Earlier this week, I detailed how journalism lost its ability to set the terms of public reality—dismantled not by its own failures, but by algorithmic systems that reward emotional intensity over accuracy and affirmation over verification. Editorial judgment, imperfect yet guided by civic purpose, has been replaced by engagement-optimized algorithms. The result is fragmentation severe enough to undermine shared reality itself—or worse, to convince us objective truth no longer exists.
The first people in line on Tuesday, I was told, started camping out on the sidewalk two days ago. Luigi Mangione, the man accused of gunning down UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson in December 2024, was due in court at 9AM ET for a hearing in one of three concurrent criminal cases against him. And this time everyone was prepared for the mayhem: the signs, the fans, the livestreamers, the protests, the media circus.