Fiction as an ally to make journalism more believable: rape, trauma and secondary victimization in the Netflix miniseries ‘Unbelievable’

Abstract

ABSTRACT This article compares the Netflix miniseries “Unbelievable” (2019) with the journalistic works on which it is based in order to decide how fiction based on real events contributes to the journalistic narrative of sexual abuse. To that end, we accomplish a comparative and interpretative analysis that shows how the invented sequences and scenes contribute to show: the trauma and secondary victimization suffered by the victim; how an investigation should be carried out in order to minimize such suffering and dispel rape myths; and the different ways a woman may be the victim of abuse. This is achieved as the fiction allows us to focus on the perspective of the protagonists by showing their characters, feelings, motivation and the consequences for their private lives of both the trauma and the commitment to the victims. Thus, this analysis shows how fiction based on real events can make a story that has been covered by journalism more believable.