Suzie Chick

I was recently asked to participate in an interview for a well-known publication for market research around the topic of podcasts. Various questions were put to me, and at one point I scrolled through my podcast library listing out the various shows which I followed. There were some shows for work, there were some to reflect my passion for film and theatre, but the most overriding category fell into the true crime genre. Fascinating tales of fraudsters, missing people, murders, cults, romance scams (to name but a few) consume my library of listening.  

I am definitely not alone with this curiosity. Netflix shows such as ‘Inventing Anna’ clocked up over 77 million hours of viewing over its first week and ‘The Tinder Swindler’ racked up 45.8 million views when first released in February last year.  The true Crime podcasts are incredibly popular, one being ‘Red handed’ which has won the listener’s choice gold award two years running.

Some people explain the start of this trend back to 2015, when the first season of the podcast, Serial, was first released. The podcast covered the death of American student Hae Min Lee and the conviction of her ex-boyfriend, Adnan Syed for her murder (this has subsequently been overturned with Adnan released late last year). Serial’s first series has been downloaded more than 175 million times. But others have explained that we have always been fascinated with death and the dark side of our existence, referring to the Victorians and the Jack the Ripper case or how people would pay to attend court trials or public executions. 

Regardless of how our interest in true crime came about, why are we so fascinated with these dark tales? 

No cause for concern

When explaining my interest in true crime during my recent interview, I felt a little embarrassed as if there was something wrong with my listening choices. But given how popular this genre is, there is really nothing to feel embarrassed about. We all share a morbid curiosity (hence why people slow down to look at car accidents etc.) which is part and parcel of being mortal. Also, it’s completely normal to be interested in the darker side of humanity and as I explain below, our interest may serve a number of psychological purposes. 

To understand and protect

A big part of our fascination with all things true crime is our old friend control. If we can understand these horrible crimes in some way, the motives, the psychology of the perpetrator etc. we might stand a chance of avoiding such people and experiences, protecting ourselves and our loved ones. Gaining an understanding helps ease our anxiety replacing it with a sense of control. It’s hard wired into us, since our hunter-gatherer days to pay attention to things that might bring us harm in order to keep us safe. Consuming true crime can be a little like a “dress rehearsal” says psychiatrist Dr Packer.

This also might explain why women consume more true crime than men. A 2010 study by the University of Illinois suggests that women are more attracted to these experiences to help manage their fear of being victimised. 

Of course, any of us can become victims of crime. We can watch all the Netflix shows available, we still might find ourselves in an abusive relationship or falling for a convincing email scam etc. We all have our blind spots which can leave us vulnerable to being victimised. 

A mystery to solve

We should never underestimate our love of a good puzzle to solve. From the Rubik’s cube to treasure hunts. Our brains love a challenge and true crime provides us with the satisfaction of a real-life mystery to crack. 

Adult fairy tales

Psychologists have described true crime as “fairy tales for grownups” and just as children enjoy and learn from stories of good versus evil, we too as adults need our own version of tales of heroes and monsters.  We are attracted to the tension between good and evil and true crime encapsulates this dynamic.  In most true crime stories, we can clearly identify the good guys from the bad guys and there is resolution to the mystery, all satisfying our desire for full and complete narratives with zero loose ends. 

Brings relief

Consuming shows such as ‘The Tinder Swindler’ or ‘The Puppet Master’ from the safety of our sofa, provides us with relief that we are not caught up in any such chaos or stress and can switch off our screens and go about our day as normal. Similar to watching scary movies, we get to experience extreme situations without being remotely involved.

Dr Packer explains it’s a type of schadenfreude (getting pleasure from other people being in trouble). I can certainly relate to this after learning how much debt the victims of The Tinder Swindler were left with, I initially felt a pang of anxiety and lots of empathy for them, and then a lovely relief that it wasn’t me!

Consumer beware.

Even as a true crime fan, I do need to remind myself of what and why I am consuming and put all these stories in context and perspective.

The true crime stories are told through a certain lens, with varying levels of research and balance. The lens is decided by the people telling the story, so always be aware this might contain bias (be is conscious or unconscious). 

Individuals in the stories are often split between good and bad with stereotyping on both sides. We need to careful of discrimination particular around certain communities being seen as disproportionately involved in crime. 

I need to sometimes remind myself that these experiences, horrible and tragic as they are, are rare and the large majority of people are not plotting acts of crime and murder. It can sometimes feel with the plethora of stories available for consumption, that these experiences are everywhere, when the facts speak a very different story. 

Consuming true crime can make us more fearful of becoming victims in real life and in turn influence our behaviour based on our perceived level of risk. This could impact our well-being and our quality of life. Our level of fear is not a reflection of the actual risk of being a victim of crime. Mundane crimes such as car theft and criminal damage are far more common, but don’t make such great true crime stories!

Some personal recommendations

With the words of warning above still fresh in mind, I couldn’t help but finish with a little list of my own personal recommendations of true crime stories (in no particular order).  Enjoy and as always consume consciously!

The Imposter (on Netflix) – An unbelievable story of a missing 13-year-old boy and his family

The Real Bling Ring: Hollywood Heist (on Channel 4) – You may have seen the film starring Emma Watson, but this is the true story of the teenage burglars back in 2008.

Holy Hell (Amazon Prime)- a tough documentary about a spiritual community lead by a charismatic and powerful guru

Love Bombed (BBC sounds podcast) – A heart-breaking story of a man who turned out too good to be true.

Love Fraud (Amazon Prime) – A fascinating story told by women looking for love and being conned by the same man (worth watching for the feisty female bounty hunter who helps the victims in their pursuit for justice)

Photo by Phoebe T on Unsplash