An alleged Gen Z assassin gets the Gen Z internet treatment
Luigi Mangione has become an online sensation after his arrest.
Welcome to Gen Z Translator, where I break down trending topics on Fridays. If you’re new, you can subscribe here and follow me on Threads, X, or Bluesky. Views are my own.
I hit my 100th post on Substack! Would you help me celebrate by sharing this publication with a friend?
On Dec. 4, UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson was shot outside a hotel in New York City.
Security camera footage was released of a figure rumored to be flirting with someone on the other side of the counter. Then, on Monday, a suspect was arrested at a McDonalds. The police identified the person they arrested as Luigi Mangione, 26.
The internet immediately capsized. What happened is best summarized by this X post:
Girls started DMing Luigi on Instagram. People took note of his 5-star Goodreads rating of “The Lorax,” and other reads. Pop Crave revealed Luigi’s cousin is a Maryland State Delegate. The internet identified Luigi’s mutuals, valedictorian status, and Ivy League education. Someone even calculated his height based on a picture in front of a cop car.
It got so bad, Facebook, X and Instagram suspended his profiles. (As of writing this, his X profile was reinstated, verified, and currently has over 400,000 followers).
Many of the assumptions above were later confirmed by news outlets.
On X, social media users said, “he’s hot as shit you must acquit” and “oh good news the alleged shooter is even hotter than we thought. oh nooo his politics border on incoherent and he's an ayn rand guy. well at least he reads and he's even hotter than we thought.”
Another said, “Gunman riding away on a city bike, bullets engraved, Monopoly money in the backpack, face being shown bc he was flirting, and a look-alike contest. This is the best assassination we’ve had in a while.”
It wasn’t long until the fan edits1 rolled along, either.
“Its unfortunate that due to him being hot thats all yall are gonna remember or care about in the end instead of what he stands for and what led him to do what he did, such an unserious group of people im sorry yall need to get a f—king reality check expeditiously lol,” an X user countered.
People were quick to point out Luigi’s age – 26. Significant because in the United States, it’s the age you lose coverage from your parent’s healthcare insurance. The internet also noticed a spine X-ray in Luigi’s Twitter/X header2.
“So he’s saddled with a lot of medical debt from a back injury now that he doesn’t have adequate health coverage,” a Threads user theorized. “Good luck finding an unsympathetic jury.”
“These reactions and jokes, some mental health experts explain, speak to the importance our society places on physical appearances. Some of the more extreme comments also remind us there is a segment of the population that finds violent − and even potentially violent − people attractive,” Charles Trepany writes in an article for USA Today. “Another reason people may find Mangione attractive is because of what he has come to represent; Thompson's killing has sparked a larger conversation about issues with the affordability of healthcare.”
According to CNN, Luigi has been charged with “one count of murder, two counts of second-degree criminal possession of a weapon, one count of second-degree possession of a forged document, and one count of third-degree criminal possession of a weapon.”
This isn’t the first time the internet has found death funny, nor will it be the last. Think back to Liam Payne’s death or the passing of any British royal. One person on social media made a list of the top seven days to be on Twitter, four of which involved someone dying.
I can only think to describe this colossal cultural reaction as the “Gen Z internet treatment.” Future scandal subjects should expect any and every digital breadcrumb to be dug up by thirsty internet sleuths, hunting for their next viral moment. What happened is overshadowed by the spectacle of it happening.
While I don’t think it’s just Gen Z joining in on the jokes, I do think how far the social media stalking went is distinct – I don’t think a Boomer is trying to find Luigi’s Spotify account, track down his Reddit, or review-bomb3 the McDonalds where he was apprehended. Influencers even started using his Instagram account for clout4.
“What’s most striking about Mangione’s extensive online dossier is that, had it been studied before the shooting took place, it wouldn’t have raised much alarm,” John Herrman wrote for New York Magazine. “Mangione had an online profile consonant with his identity and context. He shared and posted and followed like a 20-something striver with a foot in the tech industry, listened to Rogan, and considered himself a rationalist or at least unusually rational.”
The Spotify meme became a copypasta,5 as if the internet has enough sense to mock their self-awareness. Luigi has been caught “listening to” Taylor Swift, Lana Del Rey, Charli xcx, and more. That is, whatever the internet wants him to be listening to.
“For years, the internet has been the place to look to find the story behind the story,” John Herrman wrote. “In practice, it wasn’t always so fruitful…Faith in the existence of meaning in the ‘online trail’ started waning when social media achieved full ubiquity…Mangione’s stubbornly normal online footprint, and the way the media and public have feasted upon it, marks the closing of this circle.”
This online explosion also reflects the increasing societal need for instant gratification. Why wait for the trial to play out, the evidence to be presented, and the verdict to be decided before discovering all the personal details about the defendant?
It’s much more fun to scroll, click, post, yap. As more future viral internet sensations develop their digital footprint, that’s all the more possibility for excitement – and intrusion – down the road.
Social media stalking is the next wave of citizen journalism. You could argue it already has been, but not to this scale. The bigger the digital footprint, the more possibly damning it could be. There are children growing up whose whole lives will have been recorded on the internet by the time they’re adults. There are adults who know how to find every possible digital record of a person.
This is a developing story, so I know this isn’t all there is to say about it, but I’m sure there are plenty of other places you can read about it. Namely, the internet.
“You should get one IG story in addition to your one phone call when you’re arrested,” someone joked on X.
Yeah. Maybe you should.
Read my last social media story: Help, how do I quit Twitter?
My weekly roundup:
😇 What I’m Doing: Writing about the future of journalism for Nieman Lab
🎶 What I’m Listening To: “STEREO DRIVER” by Q
🎞️ What I’m Watching: Survivor finale upcoming bb
🔎 What I’m Reading: Re-reading “The Raven Boys” by Maggie Stiefvater in anticipation of the graphic novel launching Aug. 2025
📱 What I’m Scrolling: (See newsletter above)
Read the full Gen Z Dictionary here.
fan edits: fan-made videos, usually spliced together quickly with clips or photos to express admiration for someone
header: the banner at the top of someone’s social media profile
review bombing: artificially inflating the reviews for a company or person to reflect negatively on them
clout: influence/followers