TV Show review
Review basis: 3 seasons, 28 episodes · through March 23, 2023
December 6, 2019 · TV-MA · Canceled
Woke Score
Lower is better
Review
Truth Be Told is an Apple TV+ drama about Poppy Parnell, a podcaster who reopens old murder cases and investigates disappearances. Octavia Spencer stars as the lead across three seasons set in Oakland, with a focus on family, media, and justice. Season 3 centers on disappearances of young Black girls that receive little attention compared to a white girl's case used in politics, and the show features a prominent Black female lead plus a diverse supporting cast.
Breakdown
These are the editorial factors and ratings behind our score for Truth Be Told.
Woke representation / casting
Prominent Black female lead Poppy Parnell drives the investigation across all seasons. Diverse Black family and supporting cast are audience-visible. Season 3 plot centers missing Black girls with explicit contrast to a white victim's attention.
Woke political dialogue
Season 3 includes references to media and public attention bias toward cases involving Black girls versus white victims. Dialogue stays tied to the mystery rather than extended activist speeches.
Identity-driven story themes
Season 3 directly focuses on neglect of young Black girls' disappearances in Oakland and contrasts it with political use of a white girl's case. Earlier seasons include race and class dynamics around the Black lead's family.
Western institutional / cultural critique
Portrays media and authorities as failing to give proper attention to Black victims in Oakland. Centers on case-specific disparities rather than broad critiques of patriarchy, capitalism, or Western culture.
Production
Woke character or canon changes
TV adaptation cast Octavia Spencer as lead Poppy Parnell and emphasized her Black family background. Season 3 added original storylines about racial disparities in missing persons cases not present in the source novel.
Anti-woke backlash and complaints
Almost no notable public backlash treating the series as pushing woke, DEI, or identity politics. Reviews and limited commentary focused on story quality instead.
Creator track record context
Creator Nichelle Tramble Spellman won NAACP Image Award and co-produced HBO's Confederate while emphasizing Black perspectives on race and history. Season 3 showrunner Maisha Closson has higher activist-leaning credits.
