General Question

elbanditoroso's avatar

Are there magazines for criminals?

Asked by elbanditoroso (33577points) October 14th, 2018

Think about – there are lots of special interest magazines for specialized interests:

House and Garden (home decorating(
Guns and Ammo (firearms enthusiasts)
Stamp and Coin Monthly
PC World and PC Magazine
Horse and Hound
Boy’s Life
2600 (hackers)
Modern Woodworking
and so on.

Is there a magazine published for, say, bank robbers? Murderers? Embezzlers?

It seems like there should be “how to do it” articles for any of the above – just like you see in the other special interest magazines. Would there be a market for that?

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12 Answers

Jeruba's avatar

I think how-to lore is conveyed mostly by word of mouth, especially in certain concentrated populations.

Also this is not likely to be a group that goes in for paid subscriptions.

ragingloli's avatar

Anarchist Cookbook?

Call_Me_Jay's avatar

ISIS had an online magazine with tips for carrying out attacks on unbelievers with knives and vehicles.

The New Yorker – November 29, 2016 - ‘The rampage at Ohio State University, on Monday, by Abdul Razak Ali Artan, could have come straight out of the Islamic State’s manual—and it appears to have inspired him…’

’...Rumiyah—which means “Rome,” an allusion to an old prophecy foretelling the fall of the infidel West—offered advice on the types of blades that are most deadly and the places on the body that are most vulnerable. It warned against using kitchen knives, which can’t handle the “vigorous application used for assassinations.” It noted, “The more gruesome the attack, the closer one comes to achieving the desired objective,”...’

…The most recent issue of Rumiyah, from November, offers guidance on a different lone-wolf terror tactic, spelling out which vehicles are most effective for ramming into crowds “to leave a trail of carnage.”

flutherother's avatar

What about Time Magazine?

Response moderated
Yellowdog's avatar

Criminals don’t really want their ‘trade secrets’ out there. The less said, the better, Might be better for law enforcement or security at businesses than for criminals.

Most criminals would steal magazines and books that contain tips for stealing or shoplifting,
What good is that for the authors and publishers?

If you have to read it from a book or magazine, you probably don’t want to take the risk. Really good criminals figured out for themselves how to do something.

And, of course, even criminals sometimes have a conscience. They don’t want people getting hurt, caught, imprisoned, nor increase the harm done to the businesses and people they prey upon. For instance, if you figure out a way to commit coupon fraud, and publish an article that makes a lot of people try it, soon the glitch will be figured out and you can’t do it anymore.

Jeruba's avatar

Publications that serve the interests of security would probably supply a lot of the same information, only from the point of view of defeating rather than enabling the criminal behavior.

stanleybmanly's avatar

Sure. How about “The Financial Times” or the “Wall Street Journal”.

ragingloli's avatar

Or “the art of the deal”.

Yellowdog's avatar

Actually, @ragingloli , capitalism is the victim of crime. If people keep stealing and committing fraud, stores will close and soon you can only make purchases through Amazon

When crime ceases, businesses and services thrive and we have more to select from. If only a small number of people commit fraud or theft, profits may shrink accordingly but still function.

What’s your problem with The Art of the Deal?

ragingloli's avatar

Well, it was written by a criminal.
A guy that ran a fake “university” and defrauded countless students and who is known for systematically refusing to pay his contractors.
And capitalism is not a victim. It is a perpetrator.
From murdering union leaders, over dumping poison into the ground, water and air, and exploiting its workers in slavery like conditions, to defrauding its customers, capitalists have done it, and do it still, all with glee.

elbanditoroso's avatar

I was really thinking of magazine articles like:

“maximizing your embezzlement returns”

“Best advice for cleaning blood spatters after a stabbing”

“best way to lay out escape routes after bank robberies”

and various helpful-hints sort of publications.

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