How do they make murder so convincing?
Translated from Icelandic and summarized by DistantNews. Read the original for the full story.
At a glance
In-depth
Named sources
Context piece
- New York Times journalist Amelia Nierenberg wrote from Reykjavík about Iceland’s low homicide rate and its treatment of eight killings in 2024 as major news.
- She contrasted Iceland’s figures with the United States, where the FBI’s Crime Clock says a homicide occurs on average every 30.5 minutes.
- The article notes that Iceland recorded about two homicides a year before 2020, rising to roughly four annually afterward.
“How do they make murder so convincing?” asks the headline of a piece about Iceland, a country where killings are rare enough to dominate the news.
Writing from Reykjavík, New York Times journalist Amelia Nierenberg describes the Nordic country, with a population of just under 400,000, as one of the safest in the world. Eight people were murdered there in 2024, a number that became news precisely because it was so unusual.
Nierenberg places Iceland’s figures in context for readers in the United States. The FBI’s Crime Clock says a homicide occurs in the United States, on average, every 30.5 minutes.
Before 2020, Iceland’s homicide rate stood at about two killings a year, according to the account. Since then, it has doubled to roughly four. The piece was written from Reykjavík and published as a subscription article.
So safe is this Nordic country of nearly 400,000 people that it became news when eight people were murdered there in 2024.
About this summary
Originally published by Morgunblaðið in Icelandic. Translated, summarized, and contextualized automatically by DistantNews, with a note on how the source frames the story. Not individually reviewed before publishing. How this works.
More Stories
From Our Blog
What Gets Lost (and Found) When News Is Translated
The Critical Role of Diaspora Media in Global News
What Travellers Should Know About Countries with Restricted Press
A Digital Nomad's Guide to Following Local News
How the Same Story Looks Different in Different Countries
