As the spooky season begins to creep up on us, many content creators and TV networks tend to make Halloween specials for the month of October that correlate to true crime cases. Although purely made with the intention of entertainment, some of the content can be deemed as “misinformation” or “not appropriate”. Wanting to make sure we don’t partake in malpractice, how can we be mindful and ensure that what we watch and give attention to is not insensitive?
With large phenomena on TikTok and YouTube such as “Murder Mystery & Makeup” or “Crimes with Candles,” the creators are doing ordinary tasks such as getting ready for the day or baking cookies while they do a voice-over speaking about true crime cases. The large genre of media opens a lot of discussion and conspiracies to the media, while still being “fun” and “easier to digest”. Although the vast majority of True Crime content creators are respectful and take into account how the videos might bring negative attention to the case, there are some creators who simply don’t care. There have been numerous times in which families of the victims step up on social media stating that they don’t want their family members’ deaths to be broadcasted, and yet content creators keep videos up because “they’re simply informational”. These are creators we should not be supporting. Rather than respecting families who have gone through trauma and stating that they are uncomfortable with what is being done, their feelings are just neglected. A recent example of this would be from the infamous Netflix Biopic; Dahmer.Â
After main lead Evan Peters wins a Golden Globe Award for the series, the Hughes family states “It’s a shame that people can take our tragedy and make money”. This would cause controversy as it demonstrates how Netflix didn’t ask for permission to depict the gruesome murder that the Hughes family now has to face on one of the largest streaming platforms in the world, without even having a say in it.
Luckily for true crime junkies, there are plenty of other well-informed and respectful content creators who take the time to research and ensure that this story can be shared with the rest of the world. Next time you hit play on a video, just take a moment and think, “Is this video informative, or is it insensitive”. Stay cozy!