English: Faculty Publications
Depicting a 21st-Century Crime Family
Document Type
Contribution to Book
Publication Date
6-30-2026
Publication Title
Televising True Crime in the Digital Age: Critical Feminist Perspectives
DOI
10.4324/9781003475781-10
ISBN
9781032758206
Abstract
In February 2023, the day before Alex Murdaugh took the stand in his own defense in the trial for the 2021 murders of his wife and son, Netflix released a docuseries on the family, Murdaugh Murders: A Southern Scandal. This docuseries is one of many media investigations of the powerful Murdaugh family contributing to what this chapter names “the Murdaugh multiverse.” This chapter analyzes the melodramatic themes that appear across texts in the Murdaugh multiverse to argue that this saga appeals to audiences because it dramatizes how the justice system gives “little people” the power to convict a local power player. Within a cultural context where white-collar crime is rarely punished, Murdaugh's schemes have publicly unraveled and the justice system has held him accountable. The true crime explorations of the family dynasty and its downfall within the melodramatic Murdaugh multiverse shore up the fantasy that ordinary citizens can testify against wealthy and powerful criminals and see results, that technological surveillance can be used for good, and that justice is ultimately served.
Recommended Citation
Konkle, Amanda, "Depicting a 21st-Century Crime Family" (2026). English: Faculty Publications. 73.
https://digitalcommons.georgiasouthern.edu/english-facpubs/73
Copyright
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