Public executions in the US stopped nearly a century ago - why are they resuming now?

What the report says

BBC World News reports that the Pentagon says the planned execution of former Fort Hood shooter Nidal Hasan will be livestreamed, reviving a debate over whether the United States is edging back toward public punishment after nearly a century without it. Hasan was convicted in connection with the 2009 shooting at Fort Hood in Texas that left 13 fellow soldiers dead. US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has framed the move as a warning about consequences, and President Donald Trump has said he approved the decision to broadcast it.

The article places the announcement in historical context by revisiting the 1936 public hanging of Rainey Bethea in Owensboro, Kentucky, which drew an estimated 20,000 spectators and is widely remembered as the last high-profile public execution in the country. That event later helped spur Kentucky to outlaw public executions, part of a broader shift away from carrying out death sentences before crowds.

Several scholars and commentators quoted by BBC argue the administration may be misreading public sentiment. They point to research showing support for the death penalty has declined over time and say many Americans now prefer life without parole to executions. Critics interviewed by the broadcaster described the livestream plan as barbaric and argued it risks turning punishment into spectacle.

The story matters because it raises larger questions about capital punishment, technology, and whether a state-sanctioned execution can be made widely visible without reviving the “carnival” atmosphere that earlier generations rejected. BBC notes it remains unclear how many people would actually watch, but the online format could vastly expand the audience beyond what was possible in 1936.