The Idaho Murders: Trial by TikTok
Factual
Video:
)
Information:
1 x 1hr
After the bodies of four University of Idaho students were found dead in their beds in November 2022, social media users across the world became gripped by the unfolding mystery. Everything the police said – or left unsaid – during their investigation... sparked frenzied speculation from social media sleuths.
Following the first reports of the murders, amateur detectives on TikTok got to work dissecting all available information. Countless theories began circulating online; they were killed in a drug deal gone wrong, it was revenge for bullying another student found dead months earlier, a disgruntled student blamed them for him being kicked out of a fraternity, and so on. Local police received over 20,000 tips while TikTok videos about the murders have – as of April 2023 – had nearly 2 billion views worldwide.
At least five people were accused of the murders, with zero official evidence to back up the claims. It became a race between the police and the online community to find the killer. After six weeks police finally arrested their prime suspect – 28-year-old criminology graduate Bryan Kohberger.
In the UK, tv presenter Zara McDermott watched developments on TikTok, gripped by this very modern whodunnit, playing out in real time. Over six weeks and millions of posts, videos, likes, comments and shares, this was an online murder investigation like no other; this was Don’t F**k With Cats… on steroids.
In this film we follow Zara as she heads to the USA to uncover the story and the social media frenzy that surrounded it. Zara will see how every detail was turned into TikTok content and meet those who took it upon themselves to try and solve it.
In Moscow, Idaho, Zara will discover the other side to this story: a small college town, reeling from the news of the worst crime to ever happen on its doorstep. Zara will meet students, local journalists and friends of the victims. Did the social media murder hunt help or hinder the police investigation? What was it like being accused of murder by thousands of strangers online?
Zara will also ask if this new breed of TikTok detectives will shape every police investigation from now on. What does it say about us that our obsession with true crime has gone ‘live’? Is trust in the police now so low that we feel the need to take matters into our own hands? Or is posting about crime now just an easy way to become internet famous?
Read More
Following the first reports of the murders, amateur detectives on TikTok got to work dissecting all available information. Countless theories began circulating online; they were killed in a drug deal gone wrong, it was revenge for bullying another student found dead months earlier, a disgruntled student blamed them for him being kicked out of a fraternity, and so on. Local police received over 20,000 tips while TikTok videos about the murders have – as of April 2023 – had nearly 2 billion views worldwide.
At least five people were accused of the murders, with zero official evidence to back up the claims. It became a race between the police and the online community to find the killer. After six weeks police finally arrested their prime suspect – 28-year-old criminology graduate Bryan Kohberger.
In the UK, tv presenter Zara McDermott watched developments on TikTok, gripped by this very modern whodunnit, playing out in real time. Over six weeks and millions of posts, videos, likes, comments and shares, this was an online murder investigation like no other; this was Don’t F**k With Cats… on steroids.
In this film we follow Zara as she heads to the USA to uncover the story and the social media frenzy that surrounded it. Zara will see how every detail was turned into TikTok content and meet those who took it upon themselves to try and solve it.
In Moscow, Idaho, Zara will discover the other side to this story: a small college town, reeling from the news of the worst crime to ever happen on its doorstep. Zara will meet students, local journalists and friends of the victims. Did the social media murder hunt help or hinder the police investigation? What was it like being accused of murder by thousands of strangers online?
Zara will also ask if this new breed of TikTok detectives will shape every police investigation from now on. What does it say about us that our obsession with true crime has gone ‘live’? Is trust in the police now so low that we feel the need to take matters into our own hands? Or is posting about crime now just an easy way to become internet famous?
Read More
Starring: Zara McDermott
Produced By: Summer Films
Broadcaster: BBC3 | Year of Production: 2024
You may also like:
