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Media influence on the public
Media influence on the public
Impact of the media today
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It’s early 1977, and New York is in a state of panic. For the past year, a serial killer has been prowling the streets. He owns no known name or face; the public cannot identify him. He could be someone’s next door neighbor or the guy that delivers their mail every morning. Maybe he’s the one who always complains about the barking dog down the street. Or maybe, just maybe, he’s all of the above. But for the state of New York, he’s simply known as the “.44 Caliber Killer,” named after his weapon of choice. Someone opens their newspaper that afternoon, they see the astonishing news: the killer has finally given himself a name in a letter written to police. The .44 Caliber Killer, whose true identity still will not be known by police for a couple more months, has declared that he shall be called the Son of Sam. The Son of Sam, or David Berkowitz as it would eventually be revealed, had his debut on July 29, 1976. It was late at night, and two young women were talking in their car when, to their great surprise, David shot them both, killing one. Since it was the first of the attacks, police assumed it was a random isolated incident (Newton 16). When the killer continued to strike, usually shooting at young women or couples in the middle of the night, the public began to notice a pattern. In an attempt to protect themselves from being the serial killer’s next target, many females “cut their hair, wore hats to hide it, or routinely wore it up” since it appeared that his targets usually were “women with long, brown hair” (Cannon). Apparently attempting to taunt them, the Son of Sam began writing letters to newspapers and police. This prompted New York Daily News journalist Jimmy Breslin to comment that the Son of Sam was “... ... middle of paper ... ...p://sks.sirs.com.nctproxy.mnpals.net/cgi-bin/hst-article-display?id=SMN13484-0-5039&artno=0000109805&type=ART&shfilter=U&key=son%20of%20sam&title=Crime%20Stories%20of%20the%20Century&res=Y&ren=N&go>. Chan, Sewell. "30 Years Since the Summer of Sam." New York Times 6 Aug. 2007. Web. 20 Nov. 2013. . Dodenhoff, Peter. "A Summer To Remember." John Jay 2007: 7-9. Web. 20 Nov. 2013. . McFadden, Robert D. "Postal Worker Traced Through Car Believed Used in Getaways." New York Times 10 Aug. 1977: A1. Web. 20 Nov. 2013. . Newton, Michael. "BERKOWITZ, David Richard." The Encyclopedia of Serial Killers. 2nd ed. New York: Facts On File, Inc, 2006. 16-19. Web. 14 Nov. 2013.
Buckman, Adam. “Following Footsteps of a Killer.” New York Post (Nov. 2002): 124: Proquest. Web. 28 Feb. 2014
Sam Houston was a great man in our history. He stood up for what he believed was good for the Union not the North or the South. When Sam was rebuked for providing the winning margin for his opponents he said “I know neither North nor South; I know only the Union.” He also said everyone “…must stand firm to the Union, regardless of all personal consequences.” He was fiercely ambitious, yet at the end he sacrificed for principle all he had ever won or wanted. He was a Southerner, and yet he steadfastly maintained his loyalty to the Union. He could be all things to all men—and yet, when faced with his greatest challenge, he was faithful to himself and to Texas.
Scott, A.O. “A New Year, and a Last Day Alive.” The New York Times. The New York Times,
Michael Kirk and Peter J. Boyer. (2000, January 18). The killer at Thurston High. May 5, 2010, by FrontLine: http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/kinkel/etc/script.html
Investigative Reports: Inside the Killer's Mind. Perf. Arthur Shawcross. A&E Television Networks, 2000. Web. 28 Feb. 2014.
Bardsley, Marilyn. "Murder!" Charles Manson and the Manson Family — — Crime Library. N.p., n.d. Web. 12 Mar. 2014.
David Berkowitz, otherwise known as the “Son of Sam”, was notorious for his crimes committed between 1976 and 1977 that ended the lives of six innocent victims and wounded several others in New York (“David Berkowitz Biography”, n.d.). At first, police did not make a connection between the murders because there was nothing unusual about them; all the victims were shot with a 40 caliber gun, not fairly unusual during this time or place especially since the killings were over an extended period of time. Police finally made the connection when Berkowitz began to live behind notes that were meant to tantalize authorities since they had yet to catch him (“David Berkowitz| Son of Sam Killer,” 2015). Often times, the psychological structure of a human
One well-known serial killer is Gary Ridgway. Ridgway was born in February of 1949 in Salt Lake City, Utah. His early life can be viewed as an indicator to his la...
Serial killers are everywhere! Well, perhaps not in our neighborhood, but on our television screens, at the movie theaters, and in rows and rows of books at our local Borders or Barnes and Nobles Booksellers” (Brown). When people think of serial killers, names such as Dahmer, Gacy, Bundy, and Gein are cited. During the time Jack the Ripper was executing his victims in London, Holmes began his gruesome career in Chicago (America’s Serial Killers). “Despite being America’s first serial killer, Holmes is hardly a familiar name and until now we haven’t had any popular visual record of his crimes: (Spikol). Why is it that people only think of the more popular killers with higher known profiles? They are all very similar to one another because they share characteristics. H.H. Holmes was a successful serial killer because he was well educated, cunning and charming. Those are just a few traits Holmes ...
...is own. In an overall assessment of this book, Martin comes to the conclusion that “Campbell has succeeded in providing a thoughtful, very readable, and eminently useful survey of a fluid, exciting, and fascinating period of United States and Texas history through the lens of the life of the greatest Texas hero of them all” showing that Martin as well as Campbell seemed to be very fascinated by the heroism of Sam Houston (The Journal of Southern History, 60, November 1994, 796).
Berns, Walter. "Getting Away With Murder." Commentary 97.4 (1994): 25. MAS Ultra - School Edition. Web. 14
Introduction: On the spectrum of criminal activity, serial killers are rather rare. Rarer still is a serial killer like Ted Bundy. Bundy confessed to killing 28 women in the 1970s in ghastly fashion and some believe he may have killed far more. It is hard to imagine what could cause any person to cross the mental boundary into such macabre behavior as Bundy perpetrated. Nevertheless, it is important to try to understand that behavior because only though such an understanding would society be able to identify and deter mass murderers in order to save lives.
One of the prime examples of a young sociopath turned murderer is one of America’s most glorified and famous serial killers, Jeffrey Dahmer. Dahmer, also known as The...
Keeney, Belea T. and Kathleen M. Heide. 1995. “Serial Murder: A More Accurate and Inclusive
Muller, Damon A. "Criminal Profiling ." Homicide Studies 4.3 (2000): 234-364. Web. 9 Apr 2011.