: Plaintiffs claim that Reddit and YouTube helped cultivate the shooter's violent mindset and "addiction" to extremist content, which directly influenced his decision to target a predominantly Black neighborhood.
: An investigative report from the New York Attorney General also looked into how online platforms were used to plan the attack and disseminate graphic video footage of the massacre.
On May 14, 2022, 10 Black people were killed in a racially motivated mass shooting at a Tops Friendly Market in Buffalo, New York. The shooter, , livestreamed the attack and had authored a manifesto detailing his white supremacist beliefs.
On March 19, 2024, a New York state judge ruled that and YouTube must face lawsuits related to the 2022 Buffalo Tops supermarket shooting. The lawsuits, filed by survivors and victims' families, allege that these platforms' algorithms and "unreasonably dangerous" design choices played a key role in radicalizing the shooter by exposing him to white supremacist and antisemitic content. Key Legal and Investigative Developments
: Following the shooting, New York enacted stricter gun safety laws, including raising the age for semi-automatic weapon purchases to 21 and banning certain types of body armor. Background on the Incident
Detailed reports and analysis of the shooting's impact on social media policies can be found in the New York Times and the New York Attorney General’s Investigative Report .