Content Warning: this article mentions rape and murder
I was introduced to true crime and forensic TV at a very young age. I was probably younger than 8, which is way too young for anyone to be exposed to such media. I walked in on my mom watching a show called Forensic Files which focuses on the science behind solving crimes. Although the subject matter scared me, I was hooked. Today, so many people are interested in true crime, and rightfully so. It is interesting, real, and allows for society to come together for the common goal of putting the bad guys away.
True crime & social media
The true crime community on social media is a very large, competitive industry. Some creators have millions of followers throughout various platforms while other smaller creators rely on the for you page to get traction. There are genuine people who report on true crime for the right reasons, to spread awareness and be advocates for victims. However, some creators rely on their coverage of such topics for income, which blurs the lines between being informational and exploitative. In order to comply with the rules and regulations of social media platforms, creators have to censor their coverage, which leads to the desensitization and exploitation of true crime and its victims. Also, the market is oversaturated, meaning that some creators rely on clickbait and exaggerations to attract an audience.Â
Perfect examples of this are the use of words like “grape” and “unalive” in place of rape and kill. TikTok and other social media creators often use those words to get around censorship rules in order to keep their platforms monetized, or to make viewers more comfortable while discussing disturbing material. This is where the issues arise, as creators should not be able to make money off the trauma and stories of others while also minimizing the impact of such trauma. Also, words like rape and kill should make us uncomfortable.Â
True crime content should not be censored, because the victims’ experiences were not censored. A victim of a murder was not “unalived,” they were killed. Coverage of crimes should be harsh and it should make us uncomfortable. We as humans are wired to feel uncomfortable or uneasy about topics of this sort as a survival instinct.
Creators
Some creators manage to respect the victims and their families while also not sugar coating the details of cases. One example is Youtuber and podcaster Kendall Rae, who donates a large portion of her income and works with families of victims in documentary projects. While she’s not perfect, other creators in the true crime space can learn from her involvement with the people connected to the cases she covers. A popular creator who I’ve seen called out multiple times for insensitive behavior is Bailey Sarian. She is a youtuber who does her makeup while discussing true crime cases. While her videos are great for makeup lovers, she has been called out for her very nonchalant and unserious demeanor while discussing horrific topics.
Instead of just reporting the facts, some creators turn tragedies into spectacles for views and engagement. The 2022 killing of four Idaho college students brought together a huge community of people on social media, mostly all who wanted justice for the innocent young adults killed. Some creators, however, turned this case into a conspiracy theory, pointing blame at the surviving roommates and starting internet hate campaigns. When the two surviving roommates got a chance to make victim impact statements, they shared how the events of that night changed their lives forever and greatly affected their mental health. The certain creators who were pushing this narrative were quickly silenced by the majority who sympathized with the roommates.Â
so what?
In a perfect world, nobody would profit off of other people’s worst nightmares. We don’t live in a perfect world however, and there will always be lawyers, news reporters, and other officials who can make a profit. But, everyday people should not be able to monetize content about other people’s tragedies. In order to protect the dignity of victims of all crimes, it is important to be mindful of who we give our views to on social media.