How the true crime series “The Erik and Lyle Menendez Story” could impact her resentencing

For true crime fans, the hit series “Monsters” on Netflix is ​​entertaining and informative. However, mixing these two creates major controversy about the morality of entertainment related to violent crime.

In 1996, the Menedez brothers were convicted of murdering their parents. Since then, several documentaries and dramatizations have been released, sparking debates about the exploitation of true crime storytelling.

The first season of Monsters was “DAHMER”, which led to intense controversy due to its depiction of cannibalism, violence and intense scenes of abuse. “The Story of Erik and Lyle Menendez” is the second installment in the series and is facing backlash for allegedly inaccurately portraying their lives by showing several scenes of incestuous relationships between the brothers.

The narrative of the incestuous relationship depicted in Monster The series is not mentioned in the court documents, but is taken from theories. The view that the brothers were in an incestuous relationship involving sexual abuse is disputed by producer Ryan Murphy.

“A particularly salacious theory supposedly put forward by writer Dominick Dunne –who covered the process Vanity Fair– suggested that the two brothers may have had an incestuous relationship. Monster briefly hints at this theory as Dunne (played by Nathan Lane) offers the possibility of putting together a table of guests around a dining table. (Dunne never published this theory in his reporting for Vanity Fair),” said reporter Chris Murphy for Vanity Fair.

Erik responded in a statement posted by his wife X about producer Ryan Murphy's portrayal of the brothers. “It is sad for me to know that Netflix's dishonest portrayal of the tragedies surrounding our crime has set the painful truths back several steps – back to a time when the prosecution built a narrative on the belief that men are not sexual were abused. and that men experienced rape trauma differently than women.”

True crime can be shown through two different types of media – infotainment and investigative reporting. Depending on how the media portrays a true crime case, viewers may develop stereotypes about the criminal justice system.

Dr. Chad Posick The Georgia Southern professor of criminal justice and criminology, who teaches popular culture and crime at Georgia Southern, explained the two.

“Infotainment means we give you some information, but it’s more for entertainment,” he said. “It could be something like The Daily Show or The Colbert Report. You get some information, but it's mostly a comedy show. And so you get some of it even more sensational Things.”

Sensationalism in infotainment series uses exciting or shocking stories at the expense of accuracy to achieve this provoke public interest or excitement.

“The second is investigative reporting, which actually leads to people coming forward and getting new cases and new information,” Posick explained. Investigative reporting can be described as podcasts like “Serial.”.

While the Menendez brothers experience firsthand the impact of true crime on the legal process, The CSI Effect shows that television shows like Law and Order and CSI influence the public's perception of the justice system. The effect shows that jurors rely heavily on forensic evidence and believe it to be 100% accurate.

Dr. Posick explains that without intensive forensic evidence, jurors may throw out evidence entirely and instead rely on public perception. This may explain why the Menedez brothers' jury was “stuck” or deadlocked in their first trial. Her second trial resulted in prosecutors failing to use evidence of abuse in justifying their verdict, claiming it was “lies.”

New evidence has emerged that could help in the re-conviction process, including a handwritten letter to Erik's cousin detailing the abuse before the murders. Documentations Menendez + Menudo: Betrayed Boysprovides evidence in which the former member of the boy band Menudo comments on his abuse at the age of 14. However, the contrast between investigative podcasts and entertaining television shows could have an impact on the jury's perception of the brothers.

Much true crime media has been controversial because it allows victims and their families to relive the abuse and crimes committed against them. This is particularly true of the Dahmer Series that portrayed escaped victim Tracy Edwards. His abuse was detailed in “DAHMER”. show.

Georgia Southern Assistant Professor of Sociology Alicia Brunson explains that true crime media is created within the framework of freedom of expression, but there must be a balance between presenting accurate information and gaining a comprehensive perspective.

“I want there to be different perspectives so we don't just glorify and then become desensitized to see how cool the criminal is, he's famous now,” Brunson said.

“When producers do this, they have to understand the impact of the media,” Brunson said. “We actually learn from the media. I think we should all be aware of how we consume this media as consumers, think critically about it and also think about the possible impact of these media creations.”

The Menendez brothers will be tried again on November 26, just over two months since the release of “Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story.”