The general research area I have been operating in is American studies initially focusing on the cross-section between the birth of true crime and journalism’s role juxtaposed to the racial bias in American culture. As my case study, I used the newest Ted Bundy film, Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil, and Vile, which led me to question the cultural layers of America that informed the creation of true crime as a genre of explaining white deviance and evil as well as that relation to non-white deviance. Through researching, I found that I had to dig deep into the cultural understanding of deviance and how that understanding has shaped the systems made by white people for white people within America including true crime and journalism. My research involved consulting scholarly books, journals, and articles about the relevant topics as well as taking a journalism class that allowed me to have a deeper understanding of that particular system as a whole, including journalistic bias. I found that true crime has historically been a genre that is not only played-out narratives to understand white deviance but is also used as a form of entertainment, while narratives about non-white individuals have historically been used to dehumanize and incriminate them to keep power over them. While there is an upward trend of inclusion in recent years that is changing the narrative for non-white individuals, there is work to be done. The importance of my research is that bias will always exist but when we start recognizing the bias that exists, we start an empathetic journey of understanding the world and the people around us to become more conscious humans that in turn will create a better America.
Author: Rachel Goode, American Studies and Entrepreneurship Major
Advisor: Oana Godeanu-Kenworthy, Global & Intercultural Studies
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