Murder in Mississippi

Author(s): John Safran

Biography & Memoir | True Crime

'One of the best pieces of sustained, rigorous journalism I've read in twenty years. It is absolutely magnificent -  smart, and wry, and emotional too.' Caroline Overington When filming his TV series Race Relations, John Safran spent an uneasy couple of days with one of Mississippi's most notorious white supremacists. A year later, he heard that the man had been murdered - and what was more, the killer was black.At first the murder seemed a twist on the old Deep South race crimes. But then more news rolled in. Maybe it was a dispute over money, or most intriguingly, over sex. Could the infamous racist actually have been secretly gay, with a thing for black men? Did Safran have the last footage of him alive? Could this be the story of a lifetime? Seizing his Truman Capote moment, he jumped on a plane to cover the trial.Over six months, Safran got deeper and deeper into the South, becoming entwined in the lives of those connected with the murder - white separatists, black campaigners, lawyers, investigators, neighbours, even the killer himself. And the more he talked with them, the less simple the crime, and the world, seemed.Murder in Mississippi is a brilliantly innovative true-crime story. Taking us places only he can, Safran paints an engrossing, revealing portrait of a dead man, his murderer, the place they lived and the process of trying to find out the truth about anything. 'The elegance of this book is that its axis is a resounding 'perhaps' . . . It is this moral ambivalence that draws readers to the true crime genre, and Safran nails it.' Weekend Australian'Witty, insightful, compelling - In Cold Blood for our generation.' Eddie Perfect'[Safran] has written a marvellous book which I cannot put down.' Melbourne Observer'Now I know what to recommend people who liked Them.' Jon Ronson, author of The Men Who Stare at Goats and The Psychopath Test 'Stunning' Men's Style*


Product Information

John Safran is an award-winning documentary-maker of provocative and hilarious takes on race, the media, religion and other issues. John first hit TV screens in 1997 on Race Around the World (ABC-TV). Both John Safran's Music Jamboree (SBS, 2002) and John Safran vs. God (SBS, 2004) won Australian Film Industry awards for Best Comedy Series and Most Original Concept, and were also nominated for Logie Awards. Other shows include John Safran's Race Relations (ABC-TV, 2009) which was nominated for two awards at the prestigious Rose d'Or Festival in Switzerland and Speaking in Tongues (SBS, 2005-06). John currently co-hosts Sunday Night Safran, a radio talk show on Triple J with cranky but beloved Catholic priest, Father Bob Maguire.

General Fields

  • : 9780143572084
  • : Penguin Random House
  • : Penguin Books
  • : 0.292
  • : June 2014
  • : 202mm X 130mm X 23mm
  • : Australia
  • : September 2014
  • : books

Special Fields

  • : xii, 364
  • : 364.152309762
  • : 1014
  • : Paperback
  • : John Safran