I canceled my Free Press subscription because of their coverage of Cole Allen.
And it's not because I support his attempt at violence on members of the Trump Administration. It's because The Free Press fails in its journalistic mission with articles like this.
Article Summary
The article frames the alleged White House Correspondents’ Dinner attack as evidence that America is being “engulfed” by a new “upside-downness,” where formerly obvious moral limits no longer apply. The visible thesis is basically: attempted political violence is not merely one man’s act, but a symptom of a wider radical ethos bubbling through culture. The piece then immediately pivots from the alleged assassination attempt to a New York Times piece about “microlooting” and “cool crimes,” implying a continuum from elite cultural permissiveness to political violence.
While it is true, many high-profile violent acts in the last two years have been perpetrated by civilians associated with left-wing politics, to publish a piece depicting Allen as an aimless loser who failed at life is something I don't expect from a legitimate news organization. Save that shit for the TikTok influencers.
Recently, more articles from the publication a fanning the flames of political and cultural division in America instead of providing clear and comprehensive accounts of sensitive issues. This was the last one I could stomach.
My Thoughts
First off, I don't support political violence. These politically motivated attacks are damaging because every attempt on Trump that fails massively strengthens his very vocal base, and justifies the heavily repeated (and this point culturally engraved "radical left" charge). Even if an attack were successful, I think that would be very bad for a country already deeply fracture across political lines on paper and online.
Plus we set a dangerous precedent by applauding assassination acts in general. I always think of 1920s and 30s Japan where this kind of activity was normal and look where that lead.
However, where the article got out of line and became less journalism and more online dunk piece was its lack of acknowledgment that Allen's issues so well stated in his writings were legitimate and real.
The Trump Administration plays by its own rules. Lack of transparency and accountability to the American public and sometimes outright lies propagated through constant media spin, doctored press briefings, co-opted tragedies for political gain, dubious military action, economic unsteadiness touted as victory, and international loss of trust, are just a few of the things that are truths that we as Americans have endured for the last year and a half.
For an established journalistic outlet like The Free Press to write knowing all of the above and to focus on basically calling the shooter a LOSER, is internet era ragebait, created primarily for that vocal online minority who judges a piece on whether or not it agrees with their bias.
That is not fair and impartial. It's certainly not journalism. It's content meant to fill a slot in their daily emails. I saw it all weekend. The Free Press touting the incident as an attack on democracy and an escalation of political violence in modern America. While these are not untrue, they are overly broad, and fail to address the causes for this underlying sickness of violence.
The reason why figures like Allen and Mangione (educated and young) have support and bizarre encouragement from anti-Trump camps is because watching Trump rewrite the rules of political decorum and basic decency, watching him initiate and perpetuate a regional conflict for reasons not well-justified that has negatively impacted the global economy and has resulted in thousands of casualties (American included), watching the general "do as I say, not as I do attitude" of one who holds arguably the powerful office in the world, and watching those by his side become puppets or jobless under him, has become infuriating to the average American.
It's likely Allen, like many recent college grads (even from elite universities) struggled to find work in his field and turned to education as a fall back. He lived with his parents because living in California without a well-paying full-time job and reliable transportation to get there, is impossibly expensive (I lived in NorCal for several years). He can't afford to leave, so he's trapped and does something to not feel like a complete failure: become a tutor and play Super Smash Bros Ultimate to stay sane.
Unfortunately, this is a normal story in 2026. I'm not making excuses for him. His actions were unacceptable and he should be held accountable to the full extent of the law.
But the teacher in me is sad for him. Because when I see someone become so dedicated to the task of violence that he would write a thoughtful manifesto, procure weapons, travel cross-country, plan and execute an attack, I always think all those skills used for mayhem could have been better employed elsewhere. Additionally the belligerent act usually fails to have the impact they imagine it will.
But for The Free Press not to acknowledge any of the above is highly disingenuous of a publication that claims to champion democracy. So I cancelled.
"Pay more, get less."
Ultimately, articles like this make publications like The Free Press part of the problem.
Today, faith in most organized public institutions is at an all time low.
Why is that?
Because the theme of 2020s America– post-pandemic– seems to be "pay more, get less".
That works in economic terms as well as social and political realms.
Pay more for housing, get less stability.
Pay more for education, get less opportunity.
Pay more attention to politics, get less accountability.
Pay more for journalism, get less rigor.
Pay more emotional energy into civic life, get less evidence that anyone in power is listening or working on your behalf.
It's really frustrating and destabilizing.
The American fantasy of "work hard, get a job, raise a family, be a good citizen" has become living myth.
Simply nobody lives this way anymore, unless they caught a lucky break, inherited support, bought in at the right time, or found some narrow path to social and financial security.
The average American is struggling in some way no matter their annual income. It wasn't always this way, but it is now.
American leadership has fanned those flames and made an average life feel out of reach for many. The result is political instability and in extreme cases, figures like Allen, who take righteous delusion to dangerous ends.
By not acknowledging this, The Free Press becomes another source of public distrust for those like me who don't wholesale buy their slant on America's political landscape. Just one more crooked institution that demands more attention for less journalistic rigor.
I'm out.
