The Contagion Effect Around Mass Shootings
Independent research conducted at Arizona State University found:
"that killings that receive national or international media attention do indeed inspire similar events a significant fraction of the time."
"The researchers did a statistical analysis of 176 mass shooting events in the U.S. from 2006 to 2011 and 220 school shootings between 1997 and 2013. They discovered that mass shootings were significantly more likely to occur if another shooting that received national media coverage took place in the previous 13 days -- a finding that suggests that mass shootings tend to cluster together in a similar manner to suicides."
–Source: Study Published in PLOS One
After studying 160 “active shooter” events over the past decade, with access to information beyond what the public knows, Andre Simons, of the F.B.I.’s Behavioral Analysis Unit, concluded that “the copycat phenomenon is real.”
This Movement is About Demanding National Media Organizations Take Responsibility And Adhere to the Following:
- Limit the name and likeness of the individual in reporting, except when the alleged assailant is still at large and doing so would aid in the assailant's capture.
- Refuse to broadcast/publish self-serving statements, manifestos, and/or photos/videos made by the individual. Elevate the names and likenesses of victims killed and/or injured to send the message that their lives are more important than that of the killer.
- Recognize that the prospect of infamy could serve as a motivating factor for other individuals to kill others and could inspire copycat crimes. Keep this responsibility in mind when reporting.
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Thank you to all the organizations who provided the years of research & work that have served as the backbone for this campaign:
www.alerrt.org