Facebook Flows a Murder, and Must Now Face Itself
Facebook Flows a Murder, and Must Now Face Itself
[ UPDATE: Four/16/17 8:29 P.M. PST — Facebook has responded to various news reports, claiming that while Steve Stephens did post a Facebook Live at some point during the day, the shooting in question was not broadcast via Facebook Live. Rather, it was recorded and then uploaded. We've clarified the story across to reflect the fresh information. ]The movie is shaky, like so many other handheld Facebook movies. A steering wheel fills the foreground, and a bright sunny day bobs by outside the car's windows. The man filming drives leisurely, narrating as he goes. He isn’t talking to just anyone, however anyone could be watching; he is talking to one woman, whom he blames for what’s about to happen next. He stops the car. “I found somebody I’m ’bout to kill,” he says, opening the door. “I'm ’bout to kill this man right here, the old dude.” A chime sounds, reminding him that he’s left the keys in the ignition. He overlooks it, and goes across the street to confront the man. Within seconds, one of the most horrific acts ever to emerge on Facebook will be broadcast. A random murder, on Easter Sunday.
The entire movie is fifty seven seconds long. Less than a minute: That’s all it takes to broadcast a cold-blooded homicide to thousands of people around the world. And all it takes to raise questions about the boundaries and responsibilities of a platform that has pledged to reflect humanity in its purest form.
When Facebook launched Facebook Live just under a year ago, Mark Zuckerberg told Buzzfeed that “we built this big technology platform so we can go and support whatever the most individual and emotional and raw and visceral ways people want to communicate are as time goes on.” Well, Facebook Live has certainly succeeded in that effort, tho’ some of that communication may be rawer and more visceral than the company had anticipated. Since its launch, Live has provided an unedited look at police shootings , rape , torment , and enough suicides that Facebook will be integrating real-time suicide prevention implements into the platform. And tho’ murders have been captured by witnesses on Facebook Live—and people have even been killed as they were streaming to the service—this shows up to be the very first time a killer has streamed themselves preparing to commit a homicide, and then uploading the act itself, as happened earlier today.
In the movie, a man that Cleveland police have identified as 37-year-old Steve Stephens gets out of his car and approaches an elderly shopper carrying a grocery bag. Stephens requests his target repeat a woman's name—the woman who he is evidently making this movie for. By this point the barrel of the gun is visible in the framework, and the victim senses that something is very wrong. As Stephens fires a single shot, the camera jostles away, so it actually misses the one moment he was seemingly so intent on capturing—but when it pans back, his victim is lounging in a pool of blood. “That motherfucker dead ’cause of you,” Stephens concludes, addressing his intended audience.
Homicide suspect Steve Stephens.
In a brief press conference held at six pm CT—broadcast on Facebook Live—Cleveland police chief Calvin Williams claimed that, while Stephens had asserted that he had killed thirteen people today, law enforcement officials had found no evidence of any other murders; Robert Godwin, 74, seems to be the only victim. Then again, when this article was published, Stephens was still at large, the subject of a massive manhunt by federal and state authorities. “We have brought everything to bear on this,” Williams said. “Everybody is out there looking for Steve.” Presumably, when authorities do find Stephens, it will be in part because of clues embedded in the movie he so loosely collective: the make and model of his car; details of his physical appearance; what he’s wearing.
And when the manhunt is over, and the grieving embarks, so too will Facebook’s soul-searching.
Facebook is not the very first media company to fight with the prospect of unwittingly broadcasting violence shortly after being uploaded. When news anchor Christine Chubbuck killed herself on live TV in 1974, the station was incapable to stop the event from airing, but never displayed the footage again. The number of viewers who actually witnessed the event was minimal. Facebook has taken similar steps, pulling Stephens' movie shortly after it was posted. “This is a horrific crime and we do not permit this kind of content on Facebook,” the company said in a statement. “We work hard to keep a safe environment on Facebook, and are in touch with law enforcement in emergencies when there are direct threats to physical safety.”