--- description: A letter to Jim Watkins said the El Paso shooting is "at least the third act of supremacist violence linked to your website this year" title: 8chan Owner Called to Testify Before Congress image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt9248e794e6fc2bda/698a0102929fad14c2bf4b6f/gettyimages-1160098568.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [Business](/section/business/) ## Business Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [Tech](/tag/time-section-tech/) ## Tech Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # 8chan Owner Called to Testify Before Congress After El Paso Shooting ## Video: 22 Killed, Police Investigating Possible Hate Crime in El Paso Walmart Shooting: What We Know So Far [Watch (HLS stream): 22 Killed, Police Investigating Possible Hate Crime in El Paso Walmart Shooting: What We Know So Far](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/CLL8UOHK.m3u8) (1:46)  _Published 2019-08-03. Twenty people have been killed and 26 were wounded in a mass shooting at a Walmart in El Paso, Texas on Saturday. A 21-year-old man is in custody and El Paso police said they are investigating a manifesto that indicates it could be a hate crime._ by [Amy Gunia](/author/amy-gunia/) ## Amy Gunia Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Gunia was a reporter for TIME based in Hong Kong. Aug 7, 2019 9:39 AM CUT  Crosses with names of victims are placed near the Walmart center on Aug. 5, where Saturday's massive shooting took place, in El Paso, TX. Crosses with names of victims are placed near the Walmart center on Aug. 5, where Saturday's massive shooting took place, in El Paso, TX.Wang Ying—Xinhua News Agency/Getty Images by [Amy Gunia](/author/amy-gunia/) ## Amy Gunia Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Gunia was a reporter for TIME based in Hong Kong. Aug 7, 2019 9:39 AM CUT Congress Tuesday called on the owner of online forum 8chan to testify after the infamous site was [linked to a mass shooting](https://time.com/5644314/8chan-shootings/ "undefined") in El Paso, Texas that killed 22 people. The House Homeland Security Committee demanded site owner Jim Watkins explain how the anonymous messaging board will tackle “the proliferation of extremist content, including white supremacist content.” In a letter to Watkins signed by Rep. Bennie Thompson and Rep. Mike Rogers, the House committee said the El Paso shooting was “at least the third act of supremacist violence linked to your website this year.” “Americans deserve to know what, if anything, you, as the owner and operator, are doing to address the proliferation of extremist content on 8chan,” it said. The Homeland Security Committee posted a photo of the letter on Twitter. > [](https://twitter.com/HomelandDems/status/1158846043859148801) The notorious messaging forum remained offline Tuesday after two tech companies cut ties. On Monday, [cybersecurity firm CloudFlare](https://time.com/5643983/8chan-forum-security-service-cloudflare/ "undefined") stopped providing service, after which 8chan [signed up](https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-shooting-tech/8chan-owner-called-before-u-s-congress-as-latest-host-drops-site-idUSKCN1UX012?il=0 "undefined") with Seattle-based Epik, Reuters reported. But Epik’s own infrastructure provider, Voxility, responded by dropping 8chan. Fredrick Brennan, 8chan’s creator, has called for the site to be shut and told Reuters he regretted making it. The messaging board’s current owner, Watkins is an American Web entrepreneur living in the Philippines. He [responded](https://twitter.com/infinitechan/status/1158900722425110529 "undefined") to the letter from Congress on Twitter, offering to talk over the phone. “Rest assured I am not an extremist. My telephone should work worldwide,” he said. Social media sites have come under increased scrutiny for their role in spreading harmful content online. In April, Australia passed [legislation](https://time.com/5564851/australia-social-media-law-violence/ "undefined") to hold social media accountable for what is shared on the platforms, while the U.K. has proposed making social media executives [personally responsible](https://time.com/5565843/united-kingdom-social-media-regulations/ "undefined") for content posted to their sites. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/5645945/8chan-testify-congress-el-paso-shooting/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/5645945/8chan-testify-congress-el-paso-shooting/"},"headline":"8chan Owner Called to Testify Before Congress After El Paso Shooting","datePublished":"2019-08-07T09:39:50.000Z","dateModified":"2026-04-13T08:52:08.015Z","description":"The El Paso shooter reportedly posted a manifesto to 8chan before the attack","url":"https://time.com/5645945/8chan-testify-congress-el-paso-shooting/","keywords":["Tech","Social Media","onetime","overnight"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt9248e794e6fc2bda/698a0102929fad14c2bf4b6f/gettyimages-1160098568.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Amy Gunia","jobTitle":"Gunia was a reporter for TIME based in Hong Kong.","url":"https://time.com/author/amy-gunia/"}],"articleSection":"Business","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt9248e794e6fc2bda/698a0102929fad14c2bf4b6f/gettyimages-1160098568.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"U.S.-EL PASO-MASS SHOOTING-PRESS CONFERENCE","caption":"U.S.-EL PASO-MASS SHOOTING-PRESS CONFERENCE","creditText":"Wang Ying—Xinhua News Agency/Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/business/","name":"Business"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/time-section-tech/","name":"Tech"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/5645945/8chan-testify-congress-el-paso-shooting/","name":"8chan Owner Called to Testify Before Congress After El Paso Shooting"}}]},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"VideoObject","name":"22 Killed, Police Investigating Possible Hate Crime in El Paso Walmart Shooting: What We Know So Far","description":"Twenty people have been killed and 26 were wounded in a mass shooting at a Walmart in El Paso, Texas on Saturday. 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