People couldn’t wait to see former President Donald Trump’s mugshot when he was booked at Fulton County Jail in Georgia this summer – both his supporters and his adversaries.
Ever since it was made public, the mugshot has been linked with an increase in the 2024 presidential candidate’s already solid support in the GOP. It also helped raise millions, according to Trump’s team, and has spawned merch.
However, Trump’s mugshot isn’t the first to capture people’s attention. In fact, it happens a lot. This week Gillian Brockell, a writer for the Washington Post’s Retropolis section, joined “Something Offbeat” to discuss our collective obsession with the celebrity mugshot.
“I think that there’s something about the mugshot that shows the, sort of like, glamorous people or high, ‘high’ people, you know – brought low… humbled… that we find so interesting,” she explained.
While the rich and famous can benefit from their booking shots, having a public mugshot can be a different story. Brockell recently dove into the history of these photos, from their origins in France to the more recent “hot felon” tale.
Listen here to her full conversation with host Mike Rogers to learn more.
Each week, “Something Offbeat” takes a deeper look at an unusual headline. If you have suggestions for stories the podcast should cover, send them to us at somethingoffbeat@audacy.com.