Actually it doesnt really bug me that on the shows there are mostly women deaths. They portray reality, and reality is, there are more female deaths then men.
There's also the contention that the murders of women (and children) evoke a more emotional response from people, and thus it's more dramatic viewing.
It's so nice to see such intelligent and well developed conversations going on in this thread It's true that more often than not excessively beautiful women tend to be the victims, especially if they're going to spend a lot of screen time on the autopsy table. I find (and feel free to correct me if I'm wrong) that men tend to be the victims for the grosser crimes involving skelitons, bloated floaters, or bugs because the entire purpose of the story revolves around the intricacy of the plot rather than having an attractive corpse in the morgue.
truly it is nice to see such a thread here... it a good question to ask mollykolodny... i don think many ppl are aware of such a situation(i wldn blame them,most wld be tryin to figure whodidit) exists... generally,the female body count is higher when compared to the males... i think it speaks of the society we live in today..women say they're free but truly,are they? they're still bonded by invisible chains cast on them by the male species... years have gone by and man has evolved but our man-brains just point-blank refuse to accept the fact that women have their own lives to live... years of genetic coding still has not changed the thought of males are the ones who are supposed to be on the top...
I believe, actually, that most murder victims are male, so if most of the victims on the CSI shows are women, they are indeed going against actual statistics to create a sympathetic atmosphere, as well as, a sexual one. I think women are the victim of more often of violent crimes, largely due to sexual assaults. Ali
Actually, I've read the opposite about violent crime victims: Young males (16-24) are something like 1/3 more likely to be the victim of a violent crime than women. I don't remember exactly what crimes were factored into that though but I remembered being surprised nonetheless.
*bump* This is an interesting, and serious, topic, and I think it's worth discussing. What are your thoughts on the shows with regard to the gender of the victims: number of victims, method of death, presentation on the screen, etc? Do you think the shows represent real life, or are they way off the mark? Do they contribute to the public opinion about who are the victims of crimes? About who is committing crimes? This isn't just limited to the victimization of women. It also includes how men are portrayed as well. Also discuss how men and women are portrayed in general on the show. Do you only see a certain set of society? Even though they're only on screen for a limited time, do you feel that the guest stars are often oversimplified stereotypes? And lastly, how have these things affected your opinion of the shows? (If you would like to expand this thread to include something other than gender, please feel free to do so. This should generate some good discussion, and I'm interested to hear what you think about the way people are portrayed on the show.)
Hey, why is this all about LV and M? I mostly watch NY and I see a lot of childish crimes. Like 'my neighbor makes too much noise' and 'I wanted her apartment'. . These crimes make me sick to my stomach. Is this really how the world is, or is it just the producers are trying to make the shows more interesting? In season three there has also been this whole 'rich people get murdered, too' trend, which almost always shows the rich person as the 'bad/selfish/deserves to die' even if they are the victim. Most people are in their 20s and 30s. I've seen maybe one episode with a child victim, and I liked it a lot and IMO it is more sympathetic to have a dead child with their whole life ahead of them than an adult, man or woman. I gotta do some research on crime statistics... I'll probably write some more later...