The Sensationalization of Missing and Murdered Women
How the case of Gabby Petito showcases a larger issue in true crime media
By: Ella Norman
In September, 22-year-old Gabby Petito’s case spread like wildfire. When you Google her, there are more than 100 million results. On TikTok, hashtags related to her case have up to 1.5 billion views. Scrolling through the videos, you can see a range of content: amateur sleuths analyzing her Instagram posts, conspiracy theories, mediums claiming to be in communication with her, footage from her YouTube channel, and countless others. In this sea of content, it's hard to remember that everyone involved in the case is real, and this isn't a fictional story. It's easy to fall into the rabbit hole, getting sucked into the case, the videos, and the “evidence.” You get so wrapped up in the story, the sensational tale of a young white woman and her seemingly suspicious fiance, that it's easy to forget that it’s real.
But how would Petito’s parents feel about the countless videos picking apart her life and theirs? Moreover, do we spare a single thought for the victim in each true crime podcast, documentary, and limited series we consume? It's easy to turn on a documentary and forget that it's about real people or tune into a podcast where you're fed the grisly details in between ad breaks. We are obsessed with true crime. Maybe there's something appealing about the nature of a whodunit or the excitement of trying to piece together a mystery. There are products and experiences targeted towards this fascination: escape rooms, murder mystery parties, and board games. But it's hard to rationalize this fascination when it's about a real tragedy. And while it might be fun to pick apart each post on Petito’s Instagram or theorize that her fiance's love of “Fight Club” was a sign of murderous intentions, the tragedy of a young woman shouldn’t be parceled out for public consumption in this manner. It might feel like it's helpful, but how helpful is sharing bodycam footage of a woman crying meant to be?
Another thought should be spared for the countless missing and murdered women around the country who will not get TikTok conspiracy videos or a media frenzy. Are these women not deserving of the resources that the country has poured into Petito’s case? While her case was becoming public knowledge, an important debate about the nature of our fascination was also occurring. The photos and videos showed a young white woman. Her image dwarfed the countless cases of missing and murdered women of color who rarely get attention from investigators and the media. A report from the University of Wyoming found that the homicide rate for Indigenous women was 6.4 times higher than that of white women. Between 2011 and 2020, 710 Indigenous women were reported missing in the state. But we don't necessarily see podcast episodes or Netflix documentaries about these women, and many of these cases will never get any public or media attention.
This speaks to a phenomenon that many call “missing white woman syndrome,” and it touches on the disproportionate media coverage of affluent white women in comparison to women who are non-white and non-affluent. White women are also privileged in news coverage because it often focuses on them being mothers and daughters, while news coverage of Black women is more likely to touch on a troubled past or abusive partner. There is clear inequality in the attention that these cases receive, both in the underreporting of these cases and the amount of resources that they receive. So if we want to keep feeding our fascination with true crime, we have to acknowledge that the genre is biased towards stories about white people.
I can only hope that the amount of coverage that Petito’s case has received can be more equitably distributed and that these cases can be solved or prevented. And hopefully Petito is brought to justice, and her family and friends can receive some closure. Unfortunately, at the same time, there are countless cases of non-white, non-affluent victims whose family and friends may never recieve it.