🔎 True crime: An obsession-fueled industry that pays

True crime tales have titillated audiences for centuries, but the genre has recently exploded. Cheaply produced, salacious stories still thrive, taking on ever-more modern forms (see: YouTube channels helmed by[beauty influencers slash serial killer aficionados)](. But in the new era of true crime there’s also a new kind of narrative at play. This one goes deeper, focusing on analyzing faulty investigations, examining the crime’s broader social context, and revealing the systemic injustices of criminal punishment. The podcast Serial and Netflix series Making a Murderer have spawned dozens of imitators, uncovering riveting new cases and abuses of justice. And old crimes that had seemingly been covered to, well, death—like the murders of Nicole Brown Simpson and Ron Goldman—have received thorough re-examinations. All of this crime content has attracted millions of ears and eyeballs, making it a great return-on-investment for entertainment industry giants. And for better or for worse, it sometimes creates real-world consequences. 🐦 [Tweet this!]( 🌐 [View this email on the web]( [Quartz Obsession] True crime March 22, 2019 A new era of sleuthing --------------------------------------------------------------- True crime tales have titillated audiences for centuries, but the genre has recently exploded. Cheaply produced, salacious stories still thrive, taking on ever-more modern forms (see: YouTube channels helmed by[beauty influencers slash serial killer aficionados)](. But in the new era of true crime there’s also a new kind of narrative at play. This one goes deeper, focusing on analyzing faulty investigations, examining the crime’s broader social context, and revealing the systemic injustices of criminal punishment. The podcast Serial and Netflix series Making a Murderer have spawned dozens of imitators, uncovering riveting new cases and abuses of justice. And old crimes that had seemingly been covered to, well, death—like the murders of Nicole Brown Simpson and Ron Goldman—have received thorough re-examinations. All of this crime content has attracted millions of ears and eyeballs, making it a great return-on-investment for entertainment industry giants. And for better or for worse, it sometimes creates real-world consequences. 🐦 [Tweet this!]( 🌐 [View this email on the web]( Go deeper with Quartz membership --------------------------------------------------------------- 👉Deep analysis of the forces reshaping the global economy, from space travel to big cannabis. 👉Exclusive interviews with the leaders creating the future of business, science, philanthropy, media, and more. 👉Access to our journalists with exclusive member-only conference calls and events. [Start free trial]( By the digits [33 million:]( Downloads of the podcast Dirty John a little over a year since its premiere [314,000:]( People who “like” the My Favorite Murder Facebook page [$90:]( Cost of a My Favorite Murder–branded blanket [12,000:]( People who joined a Facebook group about the Australian true-crime documentary Exposed overnight when it was launched [86%:]( Increase in US advertising revenue generated by the podcast industry from 2016 to 2017 [467 minutes:]( Length of documentary miniseries O.J.: Made in America [1.6 million:]( True crime books sold in the US between January and November 2018, compared to 976,000 over that same period in 2016 [52:]( Podcasts on Vulture’s list of best true crime podcasts [11:]( Number of top 20 podcasts on US iTunes charts that were true-crime-related the week of March 11 Sponsored by Quartz Indigenous Bolivians reclaim their power with bright houses --------------------------------------------------------------- Quartz’s 2050 Project pushes the bounds of photojournalism to showcase the ways global cities are reinventing our urban future. In El Alto, Bolivia, Andean architect Freddy Mamani designs colorful “cholets” that—in addition to being visually compelling—represent a powerful symbol of cultural heritage for the indigenous Aymara people after centuries of oppression.[Start exploring on qz.com]( Giphy NETFLIX AND CHILLS Some clues about the mechanisms behind the boom --------------------------------------------------------------- The recent boom in true crime content is boosted by the new entertainment environment. For starters, there are[fewer constraints]( in the way we consume media today. TV documentaries don’t have to be limited to a 1.5 hour special; they can last as long as 10 episodes, to be streamed by viewers whenever they want. Podcasts opened up a whole new world for unraveling longform investigative pieces. It’s also easier for audiences to become engaged: the buzziest shows have enormous online followings, with various groups and threads discussing every theory and following each new development in a case. And as for the rise of the new approach—less lurid, more analytical—Jean Murley, English professor at the Queensborough Community College, City University of New York, and author of a book about true crime in US pop culture, says there are several factors involved. For one, she says the Innocence Project, an organization which works to exonerate the wrongfully convicted, has highlighted the shortcomings of the US criminal justice system in a very public way. (The more general conversation and advocacy around prison and police reform has surely contributed as well.) She also says that in recent decades, audiences have become more savvy—or at least more curious—about criminal justice procedures, through shows like Law & Order or CSI: Crime Scene Investigation. “Law & Order is a fantasy show in a lot of ways, but in some ways it isn’t, right?” she says. Although both these shows get [many]( [many]( things wrong, “they got the basics of how the system works. Audiences want more science, they want more procedural stuff.” Quotable “There are, at this moment, forty channels on your TV doing crime stories, whether true or fictional. If you look at the Bible, there’s a crime story on every page. Almost literally. I don’t think it’s an unusual fascination.” —[Bill James, author of Popular Crime, a cult classic survey of American crimes in The New Yorker]( Giphy Million-dollar question Why has the podcast become true crime's medium of choice? --------------------------------------------------------------- Podcasts are definitely at the center of the true crime renaissance. And Murley says this is no surprise: true crime is naturally adaptable to “any kind of new media bandwagon.” The podcast industry is growing rapidly, expected to reach more than $500 million[in advertising revenue this year](. Two [new services]( have been nicknamed the “Netflix of podcasts,” with one garnering $100 million in funding. And true crime content like Dr. Death or Over My Dead Body is at the top of US podcast charts. In the 1920s and 30s, magazines like True Detective were hugely popular, and true crime and crime fiction came to be a [dominant force in the market](. As television became more widespread, crime content, [like the TV series Dragnet]( blossomed. “The same thing I think has happened with podcasting,” Murley says. “True crime kind of latches onto this exploding new media form, and finds such huge audiences so quickly that everyone wants to get in on that game.” Have a friend who would enjoy our Obsession with True crime? [ [Forward link to a friend](mailto:?subject=Thought you'd enjoy.&body=Read this Quartz Obsession email – to the email – Unsplash/Roman Kraft Pop quiz What's the best-selling true crime book? In Cold Blood by Truman CapoteHelter Skelter by Vincent Bugliosi and Curt GentryI'll be Gone in the Dark by Michelle McNamaraThe Stranger Beside Me by Ann Rule Correct. Helter Skelter sold 7 million copies, according to its publisher. Incorrect. If your inbox doesn’t support this quiz, find the solution at bottom of email. AP Photo/Charlie Riedel Brief history Assorted crime classics --------------------------------------------------------------- [1966:]( In Cold Blood by Truman Capote. The groundbreaking novel about the Clutter family murders blended fact and fiction and is considered to be the pioneering work in the genre. [1973:]( The Onion Field by Joseph Wambaugh. A nonfiction account of the kidnapping of two LAPD officers written by a sergeant in that same police department. [1974:]( Helter Skelter by Vincent Bugliosi and Curt Gentry. A prosecutor’s account of the Manson family murders—on the salacious side, but an important cultural landmark. [1979:]( The Executioner’s Song by Norman Mailer. Another “true crime novel,” the book covers the case of murderer Gary Gilmore, the [first person]( to to be executed after the US reinstated the death penalty in 1976. [1980:]( The Stranger Beside Me by Ann Rule. An account of the Ted Bundy murders, complicated by the fact that the[author was his friend](. [1988:]( Thin Blue Line by Errol Morris. A documentary about a wrongful conviction that would influence legions of followers. Industry secrets How women are driving the true crime renaissance --------------------------------------------------------------- There’s one audience that has helped the genre rise to new heights: women. In 2015, true-crime network Investigation Discovery[was the most-watched cable network]( for US women between 25 and 54. In 2017, women’s interest channel Oxygen rebranded to[become entirely devoted to true crime](. The podcast My Favorite Murder is an irreverent hybrid true crime/comedy podcast that has a devoted following among young women. What’s the draw? The genre allows “women to see their experiences reflected back to them,” Murley says. “True crime is a place that acknowledges the harm that men do to women in our society—harm writ large.” Rape, murder, abuse, and domestic violence are, in a way, “end results of the misogyny that is rampant and unchecked.” And, [with notable exceptions]( today’s creators—[many of them women]( starting to pick up on it, Murley says, devoting more time to victims and [their narratives]( than in a lot of earlier works. Giphy Fun fact! One [study measured how exposure]( to popular crime shows affected people’s belief in myths about rape, finding that Law & Order: Special Victims Unit was associated with “lower rape-myth acceptance.” (Reminder: correlation is not causation.) The verdict The good and the bad of the new true crime boom --------------------------------------------------------------- Because the line between traditional true crime and criminal justice reporting has been somewhat blurred in the new era, broader audiences have become exposed to the many problems plaguing police investigations, whether it’s issues with forensic science or[forced confessions](. The intrepid reporting from the team behind the In The Dark podcast has helped land the egregious case they investigate on the[US Supreme Court’s docket](. But there’s a darker side to the new version of true crime, [Alice Bolin writes at Vulture](. The stories’ glossy documentary-style presentation makes them appear more serious, but it masks that they, like their low-brow counterparts, are made in large part for entertainment. “It appeals to the same vices as traditional true crime, and often trades in the same melodrama and selective storytelling, but its consequences can be more extreme,” Bolin writes. The shows often present theories and narratives that are less than fully formed. This can have collateral consequences—people [being doxxed, attacked]( and [traumatized](. And then there’s the issue of the content creator’s motivation. “I’ve come to believe that addictiveness and advocacy are rarely compatible,” Bolin writes. “If they were, why would the creators of Making a Murderer have advocated for one white man, when the story of being victimized by a corrupt police force is common to so many people across the U.S., particularly people of color?” As true crime gets more introspective, perhaps we’ll hold a magnifying glass to the genre itself. Giphy Take me down this 🐰 hole A trailer mix of atypical true crime recommendations --------------------------------------------------------------- - One of Us: An amazing[work of journalism]( by Åsne Seierstad that delves into the events of the 2011 neo-Nazi attack in Norway that left nearly 80 people dead. - Ear Hustle: A podcast co-produced by inmates in the San Quentin prison in California, that[offers a window into their lives](. - American Vandal: A Netflix satire[of the entire true crime genre](. Reuters/Carlos Barria Poll Forensic Files or Serial? [Click here to vote]( Forensic FilesSerialSticking with HGTV 💬let's talk! In yesterday’s poll about the [Cult of the Dead Cow]( 52% of you said Beto’s former membership makes you like him more while 20% said “sounds sketchy.” 27% said “Eh, who wasn’t downloading warez back then?” 🤔 [What did you think of today’s email?](mailto:obsession%2Bfeedback@qz.com?cc=&subject=Thoughts%20about%20true%20crime&body=) 💡 [What should we obsess over next?](mailto:obsession%2Bideas@qz.com?cc=&subject=Obsess%20over%20this%20next.&body=) [🎲 Show me a random Obsession]( Today’s email was written by[Hanna Kozlowska,]( edited by[Jessanne Collins,]( and produced by[Luiz Romero.]( The correct answer to the quiz is Helter Skelter by Vincent Bugliosi and Curt Gentry. Enjoying the Quartz Obsession? [Send this link]( to a friend! 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