This is something I've thought a lot about recently, especially as the popularity of true crime has happened before, during and after the 2020 BLM protests. I've experienced friends who are very passionate about true crime acting as if gruesome murder is always waiting around the corner, which stems from these podcasts trying to "teach" how to recognise potential serial killers. I worry it makes (especially white) women think this kind of crime happens more than it does, and engage with the politics of crime and incarceration as if a majority of the police are mind-hunter-style hero homicide detectives.
Exactly!! Especially in regards to the police-so many true crime pods/shows treat the police as infallible and unbiased, and to accept true crime narrators’ version of events feels like willingly buying into that illusion. I feel a bit insane sometimes seeing people call true crime empowering when it reinforces myths of the police state and strips victims of their humanity, and very few people that are “into” true crime have any interest in exploring who these crimes actually impact.
This is something I've thought a lot about recently, especially as the popularity of true crime has happened before, during and after the 2020 BLM protests. I've experienced friends who are very passionate about true crime acting as if gruesome murder is always waiting around the corner, which stems from these podcasts trying to "teach" how to recognise potential serial killers. I worry it makes (especially white) women think this kind of crime happens more than it does, and engage with the politics of crime and incarceration as if a majority of the police are mind-hunter-style hero homicide detectives.
Exactly!! Especially in regards to the police-so many true crime pods/shows treat the police as infallible and unbiased, and to accept true crime narrators’ version of events feels like willingly buying into that illusion. I feel a bit insane sometimes seeing people call true crime empowering when it reinforces myths of the police state and strips victims of their humanity, and very few people that are “into” true crime have any interest in exploring who these crimes actually impact.