The ritualized rifling through old internet accounts usually muddies the story more than it informs the public.

It’s a weird headline, but the discussion is around how journalists and the public look through internet history in cases like this. Some of it is helpful, some of it is not.

In particular, it’s a response to this article:

‘Extremely ironic’: Suspect in UnitedHealthcare CEO slaying played video game killer, friend recalls (NBCNews)

The game in this case being AmongUs…

Monday night, NBC News published an article with the headline “’Extremely Ironic’: Suspect in UnitedHealthcare CEO Slaying Played Video Game Killer, Friend Recalls.” This article is currently all over every single one of my social media feeds, because it is emblematic of the type of research I described above. It is a very bad article whose main reason for existing is the fact that it contains a morsel of “new” “information,” except the “information” in this case is that Luigi Mangione played the video game Among Us at some point in college.

cross-posted from: https://rss.ponder.cat/post/72744

  • Garibaldee@lemm.eeEnglish
    66·
    8 days ago

    woke: doom inspires acts of violence

    broke: call of duty inspires acts of violence

    bespoke: among us inspires acts of violence

  • style99@lemm.eeEnglish
    452·
    8 days ago

    Funny, how much hand wringing is going on in the sweaty mainstream media about a guy who merely put down a vicious oligarchy-loving killer. You’d get the impression that media moguls are worried that they’re next.

    • DuckWrangler9000@lemmy.worldEnglish
      24·
      8 days ago

      Funny, how much hand wringing is going on in the sweaty mainstream media about a guy who merely put down a vicious oligarchy-loving killer. You’d get the impression that media moguls are worried that they’re next.

      It’s a sign of the time that we’re living in. When people find joy in the death of others in a society, the quality of living is exceptionally bad. It’s reminiscent of Rome too where the last years of their society were filled with chaos

  • Phoenicianpirate@lemm.eeEnglish
    36·
    8 days ago

    Did prosecutors seriously talk about among us like it is this game that only psychos play? The game is fun! In fact I think I am gonna play it tonight!

    • DABDA@lemm.eeEnglish
      5·
      8 days ago

      From The Three-Body Problem by Cixin Liu:

      Later, other Adventists based their hatred of the human race on other foundations, not limited to issues such as the environment or warfare. Some raised their hatred to very abstract, philosophical levels. Unlike how they would be imagined later, most of them were realists, and did not place too much hope in the alien civilization they served either. Their betrayal was based only on their despair and hatred of the human race. Mike Evans gave the Adventists their motto: We don’t know what extraterrestrial civilization is like, but we know humanity.

    • otp@sh.itjust.worksEnglish
      21·
      8 days ago

      There are plenty of animals that have killed in cold blood. Some animals are evil assholes.

  • RememberTheApollo_@lemmy.worldEnglish
    7·
    8 days ago

    The article reads like regular internet bad behavior.

    there is rarely a single story everyone is talking about and where it is impossible to hold anyone’s attention for more than a few minutes at a time…

    Exactly what the press contributes to.

    Goes on to suggest digging through old accounts, maybe finding the right person of interest, making stuff up based on what you find, then harassing people associated with the person.

    But that’s ok, because it’s “journalism.”