US EditionCNN: Suspected shooter’s social media posts show shift from video games to political rage
CNN reviewed more than 4,000 archived posts showing the suspect moved from gaming content to calls for guns and attacks on Trump.
- On Monday, 31-year-old Cole Tomas Allen appeared in court on charges of attempting to assassinate President Donald Trump, with archived social media revealing a documented shift from gaming content to aggressive political rhetoric.
- Archived posts show Allen's online behavior evolved significantly in recent years; while his account initially featured YouTube videos about Nintendo's Super Smash Bros, by 2024, his activity shifted to resharing political content and extremist arguments.
- CNN reviewed more than 4,000 posts where Allen compared Trump to Adolf Hitler and advocated for gun purchases, explicitly labeling the President a 'traitor' in March.
- Despite his online radicalization, students in Torrance who worked with Allen described him as intelligent, while Dylan Wakayama, founder of the Asian American Civic Trust, said peers were stunned by the arrest.
- Messages investigators discovered outlined plans to target Trump administration officials, while Allen retweeted conspiracy theories claiming an earlier Butler, Pennsylvania shooting was staged even as he encouraged others to acquire firearms.
14 Articles
14 Articles
The suspect accused in the shooting of the White House Correspondent Dinner shared publications comparing President Donald Trump with Adolf Hitler and encouraging other critical people in his presidency to buy weapons, according to a CNN review of two social media accounts that seem to belong to him. The accounts linked to Cole Tomas Allen, 31, who appeared before the court on Monday accused of trying to assassinate Trump, changed in recent year…
WASHINGTON – The attempted attack during the White House Correspondents' Dinner has once again placed the security of President Donald Trump at the center of public discourse, as well as the role of social media in fostering violent rhetoric. According to reports, the suspect, identified as Cole […]
Coverage Details
Bias Distribution
- 92% of the sources are Center
Factuality
To view factuality data please Upgrade to Premium
