Kara S Alaimo, Guest Columnist

Elon Musk Faced a Test After Texas Shooting. He Failed.

Images of bloodied and disfigured victims should never have been allowed to circulate on Twitter and likely made us less safe.

May 12, 2023 at 7:21 PM UTC

By Kara S Alaimo

Kara Alaimo is an associate professor of communication at Fairleigh Dickinson University. She is the author of “Over the Influence: Why Social Media Is Toxic for Women and Girls — and How We Can Take It Back.”

Graphic images from gun violence don’t belong on Twitter. — Graphic images from gun violence don’t belong on Twitter.
Photographer: Win McNamee/Getty Images North America

Provide news feedback or report an error

Site feedback:

Take our Survey

This article is for subscribers only.

Gruesome images of the aftermath of Saturday’s mass shooting at a Texas mall were allowed to circulate widely on Twitter.

The platform should never have allowed the pictures of bloodied and disfigured victims — one of whom appeared to be a child — to be shared, and it underscored the dangers of having Elon Musk, someone with little regard for the importance of monitoring and promptly removing graphic images, at the helm of one of the most popular social networks.