TRUE CRIME'We Want These Executives Dead': Reporter Taylor Lorenz Defends UnitedHealthcare CEO's Gruesome Murder in Sick Post
Taylor Lorenz defended the assassination of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson.
Taylor Lorenz defended the gruesome assassination of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson on social media, prompting twisted online trolls to join in and celebrate the targeted shooting.
Brian Thompson was shot in front of a Hilton hotel in New York City.
On Wednesday, December 4, Thompson was gunned down by a masked gunman who had been waiting for him outside the Midtown Hilton hotel in New York City, where the investor's conference was taking place.
Lorenz took to BlueSky, a microblogging social media network, to share an article about how Blue Cross Blue Shield will no longer cover anesthesia for the full length of some surgeries and wrote, "And people wonder why we want these executives dead."
Over five hours later, Lorenz insisted she made her post to encourage “letter writing campaigns.”
“I hope people learn the names of all of these insurance company CEOs and engage in very peaceful letter writing campaigns so that they stop ruthlessly murdering thousands of innocent Americans by denying coverage,” she wrote. “Healthcare is a human right. We need universal healthcare now.”
Taylor Lorenz's post was flooded with memes and trolls.
The reporter's comments led to a wave of trolls to make memes and jokes at Thompson's expense on social media. Some users celebrated the CEO's death while others criticized America's healthcare system and the company he led.
Several BlueSky users shared Lorenz's comments alongside an image of a star smiling alongside the words "CEO DOWN."
One social media user wrote: "Was his trip to the ER really emergent? According to his own company my husband's heart attack wasn't an actual emergency and we were out 3k (full deductible)."
An X user posted: "I have United Healthcare, and I feel like shooting the CEO around this time every year when they raise the already ridiculous premiums and copays, so I'm not really surprised."
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The police released new images showing the alleged New York shooter's face.
The online backlash extended to UnitedHealthcare's Facebook post that expressed sadness over Thompson's death, receiving more mocking reactions than sympathetic ones.
The upload, shared Wednesday afternoon, received 35,000 “Haha” reactions compared to the 2,200 “sad” reactions.
One Facebook user commented on the post: "I can't even pretend to care, I hope he's looking up at us."
Police are still looking for the suspected shooter.
The NYPD launched a manhunt for the suspect, offering a $10,000 reward for information.
Thompson's wife, Paulette Thompson, mentioned receiving threats prior to the assassination, pointing to potential motives behind the gruesome crime.
“Basically, I don’t know, a lack of coverage?” she vaguely told NBC News by phone. “I don’t know details. I just know that he said there were some people that had been threatening him."
