Suspect in the killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO Luigi Mangione took over He took the internet by storm after he was arrested for allegedly shooting and killing Brian Thompson, with social media users quick to celebrate him and even call him attractive.
The alleged killer It was praised as “Interesting” and as “an interesting person in more ways than one” in response to photographs of himself. His supporters online described him as “exciting” and demanded his release.
Mangione, 26, an Ivy League graduate, became another person involved in a murder investigation whose looks attracted significant attention, like serial killer Ted Bundy or the murder suspect who was acquitted. Amanda Knox.
The Menendez brothers, who shot their parents in 1989 citing years of sexual abuse, have become the focus of two Netflix shows, and they have what described by Forbes As a “bad boy effect”. Jeremy Meeks He became known as the “handsome criminal” after a photo of a Northern California man who was arrested in 2014 on weapons charges went viral.
Luigi Mangione is pictured in a photo in Pennsylvania after his arrest in connection with the murder of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson. (Obtained by Fox News Digital)
Mangione has become a “folk hero” to some who are dissatisfied with the health insurance industry, said psychiatrist and author Dr. Robbie Ludwig.
“Although killing was never a good thing, it was an emotional justification for those who spoke out online. Many people feel like the industry is being rigged against them, so there is an induced helplessness when people feel vulnerable or when they try to interact with others. “It's a well-established company,” she told Fox News Digital.
Regarding people discussing one's appearance, she said: “Beauty is power, and from an evolutionary perspective, people associate beauty with health and well-being, so sometimes it takes a while for our brains to catch up. Beauty is beauty, but it doesn't necessarily mean that someone “It's not fatal, and it doesn't mean someone's not good, so I think there's a trick going on… We're very attracted to looks and sex, and that can blind us to what's in our best interest and who's good and who's bad.”
Dr. Jonathan Alpert, psychotherapist and author of Be Brave: Change Your Life in 28 Days, said people can form a “cognitive bias” based on one trait of a person.
“In the case of the alleged CEO killer, it's about his appearance,” he told Fox News Digital. “People tend to make snap judgments that lead to poor decisions based strictly on this individual trait. I have heard from many people who side with the killer who believe that his complaint with the insurance companies was legitimate, and that the murder was justified to make a point. Ask them if They would have had the same opinion of the killer if he was ugly and had a tattoo on his face. They were silent after that and did not know how to respond. This is proof positive that people are in fact affected by him and seem, in this case Mangione, unable to reconcile his looks with his actions. The alleged heinousness.”
Far-left journalist Taylor Lorenz, whose lack of empathy and even “joy” over the murder has drawn sharp criticism, wrote on Substack that she had spoken to several people “glorifying” Mangione online and found it was related to their frustration with the health care system. .
Taylor Lorenz attends the premiere of “This Is Not Financial Advice” during the 2023 Tribeca Film Festival at SVA Theater on June 10, 2023 in New York City. (Jamie McCarthy/Getty Images for Tribeca Film Festival)
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“All of them were under 40, and mostly from Generation Z. They all said they had been affected by the health care system in some way, whether they were watching their parents or grandparents struggle to get basic care or struggle to get care themselves,” she wrote.
“Everyone I spoke to said they have completely lost faith in the two-party system and the media, which they feel is beholden to corporate interests. They are rallying around the shooter because he appears to be the only man they currently want to kill.” He does Something Lorenz added about it all.
The former Washington Post reporter joined Piers Morgan's show and said I felt happy because of the killingbefore stepping back a little and saying that joy wasn't the right word.
Luigi Mangione pictured on Facebook. Mangione was taken into custody in Altoona, Pennsylvania, on Monday morning in connection with the killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson in an ambush in New York City. (Luigi Mangione/Facebook)
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Comedian and host of “After Midnight” Enter Taylor Tomlinson On Mangione's appearance too.
“All the other late-night shows have really covered up the fact that everyone thinks the shooter is interesting,” Tomlinson said. “But I feel confident that I'm the only late-night host who can honestly say, 'I will.'”
“Do you have any idea how attractive you are until a McDonald's employee says, 'Wait, well, it's creepy that you're here,'” she joked.
An image of UnitedHealth executive killer Luigi Mangione appears during a CNN segment.
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CNN dropped its Chiron banner on Tuesday to show off Mangione's abs in a shirtless photo while discussing the alleged killer's fan base online.
“It's very troubling that we're celebrating this person who committed cold-blooded murder because, you know, he clearly went to the gym,” CNN political commentator Kate Bedingfield said.
Broadcaster Cassie Hunt then suggested removing the banner to “figure out why” much of the online obsession with Maggione is due to the fact that he is, according to Bedingfield, an “attractive person.”
Albert said the media bears some of the blame for the online trend of Mangione mania to some extent.
“Traditional media and social media have focused on the killer's appearance and, whether intentionally or not, it attracts user engagement and clicks,” he told Fox News Digital. “We as a culture and society seem obsessed, and this fixation may overshadow the seriousness of the crime.”
