JSB156 In Cold Blood: Case Studies in True Crime
To view more information for this unit, select Unit Outline from the list below. Please note the teaching period for which the Unit Outline is relevant.
| Unit code: | JSB156 |
|---|---|
| Credit points: | 12 |
| Timetable | Details in HiQ, if available |
| Availabilities |
|
| CSP student contribution | $2,174 |
| Pre-2021 CSP student contribution | $1,020 The pre-2021 commonwealth supported place (CSP) contribution amount only applies to students enrolled in a course prior to 2021. To learn more, visit our Understanding your fees page. |
| Domestic tuition unit fee | $3,456 |
| International unit fee | $5,592 |
Unit Outline: Semester 2 2026, Kelvin Grove, Internal
| Unit code: | JSB156 |
|---|---|
| Credit points: | 12 |
| Coordinator: | Dean Biron | dean.biron@qut.edu.au |
Overview
True crime is one of the most significant cultural genres of the twenty-first century and a key conduit for people to access information pertaining to crime events, victims and associated criminal justice processes. Moreover, the category has now evolved to a point where audience members can play active roles in uncovering and investigating crimes, and bringing about social and political change. It is therefore crucial to understand how true crime narratives develop and to question how they might potentially educate, entertain, confuse, or even deceive audiences. You will examine a range of true crime texts (films, television series, books and podcasts) involving a range of offence-types, engage critically with the legal, ethical and political aspects of each text and evaluate the relationship between true crime and social justice. The unit will support you to hone vital real-world skills in critical thinking, cultural analysis, criminal investigations and ethical practice.
Learning Outcomes
On successful completion of this unit you will be able to:
- Analyse media texts and academic literature to identify the real-world impacts of true crime texts.
- Compare and critique true crime texts to identify key social justice issues.
- Discuss ethical and social justice issues in true crime texts.
- Reflect on community and personal attitudes to true crime and how these relate to social justice concepts.
Content
This unit will cover the following:
- Investigating true crime genres
- Legal, ethical and political aspects of true crime
- The relationship between true crime and social justice
- Comparing and evaluating true crime texts
- Crime victimisation
- Citizen justice
- Real world impacts of true crime narratives
Learning Approaches
In this unit, you will learn by engaging in the following:
- lectures - live and pre-recorded
- tutorials - face-to-face or online
- online discussion forum
- readings, media and video resources.
The unit adopts an interactive and case-based learning approach in which you are encouraged to engage with and critique true crime texts. You will be provided with cases to analyse, being asked to assess a range of true crime texts and how they influence society, impact community attitudes and lead to real-world policy outcomes.
Feedback on Learning and Assessment
Feedback in this unit is provided to you in the following ways:
- a range of formative exercises discussed and undertaken throughout the unit
- feedback from peers as you investigate and discuss issues raised throughout the unit
- comments about summative assessment work included with your grade
- general summative assessment feedback posted to the whole cohort via the unit Canvas site.
Assessment
Overview
In this unit there are two assessments:
1. Written critique: This task focuses on skills in comparative textual analysis to identify key real-world social justice issues arising from true crime texts.
2. Presentation: This task requires students to undertake a critical review of the complexity of the true crime genre and the different ways in which it can foster or impede social justice.
Unit Grading Scheme
7- point scale
Assessment Tasks
Assessment: Written critique
You will write an original, comparative critique of a true crime text, critically analysing how the text articulates key unit concepts and evaluating its potential real-world impacts on issues in social justice.
The use of generative artificial intelligence (AI) tools is allowed to help you study and find out more about the topic; noting AI-generated content may not be accurate, reliable, or may display bias. Any content generated may not be copied and included in your final submission.
This assignment is eligible for the 48-hour late submission period and assignment extensions.
Assessment: Presentation
As a research assistant working for a non-government organisation in the justice field, you will be required to prepare a written power-point presentation (with pre-recorded audiovisual component) to be shown to a group of community leaders online. The goal of the presentation is to (a) provide a critical review the complex and contradictory nature of the true crime genre, and (b) brief the audience on how true crime texts frame, potentially distort, community perceptions of crime and justice.
The use of generative artificial intelligence (AI) tools is allowed to help you study and find out more about the topic; noting AI-generated content may not be accurate, reliable, or may display bias. Any content generated may not be copied and included in your final submission.
This assignment is eligible for the 48-hour late submission period and assignment extensions.
Academic Integrity
Academic integrity is a commitment to undertaking academic work and assessment in a manner that is ethical, fair, honest, respectful and accountable.
The Academic Integrity Policy sets out the range of conduct that can be a failure to maintain the standards of academic integrity. This includes, cheating in exams, plagiarism, self-plagiarism, collusion and contract cheating. It also includes providing fraudulent or altered documentation in support of an academic concession application, for example an assignment extension or a deferred exam.
You are encouraged to make use of QUT’s learning support services, resources and tools to assure the academic integrity of your assessment. This includes the use of text matching software that may be available to assist with self-assessing your academic integrity as part of the assessment submission process.
Breaching QUT’s Academic Integrity Policy or engaging in conduct that may defeat or compromise the purpose of assessment can lead to a finding of student misconduct (Code of Conduct – Student) and result in the imposition of penalties under the Management of Student Misconduct Policy, ranging from a grade reduction to exclusion from QUT.
Resources
There are no resources that are required to be purchased for this unit. Resources will be available in the unit's Canvas site.
Risk Assessment Statement
Students are advised that some content in justice units may be confronting. If you are concerned that the content of a unit may impact your completion of the course, please see the unit coordinator. You can also access free student counselling through QUT Counselling via the QUT Student Homepage.
Course Learning Outcomes
This unit is designed to support your development of the following course/study area learning outcomes.JS34 Bachelor of Justice
- Apply social and criminal justice principles to explain justice issues and contexts.
Relates to: ULO2, ULO3, Written critique, Presentation - Collect and analyse evidence to inform decisions and recommendations in justice systems.
Relates to: ULO1, Written critique, Presentation - Reflect on personal values and professional practice to articulate a professional identity.
Relates to: ULO4, Presentation
Unit Outline: Semester 2 2026, Online
| Unit code: | JSB156 |
|---|---|
| Credit points: | 12 |
Overview
True crime is one of the most significant cultural genres of the twenty-first century and a key conduit for people to access information pertaining to crime events, victims and associated criminal justice processes. Moreover, the category has now evolved to a point where audience members can play active roles in uncovering and investigating crimes, and bringing about social and political change. It is therefore crucial to understand how true crime narratives develop and to question how they might potentially educate, entertain, confuse, or even deceive audiences. You will examine a range of true crime texts (films, television series, books and podcasts) involving a range of offence-types, engage critically with the legal, ethical and political aspects of each text and evaluate the relationship between true crime and social justice. The unit will support you to hone vital real-world skills in critical thinking, cultural analysis, criminal investigations and ethical practice.
Learning Outcomes
On successful completion of this unit you will be able to:
- Analyse media texts and academic literature to identify the real-world impacts of true crime texts.
- Compare and critique true crime texts to identify key social justice issues.
- Discuss ethical and social justice issues in true crime texts.
- Reflect on community and personal attitudes to true crime and how these relate to social justice concepts.
Content
This unit will cover the following:
- Investigating true crime genres
- Legal, ethical and political aspects of true crime
- The relationship between true crime and social justice
- Comparing and evaluating true crime texts
- Crime victimisation
- Citizen justice
- Real world impacts of true crime narratives
Learning Approaches
In this unit, you will learn by engaging in the following:
- lectures - live and pre-recorded
- tutorials - face-to-face or online
- online discussion forum
- readings, media and video resources.
The unit adopts an interactive and case-based learning approach in which you are encouraged to engage with and critique true crime texts. You will be provided with cases to analyse, being asked to assess a range of true crime texts and how they influence society, impact community attitudes and lead to real-world policy outcomes.
Feedback on Learning and Assessment
Feedback in this unit is provided to you in the following ways:
- a range of formative exercises discussed and undertaken throughout the unit
- feedback from peers as you investigate and discuss issues raised throughout the unit
- comments about summative assessment work included with your grade
- general summative assessment feedback posted to the whole cohort via the unit Canvas site.
Assessment
Overview
In this unit there are two assessments:
1. Written critique: This task focuses on skills in comparative textual analysis to identify key real-world social justice issues arising from true crime texts.
2. Presentation: This task requires students to undertake a critical review of the complexity of the true crime genre and the different ways in which it can foster or impede social justice.
Unit Grading Scheme
7- point scale
Assessment Tasks
Assessment: Written critique
You will write an original, comparative critique of a true crime text, critically analysing how the text articulates key unit concepts and evaluating its potential real-world impacts on issues in social justice.
The use of generative artificial intelligence (AI) tools is allowed to help you study and find out more about the topic; noting AI-generated content may not be accurate, reliable, or may display bias. Any content generated may not be copied and included in your final submission.
This assignment is eligible for the 48-hour late submission period and assignment extensions.
Assessment: Presentation
As a research assistant working for a non-government organisation in the justice field, you will be required to prepare a written power-point presentation (with pre-recorded audiovisual component) to be shown to a group of community leaders online. The goal of the presentation is to (a) provide a critical review the complex and contradictory nature of the true crime genre, and (b) brief the audience on how true crime texts frame, potentially distort, community perceptions of crime and justice.
The use of generative artificial intelligence (AI) tools is allowed to help you study and find out more about the topic; noting AI-generated content may not be accurate, reliable, or may display bias. Any content generated may not be copied and included in your final submission.
This assignment is eligible for the 48-hour late submission period and assignment extensions.
Academic Integrity
Academic integrity is a commitment to undertaking academic work and assessment in a manner that is ethical, fair, honest, respectful and accountable.
The Academic Integrity Policy sets out the range of conduct that can be a failure to maintain the standards of academic integrity. This includes, cheating in exams, plagiarism, self-plagiarism, collusion and contract cheating. It also includes providing fraudulent or altered documentation in support of an academic concession application, for example an assignment extension or a deferred exam.
You are encouraged to make use of QUT’s learning support services, resources and tools to assure the academic integrity of your assessment. This includes the use of text matching software that may be available to assist with self-assessing your academic integrity as part of the assessment submission process.
Breaching QUT’s Academic Integrity Policy or engaging in conduct that may defeat or compromise the purpose of assessment can lead to a finding of student misconduct (Code of Conduct – Student) and result in the imposition of penalties under the Management of Student Misconduct Policy, ranging from a grade reduction to exclusion from QUT.
Resources
There are no resources that are required to be purchased for this unit. Resources will be available in the unit's Canvas site.
Risk Assessment Statement
Students are advised that some content in justice units may be confronting. If you are concerned that the content of a unit may impact your completion of the course, please see the unit coordinator. You can also access free student counselling through QUT Counselling via the QUT Student Homepage.
Course Learning Outcomes
This unit is designed to support your development of the following course/study area learning outcomes.JS34 Bachelor of Justice
- Apply social and criminal justice principles to explain justice issues and contexts.
Relates to: ULO2, ULO3, Written critique, Presentation - Collect and analyse evidence to inform decisions and recommendations in justice systems.
Relates to: ULO1, Written critique, Presentation - Reflect on personal values and professional practice to articulate a professional identity.
Relates to: ULO4, Presentation