1.

Record Nr.

UNINA9910795639303321

Autore

Kaplan Paul <1968->

Titolo

Crimesploitation : crime, punishment, and pleasure on reality television / / Paul Kaplan and Daniel LaChance

Pubbl/distr/stampa

Stanford, California : , : Stanford University Press, , [2022]

©2022

ISBN

1-5036-3174-5

Edizione

[First edition.]

Descrizione fisica

1 online resource (180 p.)

Collana

The cultural lives of law

Disciplina

791.456556

Soggetti

True crime television programs - United States - History and criticism

Reality television programs - United States - History and criticism

Crime on television

Punishment on television

Lingua di pubblicazione

Inglese

Formato

Materiale a stampa

Livello bibliografico

Monografia

Note generali

Description based upon print version of record.

Nota di bibliografia

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Nota di contenuto

Introduction : the disciplined and the delinquent -- Humilitainment, Inc. : policing the criminal on primetime -- Watching the night creatures : crimesploitation and boredom -- Cuffs of love : punishment and redemption in crimesploitation -- Middlebrow crimesploitation -- Epilogue : w(h)ither crimesploitation?

Sommario/riassunto

"Due to the graphic nature of this program, viewer discretion is advised." Most of us have encountered this warning while watching television at some point. It is typically attached to a brand of reality crime TV that Paul Kaplan and Daniel LaChance call "crimesploitation": spectacles designed to entertain mass audiences by exhibiting "real" criminal behavior and its consequences. This book examines their enduring popularity in American culture. Analyzing the structure and content of several popular crimesploitation shows, including Cops, Dog: The Bounty Hunter, and To Catch a Predator, as well as newer examples like Making a Murderer and Don't F**K with Cats, Kaplan and LaChance highlight the troubling nature of the genre: though it presents itself as ethical and righteous, its entertainment value hinges upon suffering. Viewers can imagine themselves as deviant and ungovernable like the criminals in the show, thereby escaping a law-



abiding lifestyle. Alternatively, they can identify with law enforcement officials, exercising violence, control, and "justice" on criminal others. Crimesploitation offers a sobering look at the depictions of criminals, policing, and punishment in modern America.