NBC’s Dateline series, America’s top-rated true crime TV series and podcast, has named Blayne Alexander as its new correspondent.

The announcement was made on NBC’s Today program on Tuesday, with fellow Dateline correspondents Keith Morrison, Andrea Canning and Josh Mankiewicz at Alexander’s side.

Alexander, who joined NBC in 2019, will continue to contribute across the Dateline NBC brand, which is anchored by Lester Holt and includes series episodes and podcasts. “Well, this is quite the way to come back from maternity leave. First day back after four-and-a-half months,” she told the NBC morning program about her new full-time job at the U.S. network.

Alexander joins Dateline as the long-running series gets deeper into the true-crime genre and looks to build its presence across streaming and podcasts. True-crime programming has exploded in popularity, with gripping stories and enthralling mysteries looking to keep viewers and listeners hooked.

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