[jedc]

This is horrible.

Hopefully it gives the Justin.tv community a reality check. They were egging him on?!? As someone who volunteers on a suicide helpline, I'm amazed that people won't condemn that kind of behavior before it causes real harm.

[goldsmith]

I understand your sentiment, but if you think that this wouldn't occur in many communities that have a large base of users, you are off base. I don't just mean places like 4chan- have you ever read comments on Youtube videos?

[Hexstream]

To be frank I often surprise myself with the tastelessness of my own comments on Youtube, when I bother to make one there.

[swombat]

1) They weren't egging him on, apparently, just letting him get on with it without interfering.

2) This is a very well known psychological effect called "diffusion of responsibility". It's the same effect that allows hundreds of people to walk by while someone is being beaten up in the street, when almost none of them would just ignore the event if they were alone or in a very small group with no one else around. It's neither surprising, nor "wrong" per se - it's just human nature.