Zombie Apocalypse in the Media

Many people throughout the world have a forever-growing infatuation with people coming back from the dead and terrorizing everyone on the planet.  This has been a concern of people for a long time; even before shows and movies about zombies were the pop-culture hits they are today.  The Walking Dead is a hit show on cable television network AMC and its popularity has created a burst of zombie apocalypse fascination among its fans.  The show has brought zombies to the forefront for people who watch the show regularly and has fed much of the public with ideas that something like the “zombie apocalypse” could actually happen within our lifetime.  The Walking Dead perpetuates a likely false fear within the sub-culture of people watching the show, even though it is highly unlikely that anything like a zombie apocalypse will ever happen. This show and other media have spread the world’s fear of zombies like wild fire over the last few years.

These ideas of zombies are deeply rooted within culture, but where does it originate?  An article written by Lisa Nasiruddin suggests that the idea of zombies stems from folklore of Western Africa and was first heard about in westernized countries during the slave trade of the 1500’s and through the 1800’s.  Many slaves were brought to America and Caribbean countries where the slaves openly practiced voodoo. Part of this voodoo was related to our modern day idea of a zombie.  These voodoo practices have been carried on throughout time and have created fear in people for many centuries (pg.1).  The idea of an apocalypse has recently taken off as well, because of the Mayans prediction that the world would end in December of 2012. These two old ideas formed the perfect marriage and created a very trendy idea of a zombie apocalypse.

Nowadays the zombie apocalypse has become a trendy idea in popular culture. Many people are infatuated with the possibility of this happening, but what exactly would the zombie apocalypse be like?  This is a question that many people ask themselves when thinking of the possibility of zombies.  Would it be a strong strand of rabies that would spread like a wild fire like in the movie quarantine?  Maybe a tactic used by other countries involving chemical warfare?  Or maybe just bad designer drugs like “bath salts” that arrive on the market?  These are some of the most popular ways people are “expecting” the zombie apocalypse to happen, but there are endless options for the creative minds in the world.  This creativity from shows like The Walking Dead have spurred people to prepare for the worst. Shows like Doomsday Preppers on National Geographic demonstrate this urge to prepare for the worst. While not everyone on that show is convinced there will be flesh eating dead people, many arm themselves for such events. Stocking a fortress with automatic weapons seems perfectly logical to some of those showcased and shows like The Walking Dead only encourage their ideas. I even have friends who have a book called “The Zombie Survival Guide” By Max Brooks, which they used as reading material in the bathroom. Although I thought they were ridiculous, they took their bathroom preparations very seriously. There is an entire culture of people who view this issue of the utmost importance.

America’s concern with a zombie apocalypse is frequently being exploited by the media to sell more news stories. In addition to television shows and movies, news outlets have run numerous stories lately in which “ZOMBIES ATTACK!” Arguably the most publicized attack happened in 2012, when a man in Miami attacked another man by biting him repeatedly while he was naked.  He brutally ripped the man apart, biting his eyeballs out and leaving him with no nose.  The police arrived on the scene and were shocked by the grisly situation.  The man was eating the other man and police ordered him to stop, but he did note respond. He turned towards the police officers and began to growl as if he were a zombie.  The police then had to fatally shoot the man to prevent him from injuring others.  The Miami zombie, whose real name is Rudy Eugene was high on a synthetic drug known as “bath salts”, which is a more reasonable explanation for his violent behavior and incoherent state (CBS Miami). However, zombie enthusiasts believed or at least speculate, whether this could be the beginning of zombie activity.  Around the same time, a student at Morgan State University and resident of Maryland was arrested for killing his former roommate, but this was no ordinary murder. Alex Kinyua, aka the “Maryland Zombie”, was arrested for the murder and dismemberment of his roommate.  He later told police that he hadn’t just killed his roommate, but he ate his heart and parts of his brain.  This event also created fear within the public and perpetuated the trendy idea of an upcoming zombie apocalypse. He wasn’t on any drugs like bath salts, but it was argued he had severe mental problems (WPTV).  There have also been people who think it is hilarious that people believe in this sort of thing and decided to make a joke about it.  A man in Miami posed as a zombie and would run up to people, only to have them running away in terror.  This video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4awVqRr1eCo shows the comedian terrorizing many people.  He may have taken the joke too far, but I am sure people who aren’t from the Miami area got a good laugh out of this.  There are many different views on the zombie apocalypse, but as you can see in the video, people are not willing to take a chance anymore and that fear has been positioned within us from shows like the Walking Dead similar media.

The Walking Dead and many other popular zombie related shows have continued the fad of a zombie apocalypse longer than what was likely expected.  It has captured many viewers’ attentions with real-life situations in a post apocalyptic world.  The feelings of being all alone in a world full of things that are trying to kill you is horrifying to many and with the craze of the 2012 apocalypse many jumped on the zombie band wagon and were and still are sure that one day some virus, drug or crazy mutation will turn our friends and family into flesh eating monsters and only the prepared believers will survive.

Nasiruddin, Melissa, et al. "Zombies--A Pop Culture Resource For Public Health Awareness." Emerging Infectious Diseases 19.5 (2013): 809-813. Academic Search Elite. Web. 11 July 2014.

"Miami Police Shoot, Kill Man Eating Another Man's Face." CBS Miami. CBS Local Media, 26 May 2012. Web. 11 July 2014. <http://miami.cbslocal.com/2012/05/26/ miami-police-confrontation-men-leaves-1-dead-1-hurt/>.

Brumfield, Sarah. "Maryland man accused of eating roommate's brain, heart in 'zombie-like' attack ranted on Facebook." WPTV. Scripps TV Station Group, 3 June 2012. Web. 11 July 2014. <http://www.wptv.com/news/national/maryland-man-accused-of-eating-roommates-brain-heart-in-zombie-like-attack-ranted-on-facebook>.

Miami Zombie Attack Prank! Prod. Vitalyzd TV. YouTube. YouTube LLC, 2 June 2012. Web. 11 July 2014.

     <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4awVqRr1eCo>.