The Murder Media Podcast

Join Stella this week for a chat about a troubling topic - the representation of school shooters in entertainment media. With a focus on Columbine and two films which retell the story of this case, this episode examines news framing of such events and Van Sant's Elephant, and Coccio's Zero Hour.    Suggested reading is: Langman, P.F. (2015) Why KIds Kill: Inside the Mind of School Shooters. Palgra...

Welcome back to season three of the Murder Media Podcast!  This week Stella starts to cover true crime media texts that got taken out of the final book plan, with a look at Monster: the Jeffrey Dahmer Story.  Examining the portrayal of a now mythical Dahmer, the performance of Neicy Nash, why is Dahmer made to be hot, and really, whats the deal with those episode titles?  Monster: The Jeffrey Dahm...

Join Stella and Shellie for this extra bonus episode where we review the recent addition to the Monster series on Netflix: The Ed Gein Story. Did we love it? Yes! And no, this is not another piece of content that tells you everything the series gets wrong... Stella and Shellie review the show as a peice of drama, entertainment, horror, true crime content.  And yes, Bundy creeps in there as well. ...

This week Stella examines a new Silly Shitbag Sutcliffe media text, Hunting the Yorkshire Ripper, from Prime Video. This two parter focusses more on the hoax tapes, the impact the actions of this idiot had on the investigation, and the later hunt to find this wally. This episode also marks the end of season two as Stella gets ready for teaching. Stella also reveals some exciting book news....... H...

Bloody Hell! This week Stella adapts her paper from the Blood, Myth and Media Symposium, for a chat about the use of blood as narrative device in Night Stalker: The Hunt for a Serial Killer (Netflix), and The Staircase (HBO).    Music:   Cybertruck by Mood Maze Music from #Uppbeat (free for Creators!): https://uppbeat.io/t/mood-maze/cybertruck License code: 2F2G6DAKEWYFVVC9   Music from #Uppbeat (...

This episode would not have made it out were it not for the incredible help from Phil Minns: an absolute legend who reached out and offered tech skills. For all things podcast tech help, do follow and contact Phil via Instagram @nonfunctionalharmony.    This is the episode I recorded with Laura weeks and weeks ago, but the audio had a terrible hum. It has been cleaned up, but you might find that s...

This week, join Stella as she dips more toes into the overlap between true crime and horror, with a look at ghosthunting on the trail of serial killers. Stella takes a close look at her new obsession, The Paranormal Files, a YouTube channel which explores all kinds of phenomena. In the episode under discussion, The Paranormal Files hunts the ghost of Ted Bundy, and looks to hear from those that ar...

And we're back, with a look a two media texts, twenty years apart, which tell the story of a bunch of teenage vampires turned murderers. Examining the 2002 film The Vampire Clan, and an episode from Stella's favourite YouTuber, Bailey Sarian, this episode considers the development in true crime from tabloid trash to comprehensive chronologies.    Bailey Sarian: *strange* blood rituals by a teenage...

This week, Stella finally reflects on The Murder Media Symposium and her trials and tribulations at the hotel. Then the episode gets into the serial killer biopic: films which tell the life stories of real world murderers. Exploring My Friend Dahmer and Extremely Wicked, Stella thinks about why these people get films made about them, what myths to they perpetuate, and how do you say the word 'traj...

Come and join The Murder Media Cult - we'll need all your money, your house, but we promise some lovely shoes. This week, Stella is joined again by Shellie McMurdo for a chat about cults on screen. Shellie gets to talk about one of her favorite things - The Sacrament - an incredible film from Ti West which retells the horrifying story of Jonestown.  Stella and Shellie also muse on Waco, cults in v...

This week, Stella explores the conditions of YouTube and how that impacts the true crime and makeup videos from the legendary Brittany Vaughn. Unpacking Vaughn's video on Peter Sutcliffe, Stella explains how the political economies of YouTube shape and effect Vaughn's brilliant content.  Note: at one point Stella talks about a piano sound effect. It is not a piano! It is a xylophone!    Brittany V...

The Murder Media podcast is back! After a break for teaching and then Xmas, NYE, and marking, Stella is back to update on the book proposal progress, and to get cracking on some more overthinking and analysing true crime media.  This week, Stella looks at two media texts that tell the story of the Unabomber: the 2017 series from Discovery, Manhunt: Unabomber, and the 2021 film, Ted K.  Miskatonic...

We made it! We made it to the end of the first series of The Murder Media Podcast. Stella has to go off and be a lecturer now, so, the podcast has to take a break. In this episode, Stella takes a look at how the actual book is shaping up, with a little walk through the chapters, some more of the case studies, and a sneaky look at what else is to come in The Murder Media Project.  Thank you to ever...

This week Stella has a good long chat with Dr Tom Watson about a case that they both remember and both know in lots of detail: The West Memphis Three and their fight to get out of prison after being wrongly convicted of murder. Joe Berlinger's Paradise Lost trilogy of films is unpacked, alongside chats about the case and the heavy metal community, true crime documentary more generally, and Tom's w...

This week, Stella visits one of her fabourite YouTubers, Glam & Gore, and explores a video from the 2019 Halloween series where Mykie and friends stayed at various reportedly haunted locations. Merging historical true crime and ghosthunting, this YouTube video might just finally solved the 130 year old case of the Borden murders. Examining media crossovers of true crime, ghost hunting and the...

This week Stella tackles true crime comics: graphic novels that tell tales of murder. First looking at Maids by Katie Skelly, the story of the Papin sisters and their brutal murder of their employers; then The Butcher of Paris written by Stephanie Phillips, which tells the unbelievable story of serial killer Marcel Petiot, a monstrous man who used the desperation of those fleeing Nazi occupied Fra...

This week, Stella chats about two of her favourite podcasts: All Killa No Filla and The Last Podcast on the Left, and picking up from episode 5, their approaches to the Jeffrey Dahmer story. Told via the skills of stand up comedians, observational and sketch comedy, and improvisation, these podcasts re-present this well-worn story with a dark wit, woven into meticulous research. Episode 7 takes th...

This week Stella is joined by fellow academic and all round legend, Dr Shellie McMurdo. We tackle the same questions from episode 4, and get to the bottom of such condundrums as: What do we actually mean by celebrity?  Could we take Bundy in a fight?  Is Bundy as famous as Mr Blobby?  Shellie is the author of Blood on the Lens: Trauma and Anxiety in American Found Footage cinema, published in 2022...

This week Stella examines a true crime comedy podcast, Cult Liter, with a close look at the episode that covers Jeffrey Dahmer. Exploring how true crime develops across digital media, Stella unpacks what drives users over on Instagram, and what happens when the drive to gain likes and follows, collides with Dahmer’s grisly tale.   Sources:   Caldeira, S. P. (2020). ‘It’s not just Instagram models:...

In episode 4 I am joined by Laura, my best mate of over two decades. We've always chatted between ourselves about true crime and cults, and this week we discuss where our interest in true crime started, what we watch and don't watch, and get to the really hard hitting issues, such as: Why do we want to know the details of these crimes?  Is true crime making inroads into inclusivity and diversity?...

Lets finally be done with Mr Billy Bullshi*t, AKA Ted Bundy. In this episode, we look at the story when its is told by women. We'll look at an episode of the My Favorite Murder podcast, the brilliant documentary series from Trish Wood, Falling for a Killer, and we'll finish up with a more detailed look at Bailey Sarian's Murder, Mystery and Makeup series, and her episode on Ted.  We'll explore the...

In the second episode, Stella takes a long hard look at Conversations with a Killer: The Ted Bundy Tapes, exploring the documentary form, the title credits, and a brilliant article from Bryann McCann.    Sources: Aufderheide, P. (2007). Documentary Film: A Very Short Introduction. Oxford University Press Conversations with a Killer: The Ted Bundy Tapes (Netflix, Berlinger, 2019).  Gaynor, S.M. (20...

  Welcome to The Murder Media Podcast! This week Stella introduces the podcast, the project and has a chat about true crime in its forms across screen media. From the execution sermons of the 17th century, to the crime and makeup trend on YouTube, this week’s episode begins to unpack the varying forms of Murder Media.   Follow The Murder Media Project on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter, or email d...