EPISODE · Sep 23, 2025 · 8 MIN
Where Does Political Violence Really Come From?
from America's News Hour · host Talk Media Network
In this segment of America’s News Hour with Bill Bernardoni, Bill sits down with Alex Nowrasteh from the Cato Institute, whose years of painstaking research shed light on the real data behind political violence in America. Alex walks us through the origins of his work, beginning with the 2015 San Bernardino terrorist attack, and explains how he’s cataloged every politically motivated attack on U.S. soil since 1975—tracking ideology, motive, and method. The findings are eye-opening: while Islamist terrorism accounts for the majority of deaths (largely due to 9/11), right-wing extremists, left-wing extremists, and other fringe nationalist groups have all left their mark in violent, deadly ways. Alex breaks down the methodology behind categorizing attacks and reveals how motives, manifestos, and law enforcement investigations help shape our understanding of terrorism and political violence.Do you think looking at decades of data on political violence helps us see the problem more clearly—or are we too divided to agree on the facts, no matter what the numbers show?Follow Bill on X at @BillBernardoni, explore his work at Bernardoni.media, and read his latest writings at Bernardoni.blog. You can learn more about Alex and the CATO Institute at Cato.org.
What this episode covers
In this segment of America’s News Hour with Bill Bernardoni, Bill sits down with Alex Nowrasteh from the Cato Institute, whose years of painstaking research shed light on the real data behind political violence in America. Alex walks us through the origins of his work, beginning with the 2015 San Bernardino terrorist attack, and explains how he’s cataloged every politically motivated attack on U.S. soil since 1975—tracking ideology, motive, and method. The findings are eye-opening: while Islamist terrorism accounts for the majority of deaths (largely due to 9/11), right-wing extremists, left-wing extremists, and other fringe nationalist groups have all left their mark in violent, deadly ways. Alex breaks down the methodology behind categorizing attacks and reveals how motives, manifestos, and law enforcement investigations help shape our understanding of terrorism and political violence.Do you think looking at decades of data on political violence helps us see the problem more clearly—or are we too divided to agree on the facts, no matter what the numbers show?Follow Bill on X at @BillBernardoni, explore his work at Bernardoni.media, and read his latest writings at Bernardoni.blog. You can learn more about Alex and the CATO Institute at Cato.org.
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Where Does Political Violence Really Come From?
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