Serial killers communicate in a number of ways with the public, and here Gibson profiles ten notorious serial murderers and their crime scene messages, telephone calls to police, media contacts, and other communications methods to discover what that can tell us about the killers themselves.
Acknowledgments
Dedication
List of Illustrations
Introduction
The Son of Sam
The DC Sniper
The Mad Butcher
The Unabomber
The Zodiac
The BTK Strangler
John Robinson Sr.
Jack the Ripper
William Heirens
The Black Dahlia Avenger
Conclusion
Selected Bibliography
Index
DIRK C. GIBSON is Associate Professor of Communication and Journalism at the University of New Mexico. He has published numerous articles on a variety of topics in such journals as Public Relations Quarterly, Public Relations Review, and Southern Communication Journal. He has also published several book chapters and one book, The Role of Communication in the Practice of Law (1991).
"This book provides audiences with an extensive amount of
information.... Gibson's book allows all readers to understand and
appreciate the complexity of this topic. It is an excellent
introduction to the subject."-Deborah L. Laufersweiler-Dwyer,
Associate Professor of Criminal Justice University of Arkansas,
Little Rock
"Gibson organizes his book one case at a time, describing the
criminals, crimes, victims, investigations, community, reactions,
and the role of communication, including rhetoric, journalism, and
public relations, in all aspects of these events. The book is
clearly written and efficiently organized so that anyone interested
just in public relations techniques, for example, can find that
information quickly. Taken together, his case studies point to the
troubling downside of mass press coverage of these horrific crimes.
"Media circuses," he argues, have hindered investigations, harmed
victims families, and created panic....[G]ibson's case studies,
and, in particular, his conclusions and recommendations could
inspire a lively debate among both journalism and public relations
students about the role of media in these high-profile crimes and
investigations."-Journalism History
?Does the author achieve the 'primary purpose' of his book - to
enhance our understanding of serial killers? In my view he does, by
giving the reader an insight into the mindset of the various,
individual serial killers that are studied in this interesting and
informative book.?-Internet Law Book Reviews
?Gibson organizes his book one case at a time, describing the
criminals, crimes, victims, investigations, community, reactions,
and the role of communication, including rhetoric, journalism, and
public relations, in all aspects of these events. The book is
clearly written and efficiently organized so that anyone interested
just in public relations techniques, for example, can find that
information quickly. Taken together, his case studies point to the
troubling downside of mass press coverage of these horrific crimes.
"Media circuses," he argues, have hindered investigations, harmed
victims families, and created panic....[G]ibson's case studies,
and, in particular, his conclusions and recommendations could
inspire a lively debate among both journalism and public relations
students about the role of media in these high-profile crimes and
investigations.?-Journalism History
"Does the author achieve the 'primary purpose' of his book - to
enhance our understanding of serial killers? In my view he does, by
giving the reader an insight into the mindset of the various,
individual serial killers that are studied in this interesting and
informative book."-Internet Law Book Reviews
 |
Ask a Question About this Product More... |
|
