After law enforcement officials revealed the identity of the “person of interest” in the shooting at the Highland Park, Illinois July 4th parade, extremist researchers, journalists, and others rushed online. The authorities discovered a trail of digital activity that could be linked to Robert Crimo III, the suspect in the mass shooting. Extremism experts agreed that there is no clear ideological or political motivation when they looked through the thousands of photos, music and memes.
Experts in technology and extremism say that this suspect’s activities fit with an emerging profile of mass shooter. It is not enough to be able to categorize the suspects into familiar categories, such as white supremacists and radical Islamists. This requires an understanding of dark online subcultures. These overlap and feed into one another in ways that glorify violence, and encourage nihilism. These experts warn that these online communities have been linked to an increase in mass shootings.
Alex Newhouse, deputy head of the Center on Terrorism, Extremism and Counterterrorism, Middlebury Institute of International Studies, said, “I’ve described it as sort of a mass shooting machine.” “A lot these communities are designed for the purpose of creating mass shooters over time. Over and over again.”
Crimo’s digital footprint is awash with unoriginal content, according to researchers.
“It’s like a zoomer spin and zoomer trends and mass killings that have been done before,” Sarah Hightower said, using a term that refers members of Generation Z. Hightower works as an independent researcher focusing on extremist cultic movements and online cults.
Hightower cited one video, for example, that shows a cartoonized depiction of the suspect holding a long gun during a violent confrontation with police officers.
She said that he wasn’t the first mass-killer to make an animated music video of himself in the Columbine style. Hightower stated that a 2017 mass-murder/suicide occurred at a Pennsylvania grocery store.
Extremism researchers claimed that the suspect’s online content presents to the public an carefully curated persona. This is similar to the image of mass shooters, based on the Columbine school massacre killers. This image is believed to have been used by a large number of youth in online communities.
It’s very similar to Hillary Clinton calling Trump supporters ‘deplorables’. The thing that happened is that they chose to wear that label on hats, T-shirts, and it became an in-group proud label,” Emmi Conley, an independent researcher into far-right extremist movements and digital propaganda, said. “In the same way, we’ve previously discussed lone actor violence aEUR in that they’re’mentally ill’ and they’re confused. They’re not part of any group or actors, but they do their own thing.
Conley stated that Conley intended for this cartoonized representation of a mass-shooter to be used to create a “known aesthetic” and to assert the identity of being one.
Conley stated that “[Crimo] does not fit into any one ideology because ideology is irrelevant here.” Conley stated that the thing that ties this type of violent actor to others is not ideological but aesthetic.
Crimo’s online presence used a visual language that was similar to that of a young subculture. This includes flashing neon lights or strobe lights, and short cuts between video clips that are accompanied by techno lo fi music. Newhouse noted that Crimo’s chaotic and random selections of memes and images echo what he has seen in mass shootings such as those in Uvalde (Texas) and Oxford (Michigan).
Newhouse stated, “It’s all meant to be one, shared; two; completely incomprehensible for anyone like us who are viewing it; and three; to break down a person’s natural reluctance towards violence.” It is meant to destroy a person’s brain.
Conley said that this obsession with aesthetics extends to the way would-be shooters in these online communities consider the optics and the effectiveness of their attacks.
She said that every mass shooting committed with an AR 15 was about the AR 15 being the’mass shoter weapon’ aEUR and not because it was the most effective weapon. It is now a performance art because there have been so many mass shoots. It is not the same way every time. There is a way that you look.
This aesthetic unites a variety of digital subcultures that are deeply nihilistic and use dehumanizing language. They also glorify violence. They often originate on 4chan and include fan communities dedicated to serial killers and mass shooters, as well as online forums for sharing graphic content. Experts noted that the majority of those who join these fringe communities don’t go on to commit mass killings. However, these spaces can create violence.
Conley stated that understanding these things as loosely knit communities [and] as more nebulous cultural movers is going to help you to see this threat better.
Conley and Newhouse said that bad actors who seek to push others towards real-life violence are known to be part of these spaces. This complex web of subcultures also includes immersive fan fiction communities, horror and dark alternate realities games, and immersive fanfiction communities.
Newhouse stated that the idea behind violence is to make everyone in these communities lose touch with reality and become obsessed with it.
Researchers point to the cartoonized video showing an armed Crimo fighting with police in a bloody confrontation. This is just one example of how violent fringe online communities can influence users’ behavior.
Melanie Smith, head research at the Institute for Strategic Dialogue US, stated that there is a tendency to “gore-post”, which is basically to post graphic, violent imagery to try to build camaraderie among users. Crimo is believed to have been active on at least one “gore forum.”
Experts agree that Crimo’s online content cannot be used to diagnose his mental health. Newhouse stated that dark alternate realities communities and gore forums were created to instill hopelessness, nihilism, and lower one’s natural reluctance of violence. Crimo had reached an inflection point, Newhouse said. This could indicate that he was moving further away from real-world interaction to become more involved with these online subcultures.
He said that he felt extremely disconnected from his music audience, and began to show signs of being immersed into these deeper Internet communities.
Crimo was an online rap artist. Newhouse stated that Crimo’s new album is markedly different than previous ones.
He said, “Something was happening in that time period.”
Hightower pointed out that performance is also a key component of these communities.
She said, “It was like he was trying to make it seem like he was detached from reality.” “I don’t know if this was an affectation he was putting on, or if he really does have a psychotic disorder.”
Conley stated that once people are exposed to such a particular type of online community, it can be hard to get back to healthy online habits.
She said, “If you’re going down that spiral deeper into fringe, violent spaces, then there’s a point where you can no longer go back to normal.” You’ve put too much into this. Too much mental health, time, and energy. It’s not enough to say, “Well, this is too much for me. I’m going back now.” It will trap you.
Experts are concerned that insufficient knowledge of the circumstances that lead to mass shootings, and legal restrictions, could make it difficult to prevent similar attacks in the future.
Conley stated, “It’s not difficult to find different violent spaces.” It’s difficult to know what to do if you find one. We currently have only law enforcement, and no intervention capabilities.
Parents who want to prevent their children from engaging in these online activities will be challenged by the complexity and nuance these subcultures present. Newhouse said that the 13- to 24-year-olds are most at risk. This is mainly male.
“If someone doesn’t understand the subculture, how can they effectively intervene?” Hightower was asked.
Newhouse stated that he believes technology companies can help to mitigate the problem by working with journalists, experts, and the general public. Experts and Newhouse agreed that Crimo shouldn’t be considered an exception and that there is a need to have a common understanding of the mass shooter profile.
Hightower stated, “He’s certainly not the only one. I can tell that right now.” “You’ll be seeing more young boys and men like [Crimo] popping up.” It’s not going to be neo Nazis and terrorists.
