I used to be a regular consumer of crime television however in recent times since studying Criminology at university my interest has decreased. This is particularly evident in my current lack of interest in fictional forms of crime media, preferring to regularly read or view crime news and occasionally watch crime reality TV shows. Whether or not this decrease in media consumption is related to lack of spare time or clashing of genre preferences with my housemates and other friends I don’t know, but I do know that rarely I will sit down and watch a crime show alone on TV.
Previously I really enjoyed the fictional crime shows CSI: Crime Scene Investigation and Cold Case, they were you could say the ‘inspiration’ behind my career choice. I enjoyed the way I was involved in the guessing game as to who committed the crime - being a viewer meant I was part of the investigation team. However since taking up criminology, which is nothing like I thought it would be as my thoughts were based on many of the mainstream sources of media, I have realised that such shows are not realistic and therefore my interest in non-fiction media was further stimulated. While I enjoyed watching reality crime shows such as Forensic Investigators prior to this, I enjoy them a lot more now. While they still lack a lot of the realistic aspects of the jobs they portray, they are fascinating to watch, for example, the science behind forensic investigations is pretty cool.
During high school I would religiously watch CSI: Crime Scene Investigation and Cold Case routinely, but nowadays I would never plan to watch any crime show at the same time each week. I hardly ever find myself sitting in front of the TV alone, but if I were flicking through the channels the crime shows (fictional or non-fictional) would definitely be first choice. Above all though, I really enjoy and most regularly consume crime news and current affairs. I would say up to ten times per day I read the Sydney Morning Herald online and while I had never really noticed until now, I usually only read the crime stories. Similarly I really enjoy watching crime reports on programs such as A Current Affair or 60 Minutes. These shows are the one type of media I will ‘plan’ to watch – if I see a good crime story advertised I am immediately sucked in and want to watch the rest. Just to finish off and give you an idea of the sort of thing that interests me I recommend watching this story that appeared about six months ago now about the James Bulger killers entitled ‘Beyond Redemption’ (see link http://sixtyminutes.ninemsn.com.au/article.aspx?id=1079602). See if that sparks your interest as it does mine...
References
60 Minutes, 1979 – present, television series, Channel Nine, Australia
A Current Affair, 1988 – present, television series, Channel Nine, Australia
Cold Case, 2003 – 2010, television series, CBS, the United States of America
CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, 2000 – present, television series, CBS, the United States of America
Forensic Investigators, 2004 – 2006, Channel Seven, Australia
The Sydney Morning Herald Online, 2011 <http://smh.com.au>
That's interesting how your habits have changed. Have you been disappointed that criminology is not like you thought it would be, or have you been pleased by your choice to study it? Hopefully the latter :)
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