Opinion: The Idaho murder investigation took the internet by storm, leading to misinformation and victim blaming running rampant among social media users. 
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On Nov. 13, 2022, four University of Idaho students were found dead: Ethan Chapin, 20; Madison Mogen, 21; Xana Kernodle, 20; and Kaylee Goncalves, 21. The murders shocked not only the city of Moscow, Idaho, but the entire nation. 

Murder suspect Bryan Kohburger, a 28-year-old Ph.D student at Washington State University, was arrested on Dec. 30, 2022. Much happened leading up to his arrest, as the investigation has been a whirlwind of information, rumors, false accusations and unshared reports.

People across the country grew heavily invested in the case, gathering most of their information through social media. Reddit, Twitter and TikTok became platforms for police updates and discussion. This created a whole new community on social media: true crime. At first, their engagement stemmed from genuine concern. However, users began victim blaming and spreading misinformation, prompting harm to the Idaho community.

Dylan Mortensen, one of the surviving victims, became the face to blame after the affidavit’s release. The report revealed details about Mortensen seeing the suspect in the house the night of the murder. Inevitably, the true crime community jumped to various conclusions; many put Mortensen at fault for not calling 911 sooner.

In a TikTok video by @Kingdee1.0, users commented “Nah she [could’ve done] better, not just lock the door and go back to sleep please,” and “Heard everything, yet didn’t save her friends by calling 911.” Another comment thread on @crimedivewithjess made false accusations, saying “I imagine she was on heavy drugs or heavy alcohol. She doesn’t care the way others would.”

Olivia Niemi, a junior at the University of Idaho, knew all of the victims through mutual friends and classes. Being in Gamma Phi Beta, Niemi said they all played a big part in the Greek Life community. When the rumors began circulating, students responded in two different ways. One side was “trying to stay silent and not get involved,” and on the other side, “a lot of people were sort of fighting back and reaching out and getting into arguments over social media to try to share the truth,” Niemi said.

In the six weeks it took to arrest Kohburger, social media threw around all kinds of accusations. In a Fox 13 article, TikTok user Ashley Guillard accused Rebecca Scofield, an associate professor and chair of the history department at UIdaho. Scofield filed a lawsuit against Guillard, as her false statements put Scofield’s reputation and safety at risk.

Cases like Scofield’s “took a lot of resources and time away from the actual investigation that the police were conducting. They were forced to look into different theories that people would come up with to be able to disprove them,” Niemi said. Crime fanatics tried taking the investigation into their own hands, believing the police weren’t doing their job well enough. But in reality, the police were withholding information until they arrested a suspect.

Ultimately, the Idaho murder case took over social media due to its randomness. People connected to the investigation because it could have been any college student. It could have been anyone. And with that, their obsession was also out of fear. 

“I think [this investigation] shows the fine line between how social media can help and how it can really hinder a large case. Social media can do a lot in helping make sure a case doesn’t die,” Niemi said. However, it can also do a lot of damage to those directly involved. It’s easy to forget this is a true story rather than a piece of fiction. The Idaho community is real, and they are grieving. False accusations hurt the healing process.

UIdaho adopted the slogan “Stay Strong” in hopes of bringing the community together throughout the investigation. From this investigation, I think we can learn how influential social media and the true crime community can be. We forget these victims are real people who experience grief and trauma. Moving forward, social media must be more conscious in how they engage and respond to life-changing events.