Toasting with a "primetime vodka lime," After After Party host Sonia Denis and her panel made up of comedian Rebecca O'Neal, actor Matt Rogers, and actress Taylor Ortega, debated why America is so enthralled with all things true crime. Murder and mystery have taken over pop culture as TV, books, podcasts, and documentaries explore cases that very often feature crimes against women. And the obsession doesn't seem to be going anywhere. Even Kim Kardashian recently discovered Serial — albeit four years after the rest of America — the podcast that launched 1,000 true crime copy cats.
Denis brings in The New York Times writer Amanda Hess who explains the fascination with "skeevy TV" and shows that make us cringe. Hess breaks down her own interest in the genre and says our obsession is more complex than we think: "Like any woman I am surrounded by images of dead girls all the time, it's this kind of self-fulfilling prophecy where because we're told to be afraid of this I think we want to watch these shows to somehow work through that."
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Hess added: "They keep making more and we keep thinking that we're going to get murdered and so we keep watching them." The shows, like Sharp Objects, True Detective, and The Sinner, also appeal to fans who believe they can solve the crime.
As far as what it says about our culture and fans who believe they can solve the crimes, believing themselves to be a sort of detective, "We love women more when they're dead than when they're alive," says O'Neal.
Watch the full video, below:
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