Amato: ‘The Ted Bundy Tapes’ gives a serial killer exactly what he wanted

The latest Netflix craze is “Conversations with a Killer: The Ted Bundy Tapes.” The series takes you inside the mind of arguably the most gruesome serial killer in the history of the United States, and he just happened to have hailed from the Pacific Northwest.

RELATED: Ted Bundy’s murderous charm still polarizes, 40 years later

Bundy left his mark on the region, as well as — as far as we know for sure — around 30 families. The fact is, he’s still leaving his mark on the country, and it’s not even by his doing; it’s the doing of filmmakers and directors alike who want to expose his deviant nature more than 20 year later to put some extra money in their pockets.

There are two things that need to be stressed before analyzing the disgusting, repugnant, and distasteful viral Netflix series. The first being, I’m a hypocrite. Feel free to call me just that in the comment section.

I watched the full four episodes out of pure interest and captivation. The series reels you in, and I was hard-pressed to escape, as you work chronologically through how Bundy became the biggest name on the West Coast, and later the country.

The second important takeaway is I’m not calling for any censorship of the series. I’m not calling for it to be taken down. As a free speech advocate and supporter of capitalism, I have no qualms with the documentary being available to the public.

But throughout the documentary, it’s obvious Bundy craves media attention. Before being outed as a serial killer, he worked in politics. He wasn’t one to shy away from cameras or interviews, even when he was sitting on death row.

During both of the hearings in which he would be tried and convicted of murder, he chose to represent himself. He loved to grab the spotlight whenever he could.

With that being said, I question the morals of affording him center-stage on one of the biggest platforms in the world. Were he still be alive today, wouldn’t he relish the opportunity to have his story told?

The documentary continuously tries to make him seem like a relatable person, consistently demonstrating his intellectual superiority over his captors, describing him as ‘good-looking’ and painting the picture of your “average Joe,” whom no one ever thought could possibly be the heinous criminal he was.

Since when do we appease criminals, let alone those who take innocent lives?

Enough commentary; let’s look at what professionals say about serial killers. According to Scott A. Bonn, a criminology professor and expert on the behavior and the motivations of criminals, serial killers seek out public notoriety.

In a 2018 Psychology Today article, he highlights how many serial killers — like David Berkowitz, Dennis Rader, the Zodiac Killer and others — were obsessed with their public image.

He also mentions how Richard Ramirez, known as the, ‘Night Stalker,’ would leave behind cult symbols as his own personal signature. This would suggest serial killers are motivated by fame and appreciate when the media spread their image.

Why would a documentary profiling a notorious serial killer deter any troubled teen from hoping to accomplish the same thing? It wouldn’t.

A Northeastern University study from Jack Levin, Brudnick professor of sociology, and James Alan Fox, Lipman Family professor of criminal justice at Northeastern University, suggested making celebrities of killers elevates the threat.

Citing numerous examples, their studies suggest becoming a popular-culture celebrity is an important part of the motivation that inspires serial killers to continue committing murder, and once they are identified with a superstar moniker, their frequency of murder increases.

Not only that, but they suggest it also can inspire countless other ignored and alienated Americans to become copycat killers in order to achieve their own degrees of infamy. In fact, Newsweek reported yesterday that the mother of a Ted Bundy victim fears the Netflix series could inspire copycats.

RELATED: Why did it take so long to create DNA profile of Ted Bundy?

That’s another thing I find troublesome with the documentary. I can’t imagine any parents of victims of infamous serial killers would want to relive the tragedy of losing a child. As the documentary consistently portrayed the charm of Ted Bundy, I often thought of what a parent of one of his murder victims might think.

Why would they want to see Bundy as a rational, normal human being like the documentary paints?

The effects of the series are especially worrisome if we revisit last year’s cat killings in Thurston County. From January to August, 13 cats were found mutilated and publicly displayed, including five cats found in the last 10 days of August alone.

During that time, I spoke with Berit Brogaard, a psychologist and expert in neuro-psychiatry and emotions, who said killing animals is often the first step to becoming a serial killer.

“It’s definitely a cause for concern,” Brogaard said. “The person has a form of, what we call psychopathy. That’s typically the first step to serial killing.”

When it comes to a different kind of murder, such as a mass shooter, many outlets refuse to utter the name of the individual who committed the deed.

Wendy L. Patrick is an expert in criminal law and handles cases involving threat assessment. She argues in a Psychology Today article that the line between fame and infamy becomes blurred, as many bad actors do not believe there is any such thing as bad press.

So why do we often censor the name of mass shooters but not serial killers? Shouldn’t there be an element of consistency?

Overall, I find the documentary quite troubling. I found myself fighting with my mental state as the creators pushed for me to identify with Bundy. The charm, swagger, handling of the media, and overall intelligence was something to be admired according to the filmmakers.

Unfortunately, based on the success of the show, I only see more of these types of creations in the future. Maybe we should stop trying to “understand” killers, and instead, shun them from society. It might be the safest route.