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Herb Clutter Film Analysis

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The hunt for the Clutters’ killers, Dick Hickock and Perry Smith, mesmerized the nation and left a lasting impact in Kansas, drawing journalists from across the country to the rural outpost on the Kansas prairie (Huffington Post). An unremarkable New York Times article, which was considerably small and short, at approximately 300 words, grabbed viewers and drew the audience. The column reported the Clutter family murder in the tiny farm town of Holcomb, Kansas on the Great Plains. “Popular headlines surrounding the Clutter family murders were often along the lines of ‘Wealthy Farmer, 3 Of Family Slain” with a photo of Herb Clutter which left residents in shock and dismay that a horrific crime marred the serene and presumably safe landscapes …show more content…

In a riveting documentary, Charlie Otero, one of the surviving children of the Blind, Torture, and Kill (B.T.K.) killer discussed the impact Capote’s writing had on Dennis Rader, Otero specifically blamed Capote for planting ideas of murder into the B.T.K.’s imagination. The documentary, I Survived B.T.K. ends with the assertion that “Rader admitted to being sexually aroused by the thought of the Clutter murders and to having watched the film adaptation of In Cold Blood, shortly before murdering the Oteros” (Linneman, 2015, pp. 529-530). This demonstrates when heinous crimes occur, such as child abductions, home invasions, and terrorist attacks, the media in all its cultural glory sensationalize these violent crimes, as well as eagerly participate in conjectural analysis, also known as textual …show more content…

(2004, March 14). Impact of media on fear of crime? Retrieved February 11, 2018, from http://www.svj.hvu.nl/mediahype/risk4/page2.htm Garden City Police Department. (n.d.). Clutter Family Murders. Retrieved February 11, 2018, from http://www.gcpolice.org/about-gcpd/history/famous-cases/clutter-family-murders Huffington Post/Associated Press. (2011, May 25). Clutter Murders in “Cold Blood” Leave Lasting Impact in Kansas. Huffington Post. Retrieved from https://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/11/09/clutter-murders-in-cold-b_n_351393.html Johnson, B. (2017, April 06). In cold blood: What did the Kansas Bureau of Investigations do in order to solve the Clutter murders. Retrieved February 11, 2018, from https://freebooksummary.com/in-cold-blood-what-did-the-kansas-bureau-of-investigations-do-in-order-to-solve-the-clutter-murders-45537 Linnemann, T. (2014). Capote’s Ghosts: Violence, Media and the Spectre of Suspicion. The British Journal of Criminology, 55(3), 514-533. doi:10.1093/bjc/azu098 McPadden, M., & Townsend, C. (2017, November 16). Did The "In Cold Blood" Killers Murder A Second Family In Florida? Retrieved February 11, 2018, from

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