Why I stopped watching true crime

I love horror movies, Halloween, the supernatural, and witchy vibes. For many years, I also watched true crime documentaries, which I have gladly discussed with all of my friends. I wasted countless hours reading articles about horrible crimes. Out of morbid curiosity, I have looked at crime scene photos. All of this was insanely bad for my mental health. It took me many years to realize that. Our true crime obsession has gotten to a point where there are disturbing fandoms. There are events like Crime-Con that are very similar to Comic-Con. We have convicted murderers on TikTok sharing prison hacks. There are exclusive interviews with murderers that people look forward to hearing. Most people know the killers' names but not so much the victims. I quit watching true crime for two reasons. First one, because there are killers that are now more successful than people who actually deserve it. The second and most important reason, one of my best friends was murdered by her husband. Murderers should not be given a platform. We need to quit inspiring the next one.

We make killers celebrities

Although some victims are well known, most of the time it’s the murderers that we know the name of. In this article and in all my articles, I will never use the killer's name, only the victims. An example of this is when you Google the name Lynda Ann Healy, her murderer's picture and name shows up, overshadowing her. Kathryn Bright is another one, that when you look her up, the killer shows up first. Crime-Con has that killer’s daughter who shows up as a speaker. Why are we not hearing from her dad’s victims’ children? There are murder victim’s parents at this event, but it's strange that you do a meet and greet with them, similar to going to a concert. I understand that there is an educational purpose along with spreading awareness; however, it’s disturbing to see that people are looking forward to getting an autograph from a murder victim’s mom. They sell Crime-Con merch. Right now, there are tickets for sale for the Crime-Con cruise in 2026, along with a Las Vegas event. The front page of their website gives off a party travel vibe, not at all honoring the victims. It feels like the public forgets that real people lost their lives to these monsters. Netflix is filled with murder documentaries. One murder who was recently freed (although some feel it was justified) is now making reality shows and pitching prison energy drinks on TikTok. In the years this individual was in prison instead of improving their life and taking accountability, they just used their fame to date people that wrote letters to them. After this I realized that it’s ridiculous that convicted murderers like this have a following. So many people I know work hard, are law-biding and yet are struggling to survive while a killer makes bank on social media. I full on quit watching anything related to crimes and unfollowed the accounts about it on reddit that I had followed. About four months later, the unthinkable happened and one of my friends was brutality murdered by her husband.

One you know someone who was murdered it changes your view

After she was killed, I was at another friend's house when a true crime show popped up on their TV, it deeply triggered me. I began to feel guilty about the fact that I used to spend hours consuming true crime media and now one of my best friends is a victim. I felt like it was karma coming back. People are entertained by other's deaths; this should not be happening. I started to think about how most of the shows on this subject focus on the backstory of the killer. People are more interested in the killer’s favorite sport team opposed what hopes and dreams the victim had. There are women that send in nudes to a very well-known dangerous child murder. They fail to realize this individual also killed his wife Shannan (Rzucek is her maiden name I won't use his last name in connection to her) This killer has been featured in countless shows, documentaries, podcast, and more. We need to stop saying their names so we can take away the fame that comes with the crimes they commit. If we only talked about the victims' personal lives and interest, we wouldn’t have copycat killers. No friends or families should see the killer of their loved one in a new miniseries.

This is why I won't watch true crime anymore. We can study and learn about crime without glorifying murders. Let’s focus on the stories of the victims lives while preventing future tragedy. We need to educate the public of the red flags and dangerous behaviors in individuals that can lead to this. This can all be done without saying the killer's name.