This article is from the source 'guardian' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.

You can find the current article at its original source at https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2018/apr/04/nasim-najafi-aghdam-youtube-shooting-demonetisation-payments-father

The article has changed 6 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.

Version 2 Version 3
YouTube shooting suspect was angry site stopped paying her, father says YouTube shooting suspect was angry site stopped paying her, father says
(35 minutes later)
The woman who allegedly opened fire at YouTube’s headquarters in a suburb of San Francisco, injuring three before killing herself was apparently furious with the video website because it had stopped paying her for her clips. The woman who allegedly opened fire at YouTube’s headquarters in a suburb of San Francisco, injuring three before killing herself, was apparently furious with the video website because it had stopped paying her for her clips.
Police in California named the shooter as Nasim Najafi Aghdam, who was 39. Police in California named the shooter as Nasim Najafi Aghdam, 39.
San Bruno officers said her motivation was unclear, but her father, Ismail Aghdam, told the Bay Area News Group from his San Diego home that she was angry with the Google-owned site because it had stopped paying her for videos she posted on the platform, and that he had warned the police that she might be going to the company’s headquarters. Aghdam was “upset with the policies and practices of YouTube”, San Bruno police chief Ed Barberini said at a press conference on Wednesday. “This appears to be the motive for this incident.”
No evidence had been found linking her to any individuals at the company where she allegedly opened fire on Tuesday, he said.
Two of the three shooting victims from the incident were released from the Zuckerberg San Francisco general hospital on Tuesday night. A third, a male in his 30s, is currently in “serious condition”, a hospital spokeswoman said Wednesday morning. A fourth victim had been injured, but not shot, in the incident, police said.
Aghdam had visited a local gun range on Tuesday morning before going to YouTube’s headquarters, Barberini said. A Smith & Wesson 9mm semiautomatic handgun, legally registered to Aghdam, was found at the scene.
The alleged shooter parked at a nearby business and appeared to have entered YouTube’s campus through a parking garage.
Local law enforcement agencies are facing questions about a warning her father gave police before the shooting, including that he was concerned she was headed to YouTube’s headquarters, which is more than 500 miles from San Diego, where she lived.
Police in Mountain View, where Google is headquartered, confirmed that they interviewed Aghdam early in the morning before the shooting, after they found her sleeping in her car.
The department described her as “calm and cooperative”, and said that “at no point during our roughly 20-minute interaction with her did she mention anything about YouTube, if she was upset with them, or that she had planned to harm herself or others.”
While her father told police later that morning that Aghdam was upset with YouTube over her videos, and might have come to the area as a result, he did not “mention anything about potential acts of violence or a possibility of Aghdam lashing out as a result of her issues with her videos,” the department said in a statement.
The Mountain View department had not passed on any information about Aghdam to police in San Bruno, where YouTube’s headquarters is located, before the shooting, the San Bruno police chief said.
Aghdam’s online profile shows she was a vegan activist who ran a website called NasimeSabz.com, meaning “Green Breeze” in Persian, where she posted about Persian culture and veganism, as well as long passages critical of YouTube.Aghdam’s online profile shows she was a vegan activist who ran a website called NasimeSabz.com, meaning “Green Breeze” in Persian, where she posted about Persian culture and veganism, as well as long passages critical of YouTube.
Her father, Ismail Aghdam, told the Bay Area News Group from his San Diego home on Tuesday that she was angry with the Google-owned site because it had stopped paying her for videos she posted on the platform, and that he had warned the police that she might be going to the company’s headquarters.
Ismail Aghdam said he reported his daughter missing on Monday after she did not answer her phone for two days. He said the family received a call from Mountain View police at about 2am on Tuesday saying they had found her sleeping in a car.Ismail Aghdam said he reported his daughter missing on Monday after she did not answer her phone for two days. He said the family received a call from Mountain View police at about 2am on Tuesday saying they had found her sleeping in a car.
He said he warned them she might be heading to YouTube because she “hated” the company.He said he warned them she might be heading to YouTube because she “hated” the company.
A Mountain View police spokeswoman, Katie Nelson, told Associated Press that officers located a woman by the same name asleep in a vehicle in a Mountain View parking lot on Tuesday morning. In a statement, the Mountain View police department said officers had found Aghdam asleep in her car around 2am on Tuesday morning, and that they had asked her a series of questions, including “if she was a danger to herself or others.”
Nelson said the woman declined to answer further questions but the police spokeswoman did not respond to a question about whether police were warned Aghdam might go to YouTube. Agdham told the officers that she was currently living out of her vehicle while she was looking for the job, a common occurrence in the Bay Area, which has struggled with a homelessness crisis that has left even working families with jobs living out of cars and RVs in quiet areas of Mountain View and Palo Alto.
Aghdam’s father’s claims that he warned the police about his daughter raise questions about whether better law enforcement response to these tips might have prevented the shooting, a question that has emerged repeatedly in the wake of recent gun attacks. Aghdam had been reported missing on 21 March, the San Bruno police chief said.
Questions about whether a better law enforcement response to tips might have preventing an attack have emerged repeatedly in the wake of high-profile gun attacks.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation admitted that it failed to properly follow up on two separate tips that the gunman in the Parkland, Florida, massacre in February was planning on attacking a school, including a call from a person close to suspect Nikolas Cruz, who noted that he was armed.The Federal Bureau of Investigation admitted that it failed to properly follow up on two separate tips that the gunman in the Parkland, Florida, massacre in February was planning on attacking a school, including a call from a person close to suspect Nikolas Cruz, who noted that he was armed.
Authorities said earlier on Tuesday that the YouTube shooting was being investigated as a domestic dispute but in a statement later San Bruno police said “there is no evidence that the shooter knew the victims of this shooting or that individuals were specifically targeted”. The incident also raised questions about security measures at Sillicon Valley’s lavish tech campuses. Law enforcement officials are “always looking for opportunities to harden targets or making environments as safe as possible for people who work there”, Barberini said.
A spokesman for San Francisco General hospital said a 36-year-old man was in critical condition, a 32-year-old woman was in a serious condition and a 27-year-old woman was in a fair condition. A female shooter is a rarity: an FBI study of 160 “active shooter” incidents between 2000 and 2013 found only six incidents, or 3.8%, were perpetrated by a female shooter. Five of those six shootings were incidents of workplace violence, where women attacked current or former co-workers at the places they had worked. All of these female shooters used handguns.
A female shooter is a rarity: an FBI study of 160 “active shooter” incidents between 2000 and 2013 found only six incidents, or 3.8%, were perpetrated by a female shooter. Five of those six shootings were incidents of workplace violence, where women attacked current or former coworkers at the places they had worked. All of these female shooters used handguns.
One recent mass shooting, the 2014 San Bernardino attack, had a joint male and female perpetrator. Married couple Syed Farook and Tashfeen Malik opened fire on a holiday party of Farook’s co-workers in 2014 with military-style rifles, leaving 14 people dead.One recent mass shooting, the 2014 San Bernardino attack, had a joint male and female perpetrator. Married couple Syed Farook and Tashfeen Malik opened fire on a holiday party of Farook’s co-workers in 2014 with military-style rifles, leaving 14 people dead.
News of Tuesday’s shooting initially spread on social media as YouTube employees posted about barricading themselves inside rooms as police and ambulances arrived at the scene.
“Heard shots and saw people running while at my desk. Now barricaded inside a room with coworkers,” tweeted Vadim Lavrusik, a YouTube employee.
Another YouTube employee, Michael Ho, said he was on the phone with his wife in an open-plan area when he saw people running. “At first I wasn’t sure if it was something they were doing for fun,” he said, before noticing looks of panic on people’s faces.
Aerial footage shot by CBS News showed staff leaving the building with their hands in the air. Offices of other companies nearby were also on lockdown.
Sundar Pichai, the chief executive of Google, YouTube’s parent company, said in an email to staff the shooting was an “unimaginable tragedy” and that the company was working to support the victims and their families.
Aghdam’s social media posts highlighted pro-vegan views and criticised animal cruelty. She was also quoted in a 2009 story in the San Diego Union-Tribune about a protest by People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals against the use of pigs in military trauma training. “For me, animal rights equal human rights,” Aghdam told the Union-Tribune at the time.Aghdam’s social media posts highlighted pro-vegan views and criticised animal cruelty. She was also quoted in a 2009 story in the San Diego Union-Tribune about a protest by People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals against the use of pigs in military trauma training. “For me, animal rights equal human rights,” Aghdam told the Union-Tribune at the time.
Many video creators on YouTube have spoken publicly in recent months about their frustrations with YouTube’s new restrictions on which videos can earn ad revenue, a change that many said hurt smaller video producers.Many video creators on YouTube have spoken publicly in recent months about their frustrations with YouTube’s new restrictions on which videos can earn ad revenue, a change that many said hurt smaller video producers.
YouTube’s policy changes were announced following corporate outrage last year when an investigation found that ads for mainstream brands were being shown on YouTube videos advocating racist and extremist views. But video creators have said that YouTube’s response to this problem, including having some channels “demonetized”, ended up hurting small, independent video producers who tackled serious topics, not just videos propagating extremist content.YouTube’s policy changes were announced following corporate outrage last year when an investigation found that ads for mainstream brands were being shown on YouTube videos advocating racist and extremist views. But video creators have said that YouTube’s response to this problem, including having some channels “demonetized”, ended up hurting small, independent video producers who tackled serious topics, not just videos propagating extremist content.
“She was always complaining that YouTube ruined her life,” Nasim’s brother, Shahran Aghdam, told the Bay Area News Group on Tuesday night.“She was always complaining that YouTube ruined her life,” Nasim’s brother, Shahran Aghdam, told the Bay Area News Group on Tuesday night.
YouTube terminated Aghdam’s account following the shooting. Her Instagram and Facebook accounts have also been removed.YouTube terminated Aghdam’s account following the shooting. Her Instagram and Facebook accounts have also been removed.
A screenshot of a video posted on Aghnam’s YouTube channel before it was taken down showed her complaining that “YouTube filtered my channels to keep them from getting views”.A screenshot of a video posted on Aghnam’s YouTube channel before it was taken down showed her complaining that “YouTube filtered my channels to keep them from getting views”.
Associated Press and Reuters contributed to this reportAssociated Press and Reuters contributed to this report
YouTubeYouTube
San FranciscoSan Francisco
US crimeUS crime
Gun crimeGun crime
newsnews
Share on FacebookShare on Facebook
Share on TwitterShare on Twitter
Share via EmailShare via Email
Share on LinkedInShare on LinkedIn
Share on PinterestShare on Pinterest
Share on Google+Share on Google+
Share on WhatsAppShare on WhatsApp
Share on MessengerShare on Messenger
Reuse this contentReuse this content