How the Media Treat Murder

[Valasca]

Ten women have been found slain or have been declared missing in Rocky Mount, N.C., in recent years. But the rest of the country hasn't heard about a possible serial killer stalking the young women in this Southern town of 60,000. The latest victim, Elizabeth Jane Smallwood, was identified on Oct. 12. Why have the Rocky Mount homicides been largely ignored?

"When you think about the famous missing-person cases over the last few years it's Chandra Levy, Natalee Holloway, and Laci Peterson," notes Sam Sommers, associate professor of psychology at Tufts University. All these women had a few things in common—they were white, educated, and came from middle-class families. The victims in Rocky Mount—which residents describe as a "typical Southern town," and is about 40 percent white and more than 50 percent black—were different. They were all African-American, many were poor, and some had criminal histories including drug abuse and prostitution.



"If it was someone of a different race, things would have been dealt with the first time around; it wouldn't have taken the fifth or sixth person to be murdered," says Andre Knight, a city-council member and president of the local NAACP chapter. "All these women knew each other and lived in the same neighborhood; this is the sign of a potential serial killer. When it didn't get the kind of attention it needed, it made the African-American community frustrated."

Rumors are running rampant around the town about the identity of the serial killer. There is not much physical evidence, leading some to speculate it's a former law-enforcement officer or someone in the military. Others have deduced that the killer is targeting specific women as a form of revenge for contracting HIV from a prostitute. Along with Smallwood, the murders of Taraha Nicholson, 28, Jarniece Hargrove, 31, Ernestine Battle, 50, Jackie Nikelia Thorpe, 35, Melody Wiggins, 29, and Denise Williams, 21, remain unsolved. Authorities are also searching for Yolanda Lancaster, 37, Joyce Renee Durham, 46, and Christine Boone, 43.

http://www.newsweek.com/id/218911

[DamagedGoods]

This reminds me of the suspected serial killer case in British Columbia, that never seems to get the attention it should, most of the victims being aboriginal... its depressing :(

[dougxthexwookie]

So if i wanted to kill people and get away with it I should just make sure they're poor, hookers, minorities and/or criminals and drug addicts... Makes sense.

[carolinablue]

down here Derek Todd Lee was all over the news accused (and convicted) of killing young, attractive white women; including a friend of mine, Pam Kinamore. no attention was paid to the serial killer in New Orleans who killed black prostitutes and left their bodies under overpasses. i think that was back in the early 90's or maybe even the 80's. i had forgotten also, your post brought it to mind...i'm going to try to find the story. also, right now there is a serial killer loose in Jennings, La. his victims, again, have "high risk" lifestyles. what's unusual is that all the victims knew each other and some were related. you have to hunt for these stories, and even then the coverage is perfunctory at best. the combination of racism and classism has created a pool of "acceptable" victims. poor, minority, disenfranchised, homeless, addicted, high-risk lifestyles; as different from middle class, pretty white women as you can get. we give lip service to "nobody deserves to be murdered", but the underlying attitude of "well, what can you expect", is all too close to the surface.

[Whisper]

Mother of Missing Woman Still Waiting
The mother of a missing North Carolina woman is still awaiting word from authorities about the fate of her daughter in a Font Size: The mother of a missing North Carolina woman is still awaiting word from authorities about the fate of her daughter in a case where seven bodies have already been found.

While Juray Tucker is glad that 37-year-old Yolanda Lancaster hasn't been found, Tucker doesn't like the uncertainty of not knowing what happened.

Lancaster was reported missing in February 2009. Last month, the North Carolina National Guard searched Edgecombe County but turned up no additional bodies.

Police say they are continuing to investigate the slayings as Antwan Maurice Pittman waits for a trial in one murder case and is considered a suspect in four others slayings.
[...]

http://www.witn.com/news/headlines/93197524.html

[Abroad]

http://www.truecrimereport.com/2009/...an_have_po.php

http://www.rockymounttelegram.com/ne...-killer-119547


And the case for one murder has started:

http://www.wral.com/news/local/story/10166920/

[Abroad]

There is a lot of stuff being written about how these women were not treated as as "important" as middle-class white murder victims; but I confess it all rings a little bit hollow when one learns that some of them weren't even reported missing. I know there is bias in the media; but if their own families cannot be bothered to report them missing........ It has to start somewhere, and half the time the reason middle-class women get press is that their families call favours in and keep pushing. They aren't all blonde and blue-eyed fashion plates.