True crime TV sheds ‘guilty pleasure’ label as it goes mainstream, new study finds

By: Communications

Streaming platforms such as Netflix have transformed true crime television from a niche, often stigmatised genre into mainstream entertainment - according to University of East Anglia (UEA) research.

A new study examines how the TV industry talks about true crime audiences and finds that the genre’s rising prestige is closely tied to changing perceptions of who watches it, particularly women.

Based on interviews with UK TV industry professionals, including producers, commissioners and executives, the research, led by UEA’s Prof Su Holmes provides rare insight into how those working behind the scenes imagine and define true crime audiences.

From niche to mainstream

True crime has long been associated with women, particularly older viewers, and framed as a low-status “guilty pleasure.”

However, the research finds that streaming platforms have broadened their audiences to include younger viewers and men, raised production values, and helped reposition the genre as mainstream and culturally valued.

Prof Holmes, from UEA’s School of Media, Language and Communication Studies, said: “True crime offers a fascinating window into how television is changing in the streaming era, and how our ideas about who watches TV are changing too.”

Why are we so fascinated by true crime?

The findings contribute to a wider cultural debate about the popularity of true crime and what it reveals about audiences.

Viewers may be drawn to true crime for many reasons, from wanting to understand criminal behaviour to engaging with stories about justice, victims and accountability.

But Prof Holmes says assumptions about women and true crime can tell us as much about cultural stereotypes as they do about audiences themselves.

She said: “The way we talk about women as the main audience for true crime can tell us as much about cultural assumptions and stereotypes as it does about who is actually watching.”

Gender, audiences and stereotypes

Despite the genre's growing popularity, the study found that industry discussions of true crime audiences often rely on traditional ideas about gender.

Women are frequently portrayed as watching true crime alone at home and being especially interested in understanding offenders' motives and the psychology behind crimes.

Prof Holmes said these perceptions have real consequences. She said: “The way we talk about audiences matters. It helps shape ideas about who they are and how they are expected to behave.”

Rebranding true crime by distancing it from women

One of the study’s key findings is that true crime’s growing popularity and respectability has been accompanied by a shift away from its long-standing association with female viewers.

Prof Holmes said: “Ideas about today’s true crime audience are often shaped by attempts to make the genre seem more mainstream and culturally valued, while moving away from older stereotypes about women who watch it.”

As true crime has become more closely associated with streaming services and prestige television, it is increasingly presented as a genre with broad appeal rather than one aimed primarily at women.

Ethics, victims and new forms of storytelling

The research also highlights growing debate about the ethics of true crime.

Many modern programmes now involve victims’ families directly, as seen in series such as The Witness.

This reflects a wider move towards telling stories from the perspective of victims and those closest to them.

But it also raises difficult questions about consent, representation and whether real-life tragedies can ever be turned into entertainment without causing harm.

Prof Holmes said: “Questions about whether true crime is ethical are closely tied to questions about what makes it valuable and worthwhile.

“The genre has to work hard to convince audiences that it is treating these stories responsibly and that it serves a purpose beyond entertainment.”

At the same time, the rise of fast-turnaround documentaries, often called ‘instadocs’, is accelerating the pace at which true crime programmes are made.

These productions are released rapidly in response to major events, raising further questions about accuracy, sensitivity and whether enough time has passed to tell these stories responsibly.

The findings suggest that, as true crime continues to evolve, questions of ethics are becoming just as important as questions of audience appeal.

Why it matters

With true crime continuing to dominate streaming platforms, the study highlights how ideas about audiences shape cultural value, and whose tastes are taken seriously.

While true crime may now be one of streaming's most successful genres, the study suggests that the assumptions used to describe its audience are still shaped by longstanding ideas about gender and cultural value.

Prof Holmes said: "Gender remains central to understanding how television is changing in the streaming era."

‘‘What Netflix Has Done Is Make It … Less of a Guilty Pleasure’: Constructing Female Audiences in Industry Discourse on True Crime Television’ is published in the Participations: Journal of Audience and Reception Studies.

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