Using Murder

First published in 1994, this book investigates the social construction of serial homicide and assesses the concern that popular fears and stereotypes have exaggerated: the actual scale of multiple homcide. Jenkins has produced an innovative synthesis of approaches to social problem construction that includes an historical and social-scientific estimate of the objective scale of serial murder; a rhetorical analysis of the contruction of the phenomenom in public debate; a cultural studies-oriented analysis of the portrayal of serial murder in contemorary media. Chapters include: "The Construction of Problems and Panic," which covers areas such as comprehending murder, dangerous outsiders, and the rhetoric of perscution; "The Reality of Serial Murder," which discusses statistics, stereotype examination, and media patterns;"Popular Culture: Images of the Serial Killer"; "The Racial Dimension: Serial Murder as Bias Crime"; and "Darker than We Imagine"; "Cults and Conspiracies."

In the last decade, serial murder has become a source of major concern for law enforcement agencies, while the serial killer has attracted widespread interest as a villain in popular culture. There is no doubt, however, that popular fears and stereotypes have vastly exaggerated the actual scale of multiple homicide activity. In assessing the concern and the interest, Jenkins has produced an innovative synthesis of approaches to social problem construction. It includes an historical and social-scientific estimate of the objective scale of serial murder; a rhetorical analysis of the construction of the phenomenon in public debate; and a cultural studies-oriented analysis of the portrayal of serial murder in contemporary literature, film, and the mass media. Using Murder suggests that a problem of this sort can only be understood in the context of its political and rhetorical dimension; that fears of crime and violence are valuable for particular constituencies and interest groups, which put them to their own uses. In part, these agendas are bureaucratic, in the sense that exaggerated concern about the offense generates support for criminal justice agencies. But other forces are at work in the culture at large, where serial murder has become an invaluable rhetorical weapon in public debates over issues like gender, race, and sexual orientation. Serial murder is worthy of study not so much for its intrinsic significance, but rather for what it suggests about the concerns, needs, and fears of the society that has come to portray it as an “ultimate evil.” Using Murder is a highly original study of a powerful contemporary mythology by a criminologist and historian versed in the constructionist literature on the origins of “moral panics.”

In the last decade, serial murder has become a source of major concern for law enforcement agencies, while the serial killer has attracted widespread interest as a villain in popular culture. There is no doubt, however, that popular fears and stereotypes have vastly exaggerated the actual scale of multiple homicide activity. In assessing the concern and the interest, Jenkins has produced an innovative synthesis of approaches to social problem construction. It includes an historical and social-scientific estimate of the objective scale of serial murder; a rhetorical analysis of the construction of the phenomenon in public debate; and a cultural studies-oriented analysis of the portrayal of serial murder in contemporary literature, film, and the mass media. Using Murder suggests that a problem of this sort can only be understood in the context of its political and rhetorical dimension; that fears of crime and violence are valuable for particular constituencies and interest groups, which put them to their own uses. In part, these agendas are bureaucratic, in the sense that exaggerated concern about the offense generates support for criminal justice agencies. But other forces are at work in the culture at large, where serial murder has become an invaluable rhetorical weapon in public debates over issues like gender, race, and sexual orientation. Serial murder is worthy of study not so much for its intrinsic significance, but rather for what it suggests about the concerns, needs, and fears of the society that has come to portray it as an “ultimate evil.” Using Murder is a highly original study of a powerful contemporary mythology by a criminologist and historian versed in the constructionist literature on the origins of “moral panics.”

"The Rue Morgue Murders" is a pioneering tale in the mystery genre, in which detective Auguste Dupin uses his acute observation and logic to solve a brutal double murder in Paris, revealing a surprising and unusual outcome.

Why is it so much fun to read about death and dismemberment? In Murder Book, lifelong true-crime obsessive and New Yorker cartoonist Hilary Fitzgerald Campbell tries to puzzle out the answer. An unconventional graphic exploration of a lifetime of Ann Rule super-fandom, amateur armchair sleuthing, and a deep dive into the high-profile murders that have fascinated the author for decades, this is a funny, thoughtful, and highly personal blend of memoir, cultural criticism, and true crime with a focus on the often-overlooked victims of notorious killers.

An explosive investigation into the death of an American hero and the case of the "American Taliban."

Tom Mason, Chicago area high school teacher, has been teaching at Grover Cleveland High School for a while - long enough to loathe the faculty meetings and long enough to know that as bad as they are, they aren't fatal. Usually. Having had all he can take of the endless bickering, picking and factional disputes, he sneaks out of the meeting for a short break only to find the meeting over when he returns, the usual suspects having departed to the four winds. Having decided that this was a sign of his good fortune, he decides to see if the stockroom actually has the supplies he needs. What he finds there however is a trysting couple in the dark (one married, the other not) and, once the light is turned on, a dead body in the corner. The body is that of one of his colleagues who stormed out of the faculty meeting earlier, a blackboard eraser stuffed into her lifeless mouth. Having disappeared from the meeting at roughly the same time, Tom finds himself in the unwelcome position of prime suspect and with the help of his husband, former baseball player Scott Carpenter, he'll have to figure out who really killed the other teacher before the crime is pinned on him.

Tom is looking forward to spending spring break in Mexico with his girlfriend, Kat. Her father, an FBI agent, has invited Tom to join them at a fancy Cancun resort for some much-needed R&R. But when the daughter of a local law-enforcement officer goes missing, Kat's dad is pulled into the investigation. Soon after, Tom notices a yacht in the marina with a suspicious-looking crew and a kid matching the missing girl's description. Investigating further could lead Tom into the dangerous world of ruthless Mexican drug cartels. Mayan Murder continues the story started in River Traffic.