Legal analyst Kelly Hyman navigates the intersection of law and media, using her dual background to reframe true crime as a tool for justice and advocacy.
Ms. Kelly Hyman
In America’s long fascination with crime, the past decade has seen a shift. True crime is no longer confined to the courtroom or the evening news; it dominates podcasts, streaming platforms, and docuseries that turn cases into cultural events. But as the genre expands, so do the questions about its purpose: Is true crime entertainment, education, or exploitation?
Few figures illustrate the tensions better than Kelly Hyman, an Australian American attorney, legal analyst, and media host whose work sits at the intersection of law, storytelling, and advocacy. She appeared in the movie Doin' Time on Planet Earth with Adam West.
Hyman is not a newcomer to the spotlight. Before entering the legal profession, she was a working actor, appearing in television series and soap operas. That early experience in performance has, she says, shaped the way she approaches her later career: not as a contradiction between law and entertainment, but as a bridge. “Law is inherently about stories,” she noted in a recent interview. “Whether in court or on a podcast, you’re explaining human conflict, consequences, and choices.”
A growing audience for justice
That instinct has found a ready audience. According to Pew Research, true-crime podcasts are now among the most consumed audio genres in the United States, second only to comedy. Streaming platforms have multiplied their docuseries offerings, and courtroom trials once relegated to legal transcripts are dissected in real time across social media.
Hyman’s projects slot directly into this space. She hosts Once Upon a Crime in Hollywood, a show that blends legal expertise with narrative storytelling. She also recently launched Unresolved: The Diddy Cases, a podcast probing allegations and lawsuits surrounding music mogul Sean “Diddy” Combs. Both projects sit within a cultural moment where audiences want not just the sensational details, but also legal clarity.
“Some people might not be satisfied with just the headlines,” Hyman explained. “They want to understand the process: how a case moves, how evidence is considered, how victims are represented.”
Advocacy in the spotlight
What distinguishes Hyman from many crime commentators is her legal background. Trained as an actor, Hyman is a plaintiffs’ attorney, and has represented individuals in mass torts, class actions, and, more recently, cases involving survivors of sex trafficking. “When lawyers are part of the storytelling process, they can reframe the focus,” she said. “Instead of centering the alleged perpetrator alone, you can highlight possible systemic failures and survivor resilience.”
Her dual role as legal advocate in court and media commentator shows how the genre can evolve into something more accountable.
The cultural stakes
The popularity of true crime has coincided with a broader debate about justice reform. Across the country, high-profile cases have reignited public interest in issues such as sentencing, pretrial detention, and the cost of mass incarceration.
Hyman suggests that storytelling is part of that shift. By humanizing both victims and legal processes, true-crime media can expand awareness. “When you explain what’s happening in a courtroom to a wide audience, you demystify the system,” she said. “That transparency is valuable even if it comes through a podcast.”
From child actor to legal analyst
If Hyman’s crossover into the media feels unusual, her path makes it less so. As a child actor, she developed a comfort with public performance and storytelling. Later, law gave her a new stage, one where advocacy replaced scripts but narrative remained central.
That ability to navigate both arenas has made her a frequent guest on news outlets, where she provides analysis on ongoing cases. The throughline, Hyman argues, is communication, she said. “If you can explain it in a way that resonates whether to a jury, a judge, or a listener you’re serving the public.”
A genre at a crossroads
The Washington Post has reported extensively on the ethics of true crime, particularly as the genre has moved from print to audio and video. Survivors have pushed back against projects they feel sensationalize trauma, while others have welcomed the visibility. Platforms face increasing scrutiny for how they vet stories and balance entertainment with responsibility.
In that climate, voices like Hyman’s rooted in the law yet fluent in media offer a case study in what the future of the genre might look like. Less voyeuristic, more contextual. Less about villains, more about systems.
True crime, she insists, does not have to be exploitative. But it does have to be thoughtful. “At its best, it helps society ask: What kind of justice system do we want? Who is it serving? Who is left out?”
The evolving role of storytellers
As audiences grow more sophisticated, the demand for responsible narrators is likely to rise. Hyman, straddling the courtroom and the studio, embodies that shift. Her career reflects both the allure and the unease of true crime as a cultural product and the possibility that the genre, in the right hands, can do more than entertain.
“It’s not about glorifying crime,” she said. “It’s about understanding it. And through understanding, maybe moving closer to change.”
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