Segment 4

The transcription discusses two cases of violence influenced by social media. The Slenderman stabbing involved 12-year-old offenders who believed in the fictional character and stabbed a peer. The Bianca Devins murder saw a 17-year-old victim killed by a 21-year-old acquaintance who posted graphic images online. The cases highlight how online content shapes beliefs and behaviors, extending harm beyond physical violence. The theories of self-control, social learning, and routine activities apply to understand these incidents. The legal processes focused on mental health evaluations, with offenders placed in mental health institutions. These cases demonstrate the profound impact of social media on youth violence, showing how online interactions can lead to real-world harm beyond cyber-bullying. So for segment 4, I want to focus on how murder and violence can go beyond the online culture within social media. So one of the most known cases is the Slenderman stabbing that happened in 2014 in Wisconsin. I believe it was for Kesha, and the victim was Peyton Lintner, who was 12 years old, and the offenders were Morgan Geyser and Iza Wheeler, who were also 12 years old. And this case centered around a Slenderman fictional photo character that became popular through internet stories, images, and online communities. So Morgan and Iza became involved with the Slenderman mythology, and they believed he was real. They believed that Harvey Peyton would prove loyalty to him and protect themselves and their families, so they lured Peyton into the woods and stabbed her 19 times. Peyton survived the attack by crawling for help, and this case can be very disturbing because everyone involved is a child. It forces us to think about the way online content can shape young people's beliefs, especially when fantasy, fear, mental health, and peer influence overlaps. So part of the podcast comes with viewing the cases from a perpetrator's side, an offender's side, a victim's side. So for this case, I feel like from an offender's side, the criminological behavior involved planning, deception, group reinforcement, and distorted thinking. They did not just simply act randomly on harming Peyton. Their beliefs were influenced by repeated exposure to online mythology and by reinforcing each other's beliefs. So from a victim's side, I believe Peyton trusted them. She was with these people she considered friends, and that's important because victimization does not always happen through strangers. Sometimes victims are harmed by people they already know and trust. So applying these theories to this case, I feel like the self-control theory applies because Morgan and Eliza were young and showed poor judgment, impulsive reasoning, and inability to fully understand the consequences of their actions. The social learning theory also applies because the Splendidman stories and online communities exposed them to repeated ideas about the character. It didn't just create the crime by itself, but it influenced the belief system surrounding the crime. So another theory that could be applied to this case is the routine activities theory because it can apply to kind of the physical setting. Peyton became a suitable target because she trusted them and the woods had limited guardianship. The offenders had the opportunity to act without immediate adult intervention. The investigation included police interviews, statements from the girls, digital evidence about their interest in Splendidman, and mental health evaluations. So because of their age and psychological conditions, the legal process focused heavily on mental illness and treatment. Morgan Gajer and Eliza Wheeler were eventually placed in a mental health institution rather than a traditional adult prison setting. This case helps the podcast assignment a bit because it shows how online culture can influence youth violence. It does not mean every child who reads Gajer's stories become violent, but it does show that online spaces can shape beliefs in powerful ways, especially for young people who may already be vulnerable. Another case that is popular and I feel like is good for the podcast assignment is the murder of Bianca Devins. Bianca Devins was 17 years old. In 2019, she was murdered in Utica, New York, I believe. That's how you pronounce Utica. And the offender was Brendan Clark, who was 21 years old. So Bianca Devins was 17 years old. Brendan Clark is 21. So Bianca and Clark knew each other through online communities. Their relationships involved this digital interaction and after Bianca's murder, Clark posted graphic images of her online. And this case shows how social media can become part of a crime itself from before, during, or after the violence. So from a perpetrator's side, the criminological behavior involved obsession, control, emotional instability, and attention seeking. Posting images online suggests that Brendan wanted an audience. He wanted shock. He wanted reaction. And social media became part of his performance of violence in a way. And from a victim's side, Bianca experienced not only physical victimization but also digital victimization after her death. Her family also became victims of the online spread of those images. And this shows how social media can extend harm beyond the crime scene itself. And applying these theories, it was a little difficult. But for the routine activity theory, it applies well because online spaces help create access between victim and offender. And the relationship and communication is connected to those digital communities. And for the self-control theory, it applies well because the offender acted violently and then used social media impulsively and harmfully just for that attention. And for the labeling theory, it was like a subunit of theories I want to apply. So after Bianca's death, there was a risk that she would be remembered only through the crime or the images. But as far as I read so far for the case, I know her family and supporters have worked to reclaim her identity and remind the public that she was a person and not just a victim. And the investigation itself used social media evidence, online posts, and communications. And due to that, police located Brendan Clark and he later pleaded guilty during his trial. And I feel like this case supports the podcast because it shows that social media can also extend further than just the crime. The harm did not just stop when Bianca was killed. It continued when images were posted and spread online. And I like to gather the Slenderman case and Bianca Devin's case show two different sides of social media-centered violence. One shows how online stories and communities can influence young offenders. And the other shows how online relationships, obsession, and attention-seeking can become connected to murder and digital harm. And I feel like both cases prove that social media can influence real-world violence in ways that go deeper than the basic cyber-bullying or online arguments.