“It’s just social media.” That’s the refrain many retreat to when journalists like me cover disturbing online trends, such as the viral TikTok videos calling for President Donald Trump’s murder or celebrating (and sexualizing) alleged murderer Luigi Mangione. But we just got stunning proof that unhinged internet discourse is spreading into the real world at an alarming level.
A new study from Rutgers University and the Network Contagion Research Institute finds widespread public support for the kind of political violence that social media trends have glorified, especially among Americans who identify as left of center. A whopping 48% of these respondents said murdering Tesla CEO Elon Musk is at least partially justified, while a clear majority, 55%, said the same about Trump. Similarly, 57.6% of left-of-center people surveyed said the destruction of Tesla dealerships is at least partially justified as a form of political protest.
The researchers find that these beliefs, as well as support for Mangione, are all correlated and connected as part of what they dub an “assassination culture” that’s gaining traction on the “extreme left.” They ultimately conclude that these findings “signal a threat to political stability and public safety.”
If anything, this is a massive understatement.
The violent ideology revealed by this survey and these digital trends is, without exaggeration, a civilization-threatening belief system. The American way of life and system of government rely on the idea that we settle our differences with ballots, not bullets. God forbid, if one of these murderous, left-wing individuals were actually to succeed in killing Trump, it would be an utter calamity for this country — no matter how you feel about him or his political ideology.
Nothing these people are upset about would change, of course, with Vice President JD Vance becoming president. On the contrary, Republicans would probably, and to some degree understandably, respond to such an attack on their party and America by pushing even further into their ideas and agenda and potentially by cracking down on their opposition. And a successful assassination of Trump would also almost inevitably lead to a wave of retaliatory acts of political violence targeting Democrats.
There is no scenario where this ends well. But there is a scenario where it leads to widespread civil unrest or even civil war.
SHED NO TEARS FOR LUIGI MANGIONE
So, no, videos “joking” about killing Trump are not “just social media.” The glorification of Luigi Mangione is not “just a meme.” It’s all part and parcel of a cultural movement toward political violence that threatens the very fabric of our society and system of government.
It’s not too late for our media to start taking this threat seriously or for our elected officials to do the right thing and start lowering the temperature of our political discourse. But if something doesn’t change soon, the future of American civilization is in jeopardy.
Brad Polumbo is an independent journalist and host of the Brad vs Everyone podcast.
