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Disturbed: True Horror Stories