Loser # 5

There was a mass shooting in McGregor, Texas on yesterday morning. The following newspaper blurb describes it:

During the shooting, an unnamed man fatally shot his wife and two children, KWTX reported. The suspect was subsequently shot by a responding officer and later transported to a nearby hospital for treatment. Two others, both women, were found dead nearby, according to the report.

Notice something? The shooter’s name isn’t mentioned. This is a marked contrast to this article in the New York Times’ list of mass shooting events in the U.S. in 2022.

Adopting a naming system like “loser #5” when talking about mass shooters would discourage latent homicidal freaks from action. Media attention is connected to the desire of these disturbed people to do a mass killing. Taking away their names and life story would remove the motivation for many mass shooters.

Media Contagion

There is a relationship between media attention and mass shootings. Dr. Jennifer B. Johnston of Western Mexico U…