Why We’re So Fascinated with True Crime Stories, and How It May Be Impacting Our Well-Being
BU researcher Kathryn D. Coduto has studied why it’s hard to disconnect from cases like those of Karen Read or Gabby Petito
In a new study, a Boston University media researcher found that true crime followers often get sucked into cases and compulsively use and post on social media about the cases they follow . Photo by gorodenkoff/iStock
Why We’re So Fascinated with True Crime Stories, and How It May Be Impacting Our Well-Being
BU researcher Kathryn D. Coduto has studied why it’s hard to disconnect from cases like those of Karen Read or Gabby Petito
The trials of Karen Read, the disappearance of Gabby Petito, the Delphi “Snapchat murders”—society has become obsessed with true crime stories. They dominate headlines, fuel blockbuster streaming shows, and spark thousands of podcasts.
But what does delving into these grisly tales do to our mental health and well-being? And what happens when people take their true crime fandom too far and start acting as amateur detectives or begin harassing key players?
In a new study, Boston University media researcher Kathryn D. Coduto asked 280 adults about their social media use and online engagement with crime stories. She found that true crime followers often get sucked into cases, compulsively using and posting on social media, developing one-sided relationships with the characters, and experiencing negative feelings surrounding the stories they follow. The study was published in Psychology of Popular Media.
Crime stories have long had an influential place in the media, from lurid Victorian-era newspapers to TV shows like Forensic Files. But a recent proliferation of crime news on platforms like Reddit, TikTok, and X has enabled social media users to constantly check their devices for case updates, says Coduto, a BU College of Communication assistant professor of media science. She’s an expert on how people present themselves and interact with others online.
“I thought it was interesting how people started relying on social media as the first entrance point into a story, rather than maybe somewhere to look at what other people were thinking,” says Coduto, whose previous studies have examined online dating and technology use. “It felt like social media was very quickly becoming an authority for a lot of people.”
In a previous study, Coduto analyzed the January 6 insurrection, finding many turned to social media in pursuit of an unfiltered view of what was happening at the Capitol, trusting an online perspective above that of the legacy media. When the disappearance of 22-year-old van life vlogger Gabby Petito made national headlines later in 2021, and social media commenters began flooding the influencer’s channels with well-wishes—and her boyfriend’s with accusations—Coduto says she saw the potential to expand her research into studying crime news.
The Brink spoke with Coduto about her findings, including why people become so obsessed with true crime, the role of news platforms and social media companies in sustaining the fascination, and how following these stories may be harmful to our well-being.
Q&A
with Kathryn D. Coduto
The Brink: What types of crime cases did you find people followed the most, and why?
Coduto: There is something unique about crime stories because crime feels like something that could happen to any of us. People were interested in stories that were close to home. That adds to that feeling of, maybe I can help solve this because I know the area, I know people nearby, or I know what clues to look for. Also, the national scope of a story can influence the number of followers that it gets. This study happened to go live right when the University of Idaho students were murdered—that was one where people were like, I almost can’t escape this story, so now I’m invested in it.
The other thing that plays a part is when a crime is kind of weird. While this survey was coming together, the [Idaho] killer hadn’t been found, and there were many strange clues and weird pieces; it was clear this was not your typical homicide. And, certainly, the stories that people most often mention contain that “Missing White Woman Syndrome”—meaning, research shows that when white women go missing, they do tend to get more media attention. In this study, nearly every case that people mentioned, there was a white woman who was either missing or murdered.
The Brink: Why do people feel the need to directly involve themselves in a case, often to the point where they become citizen sleuths?
Coduto: I think there are a couple of things at play; one of them is just the mass amount of information available online. For a lot of people, especially people who are spending a lot of time on social media, they might feel like they are better equipped to navigate the online information environment. We’ve also seen evidence in other true crime stories of police not doing their best work or family members hiding things. Previous media stories inform what people are thinking about ongoing stories, and they think that they’re going to find those clues that people missed in previous stories. One of the things I talk about in the paper is forensic fandom. Forensic fandom says that you are learning from previous media experiences, and you’re going to become the citizen journalist that helps crack the code.
There is also a level of investment and wanting a solution. Crime news stories create a lot of uncertainty [and], if you’ve developed a relationship with a character in the story, you might feel like you need to know what happened to this person, even if you’re not related to them. I also think some of it comes from a fear of missing out. If you’ve spent all this time trying to find and put clues together, and then you’re offline and the case gets solved, it’s like, oh man, I missed the biggest part of all.
The Brink: How do social media users develop parasocial relationships—a one-sided connection with a media persona—within crime cases? And has increased involvement done more harm than good?
Coduto: In this study, what I asked people was not so much about harming the case, but what would make them post to a victim’s or perpetrator’s account or not. There was a lot of concern about the interpersonal outcomes of what a victim’s or perpetrator’s family might feel. Some people said, “I’m commenting because I want the family of the victim to know that I support them, I don’t want them to feel alone.” People posted a lot on Brian Laundrie’s account [Gabby Petito’s boyfriend], because they were like, it’s a chance to hold someone accountable. Again, we could debate whether it’s really holding them accountable, but I think it gave people a sense of control, even from a distance. More people said, “I don’t post because I feel like that could be interfering; it could make the family uncomfortable.”
The Brink: How does following these true crime cases negatively impact a social media user’s well-being?
It’s conceptualized in a lot of different ways. In my studies, the one that we’re talking about right now is compulsive use. You’re getting people who are saying, I literally can’t help but post and engage.
There was a relationship between having that parasocial relationship and feeling worse about the case—so having negative feelings about the crime and the feeling of needing to disconnect. That makes sense, because if you are feeling like you really understand the victim or the perpetrator, you probably are going to feel worse, because now you’re not just seeing a story, you’re seeing a human element to it. There are also relationships between the crime posting overall and needing to disconnect. A lot of these crimes are really violent. So even if you don’t have that strong parasocial relationship, just reading about that kind of violent interaction and death is not great for you. There were gender differences based on women experiencing a greater connection with victims, but then also feeling like they needed to disconnect more. You’re seeing women say, I feel a need to be engaged, I feel an understanding of what maybe a victim could have or has gone through, but I also need to take a step back, because it feels too real.
The Brink: What implications does this study have for how the news media covers crime stories and the role of social media companies in spreading them? Should they be doing something different?
I do think so. Looking at it from that news reporting perspective, I think the first thing is to say: What makes this newsworthy? Is it because there’s a missing white woman, because that is often the barometer of, are we going to cover this or not? I think there needs to be really careful consideration about how we place value on different victims. I also think there is an obligation for news and news reporters to say, are we playing into this compulsive engagement? Are we providing substantial updates, or are we just throwing stuff out into our feeds that isn’t really an update? Everyone has a role to play in managing the online information environment, particularly around true crime. A lot of these social media corporations didn’t anticipate having people invest themselves in crimes through their platforms; I think a Meta platform like Instagram or Facebook probably has an obligation to limit those comments, or to even limit the visibility of the profile [of a victim or alleged perpetrator]. I remain unconvinced that there is any real evidence there that law enforcement couldn’t find on their own.
The Brink: What does this study mean for the average social media user, and where do we go from here?
One key takeaway is remembering to give yourself space from any kind of news story, but especially a crime story, where you’re consuming material that is violent and uncomfortable and often very graphic. It’s important to remember that it’s very rare for a single citizen sleuth to solve a case, and I think people who are really invested in these cases need to think about if they’re invested because they care about a victim, or if they care about themselves. Should you be having that level of relationship with someone who has either gone through or done something horrible? Probably not.
In this study, people are compulsively using social media, and they can’t stop posting. If you’re in a place where you’re posting so frequently that you’re lost in your own posts, I think it’s good to say, I need a break. People very easily feel like the technology controls them, and that is simply not the case. I tell my students this all the time: you’re the ones with the agency, and you need to remember that.
One of my goals is having a complementary piece to see if this is harming these cases, and can we get law enforcement to confirm that or not? My hope would be that if you have multiple police officers or detectives saying, we’re glad that the community cares, but these tips on our Facebook aren’t helping, maybe that then reduces some of the posting. I’ve been interviewing detectives for that other perspective.
This interview was edited for clarity and length.
Comments & Discussion
Boston University moderates comments to facilitate an informed, substantive, civil conversation. Abusive, profane, self-promotional, misleading, incoherent or off-topic comments will be rejected. Moderators are staffed during regular business hours (EST) and can only accept comments written in English. Statistics or facts must include a citation or a link to the citation.