| Billy Jensen | |
| Nationality: | American |
| Citizenship: | United States |
| Alma Mater: | University of Kansas |
| Occupation: | Journalist author producer podcaster |
| Years Active: | 1997–present |
Billy Jensen is an American investigative journalist, author, producer, and podcaster. He is known for his work creating content in the true crime genre, including co-hosting the Discovery+ podcast and associated television special Unraveled: The Real Story of the Long Island Serial Killer,[1] [2] [3] and the podcasts The First Degree,[4] and Jensen & Holes: The Murder Squad.[5] [6] [7] He is also the author of the books Chase Darkness with Me: How One True Crime Writer Started Solving Murders,[8] and Killer Amidst Killers: Hunting Serial Killers Operating Under the Cloak of America's Opioid Epidemic.[9]
Jensen grew up in Westbury, Long Island, New York City. He received a master's degree in religious studies from the University of Kansas.[10] While at the university, he helped found the university's hockey team. He briefly played for the New York Riot in the professional roller hockey league Major League Roller Hockey.
After graduating, Jensen self-published the magazine The Fight Card, which chronicled every fight that happened during the 1996–1997 New York Islanders season. The magazine led to an offer to write a story for the Long Island Voice, which was his first paid job in journalism. He worked as a writer and editor at the Long Island Voice. He began working as a crime reporter in 1999. After serving as an editor for two pop culture magazines, Jensen helped start and served as managing editor of the alternative newspaper The Long Island Press.[11] [12] From 2005 to 2006, he was editor-in-chief of the The Boston Phoenix. He also worked in a management role for Village Voice Media.
In 2016, Jensen began working with law enforcement to investigate crimes as a consultant. He was the head of digital operations and an on-air reporter for the television series Crime Watch Daily. He also filmed a pilot for a cable true crime documentary series titled Crowdsolve. The network passed on the series. After the passing of true crime author Michelle McNamara in 2016, Jensen collaborated with Paul Haynes and Patton Oswalt to finish her book I’ll Be Gone in the Dark, which was published in 2018.[13] [14] During the press tour for I'll Be Gone in the Dark, Jensen met Karen Kilgariff and Georgia Hardstark, who offered Jensen a spot on their podcast network, leading to the creation of the podcast Jensen and Holes: The Murder Squad, which Jensen co-hosted with former police officer Paul Holes.[13] The show ran for three seasons and ended after Jensen was inebriated and acted inappropriately at a party. He entered rehab for alcohol in the summer of 2022.
Alongside fellow investigative journalist Alexis Linkletter, Jensen co-hosted the Discovery+ podcast and television special Unraveled: The Real Story of the Long Island Serial Killer, which was released in 2021.
Jensen has used crowdsourced tips to investigate crimes.[15] He has written for publications such as Rolling Stone, Los Angeles Magazine, and the New York Times.
In 2019, Jensen published the audiobook Chase Darkness with Me.[16] [17] In the book, Jensen wrote about his experience investigating crimes, including his use of electronic tools such as social media and geotagging to identify murder suspects. It was released as an Audible Original.[18] The book became a New York Times bestseller.[19]
The next book Jensen published was Killer Amidst Killers.[20] [21] In the book, Jensen explored the homicides of several women in Columbus, Ohio amid the opioid epidemic.