Study shows online hate speech spiked after shooting at LGBTQ nightclub in Colorado

Data shows that there were more than 100,000 tweets containing homophobic slurs after the shooting at Club Q in Colorado Springs in November.

News 12 Staff

Dec 2, 2022, 11:27 AM

Updated 739 days ago

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A new study from Montclair State University shows that online hate speech has spiked dramatically following a recent shooting at an LGBTQ nightclub.
Data shows that there were more than 100,000 tweets containing homophobic slurs after the shooting at Club Q in Colorado Springs in November.
"Specifically, the study showed a dramatic spike in the use of the term “grooming” (a slur used against the LGBTQ+ community) on Twitter in the period after the shooting at an LGBTQ+ nightclub in Colorado Springs, Colorado, on Nov. 19-20," researchers wrote
Five people were killed and more than a dozen others wounded by gunfire in the incident.
Researchers point out that the uptick comes after new Twitter CEO Elon Musk granted amnesty to suspended accounts on the platform.