TV killer ‘was part of social media trend’

Social media posts by the man who shot dead two television journalists during a live broadcast in Virginia in the US show a disturbing trend of unashamed exhibition of his crimes on the internet, the partner of one of the victims said.

Chris Hurst told NBC that 41-year-old Vester Flanagan “obviously was in a state of mind that was not reasonable or rational”.

“What we are starting to see is continued boldness from people who want to commit murders in cold blood for notoriety”, said Hurst, who was a news anchor at WDBJ7 and was dating one of the slain journalists, Alison Parker.

“I have no words for him. I have no thoughts for him.”

After the shootings Flanagan, a former reporter at the station, posted video to Facebook and Twitter that showed the attack from the gunman’s vantage point as well as comments indicating he had grievances against WDBJ7, which fired him in 2013.

The video was quickly removed from social media sites but not before being saved and posted elsewhere.

The woman being interviewed, Vicki Gardner, head of the Smith Mountain Lake Regional Chamber of Commerce, was wounded in the attack and is likely to make a full recovery, her husband said.

Flanagan said his attack was triggered by the June 17 mass shooting at a black church in South Carolina.