Memes and nihilistic in-jokes: the online world of Charlie Kirk’s alleged killer

A growing number of shooters are in conversation with their digital communities, which are becoming extreme

On the day that 22-year-old Tyler Robinson shot and the killed rightwing activist Charlie Kirk, prosecutors say, he texted his roommate to confess what he had done. While appearing to admit to the murder and describe how he was planning to retrieve his gun, he pivoted to mention why he had carved messages into the ammunition.

Remember how I was engraving bullets? The fuckin messages are mostly a big meme," Robinson texted, according to authorities.