DOI
10.22191/BUUJ/10/2/10
Faculty Sponsor
Allen Loomis
Abstract
True crime adaptations have become increasingly popular in the past few decades, but their existence reaches back several centuries. They have taken many forms, including stage dramas, graphic novels, and true crime podcasts. Examples of these adaptations— particularly the play Arden of Faversham, the graphic novel From Hell, and modern true crime podcasts—illustrate the selective process used to create true crime adaptations. That process chooses to foreground certain aspects of crimes while others are left behind, which changes audience understandings of the crime. By understanding the nuances of these adaptations, the potential effects they create in audience perceptions become clear. I argue that, because of interactions between the crime, adapter, and audience, true-crime adaptations change the audience’s understandings of wrongdoings and affect behaviors surrounding them including fear of crime, investigations, and punishments.
Recommended Citation
Nothstine, L. (2025). True Crime Adaptations and How the Public Surveils. Binghamton University Undergraduate Journal, 10(2). https://doi.org/10.22191/BUUJ/10/2/10
