Representing reality: introduction to Part 2

This part introduction presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in the subsequent chapters. The part considers how survivor testimony is mobilised in media forms over which survivors have little creative control (including popular magazines, true crime television and podcasts and documentary film) as well as in memoirs, social media posts and videos over which they ostensibly have greater control. It unpicks precisely how “speaking out” can be(come) a form of compromised communication, as the meaning of survivor speech is contested along with the right of survivors (particularly if they are multiply marginalised) to take up public space at all. The part then focuses on the emergence of the “public survivor” as a cultural and political figure, examining the conditions under which experience is translated into expertise. It also focuses on true crime podcasts about missing and/or murdered women.