NBC’s coverage of the Brussels attack was stunningly irresponsible

Horrific attacks like the one that took place in Brussels on Tuesday morning tend to bring out the worst in our elite media. The coverage usually combines the blind panic and speculation that accompany any major breaking news story with an unrelenting stoking of our most vengeful, authoritarian impulses. Tuesday's news channels were filled with the usual scenes: an array of mostly white men speaking ominously of "soft targets" and of endless war. Most of these outlets like to pretend that c