20- Herb Baumeister- This Piss Bandit and his Mannequin Pool Parties

Kitty Genovese was murdered in front of her home in Kew Gardens, Queens New York on March 13th, 1964. Although the murder wasn’t immediately reported on in the press, the New York Times would end up publishing an article two weeks later titled: “37 Who Saw Murder Didn't Call the Police; Apathy at Stabbing of Queens Woman Shocks Inspector”, and starts out by stating “For more than half an hour 38 respectable, law‐abiding citizens in Queens watched a killer stalk and stab a woman in three separate attacks in Kew Gardens.” Kitty’s murder would become one of the most well known crimes impacting social psychology, launching research and inquiry into the phenomenon known as the “bystander effect” or as it was called at the time “bystander apathy”. As the years have gone on, Kitty’s story has been featured in almost every intro to psychology textbook as an example of how people in groups can feel a diminished sense of responsibility when faced with an emergency situation. But as time went on, it would become clear that not everything was as it seemed in this case, and the basis of the studies for the Bystander Effect were essentially based on an extreme exaggeration of the facts. Join us as we break down what happened to Kitty Genovese, learn about her murderer, and discuss the infamous article that launched not only scientific studies into the bystander effect, but also the creation of the 911 emergency call system. You will also get to hear from our special "Guest Star", "Steve Urkel".

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Sources:

The New York Times Article

The Witness Documentary

Kitty Genovese: The Murder The Bystanders The Crime That Changed America By Kevin Cook

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