How Disappearance, Death Went Viral Online

How Disappearance, Death Went Viral Online

  • News about 22-year-old Gabby Petito’s disappearance and death spread over social media.
  • Two weeks after being reported missing, her body was found in Wyoming.
  • Millions of people have viewed posts trying to unravel her case.

The case of Gabby Petito, the 22-year-old who was found dead in Wyoming on Tuesday after traveling in a van with her fiancé, has gripped the nation.

In the past week, #gabbypetito was trending on Twitter. On TikTok, it has 959,000,000 views and over 12,000 Instagram posts. Reddit has a page that chronicles the case, and there is constant media coverage.

Insider tracked the online conversation surrounding Petito’s disappearance, which was ruled a homicide by the FBI on Tuesday, to create a timeline of how the case unfolded in the public eye.

September 12: A nonprofit shared the missing-persons poster

Nicole Schmidt, Petito’s mother, reported her daughter missing on September 11.

On September 12, Petito’s disappearance was reported by the Aware Foundation. This nonprofit, founded in 2016, raises awareness of missing persons. That day, there were fewer than a dozen tweets mentioning Petito’s name.

Aware shared a Facebook post with 100,000 followers that included a missing persons poster. It stated that Petito was last seen at Grand Teton, Wyoming in a Ford Transit van white 2012 Ford. The post has since been deleted from their Facebook page, though its history is cached on Google.

Aware’s founder, Kenneth Jarels, told Insider that Petito’s family contacted the organization and shared the original flyer, which he said was viewed “over two million times” on their Facebook. It was removed and replaced with an updated version after “her remains had been located,” Jarels said.

September 13: The news gained traction and a subreddit was created

Social-media posts about Petito followed national news coverage on September 13. The story was first reported by Insider on September 14.

R/GabbyPetito is a subreddit on Reddit that allows users to discuss and theorize on the case. It was started September 13. It now has more than 120,000 members.

According to Google Trends data #gabbypetito saw more related tweets, as search interest increased.

September 14: Brian Laundrie’s statement is released

Laundrie’s lawyer issued a statement to the press on September 14 that his client had “no further comment.”

People shared news articles and the Aware Foundation’s missing person’s poster on Twitter.

After the news spread, Twitter chatter increased and so did other social media platforms.

The same day, TikTok user Paris Campbell posted a video containing the missing person’s poster, pulling in over 400,000 views.

September 15: Search interest tripled after Florida police labeled Petito’s fiancé a ‘person of interest’

On September 15, Florida police labeled Laundrie as a “person of interest” in the investigation.

Google Trends shows that search interest nearly tripled over the previous day. Many tweets and TikTok videos were posted, dissecting the news about her disappearance. Only a handful of followers could pull in thousands of likes on Twitter asking for Petito’s identity.

Accounts like TikToker @RobandHaley reached millions of people with videos about Petito and Laundrie.

Users used social media to try to piece together what they thought were clues. They comb through Petito and Laundrie’s social media accounts.

September 21: Petito’s death was ruled a homicide

The story hit its most-searched point on Tuesday, September 21, according to Google Trends, after the disappearance became a criminal investigation and a body found in Wyoming was confirmed to be Petito. Her death was ruled a homicide by the FBI on Tuesday.

The hashtag #gabbypetito had almost 1 billion views on TikTok by Friday. Throughout the week, her name was trending on Twitter & Facebook.

Continue reading stories from Insider’s Digital Culture desk.

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