Welcome back everyone to another issue of exploring the true crime genre and how it’s defined by avid fans and curious viewers alike. Last week we gathered ideas and opinions about how to describe what true crime is and what it means to them as entertainment or as a way to inform and educate the public. To get a better understanding of the answer, I created a poll on my personal Instagram account to see out of the majority of people that I follow who enjoy true crime.

The image you see above are the final results I received for a twenty-four hour Instagram story poll on whether or not you were a fan of true crime content. As you can see, the majority voted that they were interested in true crime. However, as I continued to check on the polling results as they were updated throughout the day, the Yes/No results were evenly tied for at least half of the day. Now, this experiment I did does not exactly prove that more people are fans of true crime than not. There is always room for bias when collecting data like this. For example, a certain group of people who follow me might share similar interests, so more of them would respond with loving true crime content. With that in mind, I found it fascinating how close the results were to each other before the majority voted in favor of loving true crime.

There is a very fine line in the true crime genre between fans enjoying it for the pursuit of justice in the face of horrific injustice or as a way to put off the realities of routine life, as inconsiderate as that sounds. For some people, the subject of true crime fascinates them to the point of wanting to be involved with the investigation more than simply listening to the narrator lay out the evidence for them to follow. Martina S. said, “I went through a phase where I loved everything related to forensics. I wanted to work in forensics…I just loved everything about it. My parents weren’t too thrilled about that. They were like, ah, our child is weird…I just wanted to know everything about the different cases…” For some watchers and listeners of true crime, it can spark the desire to pursue a career in criminal justice or law enforcement. As a nonfiction genre, it is important for viewers to be aware that the cases covered and analyzed have actually happened and involved real people. Unlike fictional works such as the television series, Law and Order, which can take inspiration from real cases, the expectation for true crime works involves utilizing as many facts and examples of evidence as possible.

Being able to include as many facts as they can is another reason why some say they get more awareness out of listening or watching true crime. “This is real life. As humans, we’re capable of some pretty terrible things. We shouldn’t live with this fantasy that everyone is a good person. I like to think we have a sense of justice too. So, we like to see when people get caught…”(Brenna A.) While it may sound cynical or pessimistic to a few, true crime has the ability to let me know more of what is out there in the world. That sense of justice that Brenna A. mentioned is particularly interesting because it allows us to question our values and beliefs. What do we as people and as a society believe is right? When there are those who break the law and manage to harm others in doing so, the typical response is that said person should be punished immediately and effectively. Even now, this process is not, if at all, as swift as we would like.

“Both avenues of entertainment and critique exist in true crime…I think people need a certain level of transparency and clarity…Beyond that, I think it’s more up to whoever is making the content…” (Jane T.) As interesting as the narrative of true crime is, several fans think there is room for critique on the systems we have in place for dealing with criminal activity. Keeping in mind that there are several places where you can listen or watch true crime, that level of critique depends on how deep you would like to dive into the case overall. “So many cases are not as featured as they should be. I want answers. When you have some cases brushed under the rug, there’s a sense of satisfaction from being able to solve a case. It can help raise awareness about corruption in the justice system…We can be honest about how past cases were handled.”(Brenna A.) Whether or not the audience chooses to analyze a case further, it leaves room for more questions to be asked and feedback for what should have been done in order to address the needs of victims and other parties harmed in the case. “I think it’s a pretty good medium for bridging different gaps as far as entertainment and justice goes. You’re always learning something new.”(Martina S.)

As viewer opinion differs on how we react to various deliveries of true crime, there also is room for how one goes about starting and encouraging a conversation related to that subject? Tune in next week for our next story covering how true crime content creators work in tangent with their audience to add more research or interest in the field of criminal justice!