Tuesday, August 6, 2019

Jim Watkins, 8 Chan owner, says El Paso shooter didn't post manifesto. Watkins called to testify before congress.


The statement comes after Jim Watkins, the owner of the 8chan message board, suggested in a YouTube video that the document had been loaded to his site by a different user. Watkins, who appeared in front of an image of Benjamin Franklin, said the site had made law enforcement "aware" of the manifesto when it appeared.

He also suggested -- but didn't state -- that the gunman, who killed 22 in the attack at a Walmart store, had posted the document to Instagram.

"First of all, the El Paso shooter posted on Instagram, not 8chan," Watkins said in the video. "Later, someone uploaded the manifesto. However, that manifesto was not uploaded by the Walmart shooter. I don't know if he wrote it or not, but it was not uploaded by the murderer; that is clear."

8chan, an anonymous forum, is a magnet for trolls, who delight in racist, sexist and politically incorrect humor. Watkins' video was titled "Sorry for the inconvenience, common sense will prevail" an apparent reference to the title of the 2,300-word manifesto, which was called "The Inconvenient Truth."
 Jim Watkins; Image Reclaim The Net

Reclaim The Net8chan owner Jim Watkins called to testify before congress
Homeland Security Chairman Bennie G. Thompson and Ranking Member Mike Rogers have sent a letter to Jim Watkins, the owner of the online imageboard 8chan, requesting that he appear before Congress to answer questions about how the site investigates and mitigates “extremist content”.
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The letter from Thompson and Rogers cites various reports alleging that in total three mass shooters have posted racist letters or manifestos to 8chan before mass shootings – the El Paso shooter, the Poway synagogue shooter, and the Christchurch shooter.

“Regrettably, this is at least the third act of white supremacist extremist violence linked to your website this year,” the letter reads.
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