NY Times: The Nation Encourages Political Violence by Allowing It to Seem Normal

[AStern]

The New York Times published an op-ed today about rising political violence, citing the assassination of Minnesota House Speaker Melissa Hortman and broader national trends.

The piece laments the “normalization” of threats and intimidation but let’s pause and ask: who helped normalize it?

gift article: https://www.nytimes.com/2025/06/20/opinion/political-violence-hortman-minnesota.html

My letter to the NY Times in response:

Why would our incendiary media—including the New York Times—want to seriously curb political violence, or violence at all? What happens to “if it bleeds, it leads” if the bleeding stops?

Let’s not pretend the media’s business model isn’t built on a steady diet of outrage, conflict, and human misery. Violence isn’t a bug in the system—it’s a feature.