I was just looking at the London walks site and it gives some information about the press coverage.
"Although Jack the Ripper was not the world’s first serial killer, he was certainly its first media murderer. His crimes took place in an era when literacy amongst the general populace was increasing and the press at large was very much a catalyst for social change. Articles about the murders appeared in the newspapers on a daily basis and fostered a general fascination that, at times, bordered on hysteria. Indeed, the very name “Jack the Ripper” was probably the invention of a journalist and it was press coverage that helped turn the murders into a phenomenon and transformed a sordid back street killer into an international legend."
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So we have the media to thank for Jack the Ripper, well i suppose that could have been predicted however i wonder why Jack the Ripper and his murders were so special. was it the fact that no one knew who he/she was or was it the severity of murders that drew in all the media interest?
i suppose it doesnt matter because for whatever reason he/she became famous the murderer has become fictional and the murders, a blur of fact and myth. its pretty bad that we seem to use jack the ripper for entertainment and often neglect to consider that he or she was a brutal murderer. I mean can any of us name all of the victims?
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