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The Worst Episodes of Dateline

Every episode of Dateline ranked from worst to best. Explore the Worst Episodes of Dateline!

Worst episode
S30E31 What Happened to Anton Black?
2.555 votes
Best episode
S15E23 Body of Evidence (a.k.a. Bigamy Murder)
8.6162 votes
Top season
Season 28
7.6avg
Binge time
43d 12h
1225 episodes
BestEpisodes
WorstEpisodes
BestSeasons
AllEpisodes

Seasons35

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Episode Rankings

  1. #1 Worst Episode
    Click to reveal
    Dateline Season 30 Episode 31 - What Happened to Anton Black?
    2.5/10(55 votes)

    S30:E31

    When 19-year-old Anton Black dies while being taken into police custody, the community seeks justice; a yearlong "Dateline" investigation looks at the officer at the center of the case and missed warning signs.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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  2. Dateline Season 12 Episode 3 - Friends Interviews
    4.3/10(20 votes)

    S12:E3

    No description available

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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  3. Dateline Season 25 Episode 13 - The Sting
    4.2/10(14 votes)

    S25:E13

    Dalia Dippolito, accused of hiring a hitman to kill her husband, goes on trial for the third time. Dennis Murphy reports on the mesmerizing story of an undercover police sting.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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  4. Dateline Season 21 Episode 6 - Sandy: Rescue & Recovery
    4.1/10(12 votes)

    S21:E6

    Dateline offers a special report on the devastation in the wake of Hurricane Sandy. It visits areas of New York and New Jersey that are struggling to restore power and repair damage. It also interviews people who have been hit hard by the disaster and looks at an effort to stop the New York Marathon

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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  5. Dateline Season 22 Episode 54 - Into the Wild
    5.2/10(27 votes)

    S22:E54

    A 17 year-old trainee pilot who seemed to have vanished while over Montana during her first long solo flight, leaving her friends and family fearing that the worst had happened. Keith Morrison reports.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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  6. Dateline Season 23 Episode 16 - Deadly Betrayal
    4.3/10(12 votes)

    S23:E16

    When a loving mother is found brutally stabbed to death, police quickly determine who held the knife. But was it part of a cold-blooded conspiracy?

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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  7. Dateline Season 24 Episode 5 - The Confession
    4.4/10(12 votes)

    S24:E5

    Ten years after a 16-year-old boy confessed to a double murder and was sentenced to life in prison, a local businessman tries to prove the confession was coerced and the teen was wrongfully convicted.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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  8. Dateline Season 19 Episode 14 - In Plain Sight
    4.3/10(11 votes)

    S19:E14

    The disappearance of two teenagers brings together two families in a common journey for justice.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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  9. Dateline Season 29 Episode 21 - The Eastlake Conspiracy
    5.4/10(23 votes)

    S29:E21

    When Ohio resident Pat Sabo is offered $50,000 to kill someone hundreds of miles away, he calls the police to report the incident; acting quickly, investigators set up an elaborate sting operation to bring down those behind the murder-for-hire plot;

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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  10. Dateline Season 14 Episode 30 - To Catch a Predator (Follow-up)
    4.6/10(11 votes)

    S14:E30

    No description available

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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  11. Dateline Season 24 Episode 9 - Under a Full Moon
    5.2/10(15 votes)

    S24:E9

    When detectives track down the killer of a Las Vegas cocktail waitress and mother, it becomes clear that the investigation has just begun.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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  12. Dateline Season 16 Episode 20 - To Catch a Baby Broker
    4.9/10(11 votes)

    S16:E20

    No description available

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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  13. Dateline Season 23 Episode 40 - True Lies
    4.6/10(9 votes)

    S23:E40

    After a mother is murdered in her own bed, the 911 dispatch center fields two calls, one from her son and one from her husband, both of whom claim the other is the killer, telling wildly different stories that the authorities must figure out. Dennis Murphy reports.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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  14. Dateline Season 21 Episode 5 - Wild Wild Web
    5.2/10(13 votes)

    S21:E5

    A look into the online world of classified ads and meets a person who suggests he's a hitman, a student selling a kidney to pay for college, and a drug dealer who says he's selling a list of his clients.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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  15. Dateline Season 20 Episode 19 - The Goldfinger Mystery
    5.1/10(12 votes)

    S20:E19

    Police suspect a woman's estranged husband in her stabbing death, but surveillance video shows he was not at the scene.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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  16. Dateline Season 23 Episode 28 - Escape: Tsunami
    5.3/10(14 votes)

    S23:E28

    Survivors of the 2004 tsunami that hit Thailand -- including Petra Nemcova -- share their stories.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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  17. Dateline Season 20 Episode 28 - The Hansen Files - Lottery
    4.8/10(9 votes)

    S20:E28

    A group of undercover investigators try to uncover the reason that some lottery retailers actually end up with winning tickets, while the customers who bought the tickets walk away with nothing.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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  18. Dateline Season 18 Episode 2 - The Michael Jackson Tapes
    4.6/10(8 votes)

    S18:E2

    Rabbi Shmuley first met Michael Jackson in 1999, and began recording their conversations a year later, when Jackson was 42 years old. Theirs was an unlikely friendship -- but the Orthodox rabbi had became a confidant and spiritual advisor to the King Of Pop. Now, for the first time, spilling out across page, and on tape: Michael Jackson in his own words. Up until now, these recordings have never been released.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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  19. Dateline Season 28 Episode 9 - A Song for Whitney
    5.7/10(19 votes)

    S28:E9

    Whitney Houston's best friend, Robyn Crawford, shares behind-the-scenes personal stories from Houston's three-decade career.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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  20. Dateline Season 22 Episode 59 - Burning Suspicion
    5.5/10(15 votes)

    S22:E59

    A man claims his young wife killed herself after she is found dead in her burning home.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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  21. Dateline Season 1 Episode 2 - Made in the USA
    5.3/10(12 votes)

    S1:E2

    No description available

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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  22. Dateline Season 19 Episode 78 - The Town That Jobs Forgot
    5.0/10(9 votes)

    S19:E78

    Lester Holt reports the story of three American women who face the Great Recession and their own worst fears.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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  23. Dateline Season 21 Episode 44 - Betrayal of Trust
    5.3/10(11 votes)

    S21:E44

    When a woman is found dead in the trunk of her car, authorities become suspicious of her ex-husband.

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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  24. Dateline Season 14 Episode 42 - Honeymoons Gone Bad
    5.2/10(10 votes)

    S14:E42

    No description available

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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  25. Dateline Season 15 Episode 24 - Nevada Control Murder
    5.2/10(10 votes)

    S15:E24

    No description available

    Director:Unknown
    Writer:Unknown

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Worst Episodes Summary

"What Happened to Anton Black?" is the worst rated episode of Dateline. It scored 2.5/10 from 55 votes. Written and directed by Unknown, it aired on August 5, 2022. This episode scored 1.8 points lower than the second lowest rated, "Friends Interviews".

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