David Schmid

Zombie Talk offers a concise, interdisciplinary introduction and deep analytical set of theoretical approaches to help readers understand the phenomenon of zombies in contemporary and modern culture. With essays that combine Humanities and Social Science methodologies, the authors examine the zombie through an array of cultural products from different periods and geographical locations: films ranging from White Zombie (1932) to the pioneering films of George Romero, television shows like AMC's The Walking Dead, to literary offerings such as Richard Matheson's I am Legend (1954) and Seth Grahame-Smith's Pride, Prejudice and Zombies (2009), among others.

Nahezu unbeachtet von der Öffentlichkeit beherrschen wenige Mediaagenturen den Markt für die Platzierung von Werbung jeder Art. Da Unternehmen in der heutigen Zeit aufgrund der Vielzahl von Werbemöglichkeiten die Werbung für ihre Produkte nicht mehr selbst zielführend platzieren können, sind sie auf die Dienste der Mediaagenturen angewiesen. Jedoch sind die Kunden nicht bereit für diese Tätigkeit zu bezahlen, da sie um eine anderweitige Vergütung der Mediaagentur etwa in Form von besonderen Einkaufskonditionen wissen.Das Buch setzt an dem sich daraus ergebenden Spannungsverhältnis an und behandelt die Strafbarkeit der Mediaagentur als Beauftragte im Sinne von § 299 Abs. 1 StGB. Im Zentrum der Untersuchung steht die Stellung der Mediaagentur als Beauftragte ihrer Kunden. Diese wird anhand einer umfassenden Erörterung der tatsächlichen Stellung der Mediaagentur erarbeitet. Darüber hinaus werden auch die restlichen Tatbestandsmerkmale des § 299 Abs. 1 StGB sowie eine mögliche Betrugs- und Untreuestrafbarkeit der Mediaagentur beleuchtet. Abschließend wird eine Möglichkeit zur straffreien Interessenerreichung für alle Beteiligten skizziert.Die Ansätze und Ergebnisse der Arbeit lassen sich auf ähnliche Agentur- bzw. sonstige Dreipersonen-konstellationen übertragen. Im Zusammenhang mit der Frage nach der Strafbarkeit der Kassenärzte hat sich erst in jüngster Vergangenheit erneut die Relevanz der Grenzen der Strafbarkeit gemäß § 299 StGB gezeigt. Die Mediaagenturkonstellation ist nur eine von vielen Agentur- bzw. sonstigen Dreipersonenkonstellationen, die in Zukunft den BGH und auch die Öffentlichkeit beschäftigen werden.

Jeffrey Dahmer. Ted Bundy. John Wayne Gacy. Over the past thirty years, serial killers have become iconic figures in America, the subject of made-for-TV movies and mass-market paperbacks alike. But why do we find such luridly transgressive and horrific individuals so fascinating? What compels us to look more closely at these figures when we really want to look away? Natural Born Celebrities considers how serial killers have become lionized in American culture and explores the consequences of their fame.David Schmid provides a historical account of how serial killers became famous and how that fame has been used in popular media and the corridors of the FBI alike. Ranging from H. H. Holmes, whose killing spree during the 1893 Chicago World's Fair inspired The Devil in the White City, right up to Aileen Wuornos, the lesbian prostitute whose vicious murder of seven men would serve as the basis for the hit film Monster, Schmid unveils a new understanding of serial killers by emphasizing both the social dimensions of their crimes and their susceptibility to multiple interpretations and uses. He also explores why serial killers have become endemic in popular culture, from their depiction in The Silence of the Lambs and The X-Files to their becoming the stuff of trading cards and even Web sites where you can buy their hair and nail clippings.Bringing his fascinating history right up to the present, Schmid ultimately argues that America needs the perversely familiar figure of the serial killer now more than ever to manage the fear posed by Osama bin Laden since September 11. "This is a persuasively argued, meticulously researched, and compelling examination of the media phenomenon of the 'celebrity criminal' in American culture. It is highly readable as well."—Joyce Carol Oates

Jeffrey Dahmer. Ted Bundy. John Wayne Gacy. Over the past thirty years, serial killers have become iconic figures in America, the subject of made-for-TV movies and mass-market paperbacks alike. But why do we find such luridly transgressive and horrific individuals so fascinating? What compels us to look more closely at these figures when we really want to look away? Natural Born Celebrities considers how serial killers have become lionized in American culture and explores the consequences of their fame. David Schmid provides a historical account of how serial killers became famous and how that fame has been used in popular media and the corridors of the FBI alike. Ranging from H. H. Holmes, whose killing spree during the 1893 Chicago World's Fair inspired The Devil in the White City, right up to Aileen Wuornos, the lesbian prostitute whose vicious murder of seven men would serve as the basis for the hit film Monster, Schmid unveils a new understanding of serial killers by emphasizing both the social dimensions of their crimes and their susceptibility to multiple interpretations and uses. He also explores why serial killers have become endemic in popular culture, from their depiction in The Silence of the Lambs and The X-Files to their becoming the stuff of trading cards and even Web sites where you can buy their hair and nail clippings. Bringing his fascinating history right up to the present, Schmid ultimately argues that America needs the perversely familiar figure of the serial killer now more than ever to manage the fear posed by Osama bin Laden since September 11.