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Hegseth wants a livestream execution. Here's how firing squads work
By Extra Extra Editorial
Cross-spectrum analysis, synthesized with AI from 23 sources · Updated
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has reportedly proposed livestreaming the execution of Nidal Hasan, the Fort Hood shooter convicted of a 2009 mass shooting that killed 13 people. The proposal would make the execution publicly viewable online, marking a significant departure from typical U.S. execution practices. Reports indicate the Trump administration may be reconsidering the plan amid widespread opposition from religious leaders, military officials, and commentators across the political spectrum.
Left-leaning outlets frame livestreamed executions as inherently cruel and authoritarian, drawing parallels to public executions under tyrannical regimes. They emphasize the moral degradation of the practice and position it as evidence of dangerous normalization of state violence.
Center and independent sources focus on the practical and institutional objections to the plan, highlighting religious leaders' moral concerns and military command structure resistance. They present the debate as a clash between transparency arguments and established protocols for dignified execution procedures.
Right-leaning outlets largely oppose the livestreaming proposal on grounds of decorum and military tradition, though some argue for public witness to executions as a matter of legal principle. The coverage emphasizes concerns about spectacle and degradation rather than the execution itself.
Key Differences
- Left outlets emphasize the tyrannical nature of public executions and frame livestreaming as a civilizational regression, while right-leaning sources focus on practical military and religious objections without the historical comparison framework.
- Center coverage prioritizes institutional and religious authority voices opposing the plan, whereas left coverage centers on broader constitutional and human rights arguments.
- Right-leaning outlets show more engagement with the legal argument for public witness to executions, a framing largely absent from left and center coverage.
How this story is being covered
Extra Extra has grouped 23 reports on this story from 20 news outlets across the political spectrum. By political lean, that breaks down as 7 left-leaning, 7 center, and 9 right-leaning sources.
With a coverage-diversity score of 99 out of 100, this is one of the more evenly reported stories in our index right now — left, center, and right outlets are all giving it attention.
On reliability, 12 of the 20 rated outlets carry a high or mostly-factual reliability rating (A or B) and 8 outlets fall into our mixed or lower-reliability tier (C or D). Ratings are drawn from independent assessments and are meant to help you weigh each report, not to tell you which to trust.
This story has been covered over the span of about 6 days, making it a longer-running thread rather than a single news flash.
Below, the same story is laid out side by side as left, center, and right outlets reported it. Read across the columns and watch what changes: the headline emphasis, which facts lead, the adjectives, and what each side leaves out. The story itself rarely changes — the framing almost always does.
Outlets covering this story: Truthout, The Week, Law Dork, LA Times, AlterNet, The New Yorker, Tangle, Religion News Service, The Bulwark, Military.com, Axios, Lead Stories, The American Conservative, RealClearPolitics, Spiked, Townhall, American Thinker, Daily Caller, WND, Daily Signal.
Left(7)
TruthoutCOct 13, 9:03 PM
Report: Trump Is Having Second Thoughts About Livestreaming Military Execution
Trump isn't “particularly enthusiastic” about Pete Hegseth's plan to livestream a military execution in December.
The WeekBOct 14, 4:15 PM
Livestreaming an execution: cruelty or an added deterrent?
The Defense Department wants to make a public example of a soldier-turned-terrorist
Law DorkBOct 9, 12:50 AM
The Trump administration wants to livestream a firing squad execution for this holiday season
Pete Hegseth wants the public to see the Dec. 3 scheduled killing of Nidal Hasan. Also: A Navy board made clear in a recent action that it disagrees with the trans military ban.
LA TimesAOct 9, 6:47 PM
U.S. plan to livestream execution by firing squad draws bipartisan, international outrage
Vice President JD Vance said he would not watch a livestream of the execution, and expressed doubt that is 'actually going to happen.'
AlterNetCOct 14, 4:15 PM
Retired general predicts Trump’s firing-squad fantasy will implode
President Donald Trump has been celebrating the idea of his firing squad punishment for the Fort Hood shooter, and that dream looks to be falling apart amid growing scandals. General Mark Hertling an
The New YorkerAOct 14, 10:00 AM
What a Public Execution Looks Like
Dexter Filkins on Pete Hegseth’s planned public execution of Nidal Hasan and his memory of a public execution by the Taliban in Kabul.
LA TimesAOct 10, 10:00 AM
Commentary: Public executions are the work of tyrants. Now, the U.S. is joining in
Should plans for the live stream of Nidal Malik Hasan's killing become a reality, our peers will be countries that the U.S. has long held up as the worst of the worst.
Center(7)
TangleAOct 13, 4:16 PM
Should executions be livestreamed?
A proposal divides the Trump administration.
Religion News ServiceBOct 13, 8:51 PM
Military archbishop asks that Catholics be excused from livestreamed execution
(RNS) — The archdiocese’s statement adds to the list of faith leaders who have condemned Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s plans to livestream the execution of former Major Nidal Hasan.
The BulwarkBOct 14, 4:07 PM
Command Post: Trump Reportedly Wavering on Livestreamed Execution (w/ Margaret Donovan)
A recording from The Bulwark's live video
Military.comBOct 13, 3:07 PM
Religious Leaders Call DOD's Planned Livestreamed Public Execution 'Barbaric'
Archbishop Timothy Broglio questioned whether the U.S. military is putting itself "in the same boat with terrorists" by broadcasting the execution.
AxiosAOct 13, 6:07 PM
Hegseth wants a livestream execution. Here's how firing squads work
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth plans to livestream the December execution of Fort Hood shooter Nidal Hasan by using a firing squad, one of the rarest forms of capital punishment in the United States.
TangleAOct 13, 3:53 PM
The planned execution of the Fort Hood shooter.
A proposal divides the Trump administration.
Lead StoriesAOct 13, 4:32 PM
Fact Check: 'Task & Purpose' Did NOT Publish Article About 'Sarah Miller' As 'First Executioner' In Nidal Hasan Case
Did 'Task & Purpose' publish an article implying that 'Sarah Miller' was appointed the 'first executioner' in the Nidal Hasan's case? No, that's not true: Neither the outlet's website nor its social m
Right(9)
The American ConservativeBOct 14, 4:01 AM
Livestreaming an Execution Is a Bad Idea
Americans no longer have the stomach for public displays of violence. The post Livestreaming an Execution Is a Bad Idea appeared first on The American Conservative.
RealClearPoliticsBOct 14, 1:23 PM
Livestreaming Nidal Hasan's Execution Is a Bad Idea
America did away with public hangings for a reason-and Hasan might want the attention.
SpikedCOct 13, 6:30 PM
The grotesque spectacle of the livestreamed execution
The post The grotesque spectacle of the livestreamed execution appeared first on spiked.
TownhallDOct 14, 3:00 PM
Trump Reportedly Reconsidering Public Livestreaming of Nidal Hasan's Execution
American ThinkerDOct 14, 4:00 AM
Public Execution is Public Law. Public Law Requires Public Witness.
Photo Credit: ChatGPT for American Thinker By Matthew G. Andersson Secretary Hegseth is right to argue for a public firing squad against Nidal Hasan.
Daily CallerDOct 14, 12:59 PM
Evangelicals Join Catholics In Condemning Pentagon’s Plan To Livestream Fort Hood Killer’s Execution
‘Promoting a culture of death’
WNDDOct 14, 3:20 PM
‘Need for justice’: Top evangelical group takes vocal stand on Pentagon plan to livestream Fort Hood killer’s execution
'Risks turning one of the state's most solemn responsibilities into a public spectacle, promoting a culture of death'
Daily SignalCOct 13, 9:00 PM
Victor Davis Hanson: Should the Fort Hood Terrorist Be Publicly Executed?
Editor’s note: This is a lightly edited transcript of today’s video from Daily Signal senior contributor Victor Davis Hanson. Subscribe to our YouTube channel to see more of his videos. Hello, this is
TownhallDOct 14, 11:15 AM
Kurt Schlichter Explains How We Should Carry Out Nidal Hasan's Execution
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