Guilty Pleasure: How the Representation of Murder in Media Effects How Society in The United States Perceives These Crimes

When a person thinks of the word attraction, most would go to that one man or woman who catches their eye, or maybe the cute dog that would be hard to not give your attention to; however, there is one point of attraction, romantic or not, that people seem to have a guilty pleasure for killers. This could be a person who simply cannot avoid not talking about the latest true crime story, to the person who idolizes the criminal, to even the person who would seek a romantic relationship with someone convicted of murder. It brings to question why so many people are intrigued by this type of person when their crime should be assumingly ignored and shunned by the public. Some of the most horrific crimes may have also been televised or documented in the public eye, with the increasing number of crime documentaries and shows being produced to speak of the “true” story. This brings to question why is it that murder, a crime believed to be the most taboo, is the one that receives the most attention from the world and what is it that makes it so impactful in the memories of people. It could simply be the way that the story is reported on that simply hooks people in, or it can be the way a person’s mind functions that would attract them with the idea of what they are looking for in their lives. If so, there may be a change in how murderers are viewed if the story of their crime is shown under a different light than what we see today