The following is from Mayumi Tanimoto’s regular column, which appeared in the opening pages of the July 26th issue of the monthly magazine WiLL.
It is a must-read not only for Japanese citizens but for people worldwide.

The Media’s Responsibility in Causing the Attempted Assassination of Trump
During a speech in preparation for the US presidential election, former President Trump was shot.
A bullet fired from a rifle pierced President Trump’s ear.
It was a significant incident that resulted in the death of a 50-year-old man who was nearby, and two people were seriously injured.
The suspect was shot dead on the spot.
I studied abroad at a graduate school in the United States in 2000.
While writing my master’s thesis, I temporarily stayed in a room in a friend’s apartment in Harlem, New York.
At the time, the Republican candidate George W. Bush and the Democratic candidate Al Gore were locked in a fierce presidential race.
It was then that I witnessed Gore’s campaign.　
A concert venue had been set up in a corner of Harlem, and a Latin rock band had been invited.
The concert was held before Gore’s speech, and the audience was really into it.
Harlem has a large Latin American population, so the event was probably aimed at Latin American voters.
The event was free, but there was a strict security check to get into the venue.
There was a thorough search of all the bags.
Guards were posted on the buildings around the venue every five meters.
They were dressed in black suits, wearing sunglasses, and carrying assault rifles.
I was used to the idyllic Japanese election campaigns, so I was surprised.
It was like something out of “Corgo 13”!　
The “festival atmosphere” that combines politics and entertainment was also refreshing, but I was even more surprised by the strictness of the security.
It was a reminder of the reality of American public safety and gun culture that I couldn’t understand while I was in Japan.
While enrolled in graduate school, I spent my summers interning in Washington, DC.
I worked for a lobbyist group, and to enter government buildings, we had to go through security gates.
The checks were as strict as those at the airport.
They were assuming a terrorist attack.
The FBI and CIA were stringent.
It was a different world from the lax checks at Japanese government offices.
The year 2000 was the year before the attacks on the World Trade Center.
Even in the United States during the good times of the Clinton administration, security was strict.
Since then, security must have become even more stringent.
That is why I was surprised by the assassination attempt on former President Trump.
The suspect was shot dead at the scene, and it has been revealed that he was a 20-year-old man.
Why was it possible for him to enter the range with a rifle?
Was it possible for him to have sniped from the top of a building?
According to the reports, a man near the venue had informed the police of the suspect’s suspicious movements.
Despite this, the security was said to have been slow to react.
Was the security lax?
Doubts cannot be dispelled.
In the UK, too, two incidents of MPs being stabbed to death have occurred in recent years.
The strengthening of security systems is being seriously discussed.
In Japan, former Prime Minister Abe was assassinated, and Prime Minister Kishida was also the victim of an assassination attempt.
It is well-known that Japan’s security is lax, but there is a lack of a sense of crisis.
Politicians’ speeches and the strengthening of security at public facilities should be seriously discussed.
The responsibility of the media should be remembered.
The suspect in the assassination attempt on Trump was known as a high achiever at his local high school.
After graduating, he worked at a place like a nursing home, but his work attitude was exemplary, and his colleagues were surprised by the incident.
The suspect’s photo and video have been released online, and he is a small “boy” for a white American.
He gives the impression of being sensitive and weak-willed.
In America, where Might is right, he is the type of person who would be in the corner of the class.
Geeks are not liked.
Incidentally, the suspect’s family was said to be middle class.
Why did a man who had no hardships in life, was intelligent, and had a kind heart that would make him a good carer commit such a heinous crime?
In Japan, before former Prime Minister Abe was assassinated, the left-wing media were inciting hatred toward him.
In the US, too, left-wing people and media were casually talking about assassinating or killing Trump.
Some people who blindly believe what they hear in the media may have considered putting those ideas into practice.
The media is also responsible for incidents like this.
Both Japan and the US have been too tolerant of violent speech.
The price of the irresponsible speech spewed by the media was human life.