ONLINE INFLUENCE
The internet allows individuals from across the globe to virtually connect and share ideas in a profound way. This
connectedness has also allowed those with fringe or extremist ideologies to converge and promote their beliefs to a wider
audience. Some of the attackers in this study were influenced by hateful content shared on “chan sites” and other websites.
8chan
For two of the attackers in this study, their actions were influenced
by content they consumed online related to 8chan, an imageboard
website. An imageboard is a type of online forum where images
are posted with accompanying text that stimulate comments
and discussion. The attackers’ consumption of 8chan material
influenced their beliefs, as both attackers described being inspired
by the actions and writings of the individual who attacked
mosques in New Zealand on March 15, 2019. They described this
influence in their manifestos, which were posted to 8chan prior to
their attacks.
On August 3, 2019, a 21-year-old male drove over ten
hours from his home and opened fire at individuals
shopping at a large chain retail store. He specifically
targeted the Hispanic community, killing 23 people and
injuring 22 others. The attacker had actively posted on
his Twitter account and on 8chan about his xenophobic
anti-immigration beliefs. In the minutes before his attack,
he posted a manifesto on 8chan in which he outlined his
political and economic reasons behind the attack, and
what he described as the “Hispanic invasion of Texas.”
He encouraged others to spread his message if his attack
was successful.
Chan Sites
The rise of 4chan and 8chan (aka Infinitechan
or Infinitychan), known collectively as “chan,”
has further propagated violent ideologies online.
Chan sites are largely unregulated, with few
rules and moderators to enforce them. Users
are able to post anonymously, and a formal
registration process is not required. Because
of this, it is difficult to block or remove a user
for an extended period of time.
Chan sites have allowed for the dissemination of
new extreme ideologies such as QAnon, an altright movement promoting multiple government
conspiracy theories, which originated on 4chan in
-
8chan in particular has been linked to white
supremacy, neo-Nazism, the alt-right, racism,
anti-Semitism, hate crimes, child pornography,
and multiple mass shootings. After several mass
attacks in 2019 linked to this platform, it went
offline in August 2019 and was re-launched in
November 2019, rebranded as 8kun.
https://assets.documentcloud.org/documents/7014847/US-Secret-Service-MAPS-Booklet-2019.pdf