Bandits and Outlaws: in it for the fame?

There was only really one issue surrounding our lecture about Bandits and Outlaws that I did not agree with. This was how, as a result of being dangerous criminals, can people become so famous and even become celebrities in their own right?

How can it be that people who have wronged, have freely taken innocent lives and caused the world upset and uproar have the luxury of becoming a household name and have their faces plastered in books, magazines and even have their lives glamorised and portrayed on the sliver screen. How can it be right?

One of the most obvious examples of this, to me, is the story of Bonnie & Clyde.

In the lecture the extent of their fame in their day was highlighted. The hype that surrounded them while they committed their crimes in their life time, I could go as far as to understand. It was big news, it was happening right there, right then. What shocked me was the amount of coverage that this couple still gain almost 80 years after their deaths.

Whilst researching I stumbled upon this biography of Bonnie and Clyde on a sit called "Crime and Investigation Network". (http://www.crimeandinvestigation.co.uk/crime-files/bonnie-and-clyde/biography.html)

The site contains an in depth look into the "Bonnie and Clyde" case with six sub-categories. However, what stood out for me with this article was the tone the writer used to portray these criminals. For example, "...at the time of their death, their gang was believed to be responsible for at least 13 murders", the use of the word "at least" here stressing 13 as minimal figure instead of emphasising the double figure number of lives that these criminals took. Also Bonnie's description, "Slender and only 4 foot 11", the adjective "slender" glamorises the woman and her height accompanied by "only" makes her appear cute and small. You could almost forget we were talking about a murderer couldn't you?

But to be honest it was this that really made me think. The story of Bonnie and Clyde has been adapted for film numerous times over the years. Every film brings back the couples fame and again glamorising them. So here we are in 2010 and there are plans for yet another Bonnie and Clyde film, http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1355646/. Do they not see how glamorous they are making these criminals look? They're story will live on forever, but not necessarily portraying them in the negative light they surely deserve? I mean Hilary Duff is set to play Bonnie in this version, she's too much of a "nice girl" within the acting world for us to go around hating for killing all these people ... surely?

This left me with this final thought: does not such celebrity status and fame encourage people to commit and imitate such "bandits and outlaws" as Bonnie and Clyde, purely because they think this will offer them fame and even immortality as their story could, like this one, live on long after their death?