MAPACA

Mid-Atlantic Popular &
American Culture Association

When students and faculty at the State University of New York (SUNY) at Geneseo heard of the double murder-suicide implemented by a former student, a shockwave rippled throughout the small local community, the SUNY schools, the state of New York, and the United States. On January 17, 2016, Colin Kingston, a former SUNY Geneseo student-athlete, murdered his ex-girlfriend Kelsey Annese and Matthew Hutchinson, both SUNY Geneseo student-athletes, before taking his own life soon after. College, local, and national media were quick to label the tragedy a “crime of passion,” a bitter, broken-hearted, depressed ex-boyfriend kills ex-girlfriend in bed with another man, then commits suicide.

Three women every day are murdered by a partner or ex-partner (National Network To End Domestic Violence, 2016). By framing this tragedy as a crime of passion, the media highlighted particular aspects of the event that maintain gender stereotypes and belittle domestic violence. The media’s focus on the romantic ties between the three victims further defined who deserved to be mourned, who deserved to be loved, and the divisive gendered expectations of love and love lost.

This study examines the news framing of domestic violence victims when the perpetrator is also a victim through a qualitative content analysis analyzing and comparing the collegiate, local, and, national news coverage of the 2016 SUNY Geneseo double murder-suicide case. Through the lens of Judith Butler’s gender performativity theory and concept of humanness, this paper will demonstrate how such news frames define gender, gender violence, and an individual’s human worth.