Rap Genius co-founder resigns after non-genius comments about Santa Barbara murders

The co-founder of Rap Genius has left the company—presumably forced to resign—after he annotated the 100-plus-page manifesto written by Santa Barbara murderer Elliot Rodger. In an attempt at cleverness, Mahbod Moghadam added notes to the manifesto, which had been uploaded to Rap Genius. (In case you’re not familiar with the massively popular site, it allows users to explain song lyrics, line by line, in minute detail. YES, WE WILL END UP WITH THE INTERNET WE DESERVE.) Just days—hours, really—after the attack that left seven people dead (including Rodger, the sole perpetrator), Moghadam thought it would be smart—genius-level, even—to add flippant notes to the dark, misogynist ramblings of a person who had just destroyed countless lives. He speculated on the attractiveness of the murderer’s sister, and declared bits of the document “beautifully written.” Such things don’t usually appear on the 126th largest site in the U.S. (according to Quantcast). At least he left in shame, and co-founder Tom Lehman released a statement calling Moghadam’s notes “gleefully insensitive and misogynistic,” and noting that those are things Rap Genius is against, in case that wasn’t clear. Gawker has a more detailed story here; and if you must visit Rap Genius, Lehman’s statement is here.