Trump, MAGA, and the Push to Broadcast a Public Execution

Pete Hegseth, a former Marine and media commentator, urged that the execution of former Army major Nidal Hasan be televised. Hasan, convicted in 2013 for killing 13 people at Fort Hood, is scheduled for execution in early December.

Salon

Salon commentators trace a pattern in which the MAGA movement celebrates real-world bloodshed. The authors argue that this cultural climate made Hegseth’s suggestion appear unsurprising to the base.

Salon

• Pete Hegseth publicly advocated the livestream, framing it as a deterrent.

Salon

• The president also shared a video of a tiger killing a man at a U.K. zoo, followed by an AI-generated clip showing himself chasing the tiger unharmed, which was interpreted by observers as celebratory.

Salon

Human-rights advocates and media watchdogs condemned the proposal as “snuff-film” propaganda, warning that broadcasting state-sanctioned killing could normalize lethal force. Legal scholars highlighted that U.S. law does not authorize public execution broadcasts, and that the move could violate international norms on the treatment of prisoners.

Salon

• “We’ll make sure that people are able to . . . watch it, that it’s public,” — Pete Hegseth

Salon