Regardless of mass shootings being on the decline in 2025 (and the final couple of years), CBS Night Information Plus (on the community’s streaming service), devoted an interview phase to pushing for the return of the 1994 Federal Assault Weapons Ban. They highlighted a research from Northwestern College that claimed that if the ban was nonetheless in place, then it could see “a big discount in mass shootings,” however the phase by no means really addressed what number of we have been speaking about.
“For a decade, there was a ban on so-called assault weapons and high-capacity ammunition magazines, like these used within the taking pictures at Annunciation Catholic College on Wednesday,” introduced CBS anchor John Dickerson. “Minneapolis` mayor at this time referred to as for the ban, which expired in 2004, to be renewed. A research revealed final fall regarded on the ban`s effectiveness.”
Dickerson spoke with Lori Ann Submit, who was the director of the Institute for Public Well being and Drugs at Northwestern College and was one of many eight co-authors of the research.
Submit made a number of allusions to their research with feedback resembling “vital discount in mass shootings,” “vital distinction,” and that mass shootings have been thwarted altogether, however she by no means really informed the viewers what that these numbers really have been (Click on “broaden”)
POST: Nicely, thanks for having me, initially. Mainly, we discovered that in the course of the imposition of the federal assault weapons ban that there was a big discount in mass shootings, and that went from September of 1994 by September of 2004.
DICKERSON: And stroll me by the research. What — what accounted for that discovering? How did you — how did that conclusion — how was that conclusion reached?
POST: Mainly, we simply do a pure experiment the place we have a look at what — you recognize, principally what was the affect on the variety of mass shootings. We checked out additionally the lethality, the variety of accidents. And we discovered that it`s intuitive that you probably have assault weapons with high-capacity magazines, that you could shoot many extra rounds, you recognize, per minute.
And so we discovered that shooters have been taking pictures — once they — once they didn`t have entry to assault weapons, far fewer folks have been killed in mass shootings. And much fewer folks have been injured throughout mass shootings. And so we checked out earlier than, throughout, and after. After which we discovered vital distinction.
DICKERSON: So, if I — I feel I hear you, you`re saying that it`s each the variety of fatalities, but in addition the precise variety of shootings. Is that — is that proper?
POST: That’s right. However we additionally discovered one thing else actually attention-grabbing, and that’s that it really stopped some mass shooters from committing mass shootings as a result of the variety of mass shootings themselves stopped. So, there`s one thing about assault weapons that emboldens mass shooters to commit a mass taking pictures.
What they failed to say throughout their reward for the FAWB, was the truth that it actually didn’t put an finish to mass shootings. The arguably most notorious college taking pictures occurred within the midst of the ban: the 1999 Columbine college taking pictures. The bloodbath was vital not solely due to its timing in the course of the ban, however it’s usually cited as the beginning of the trendy college taking pictures development since many college shooters need their actions to generate extra media consideration and thus change into extra notorious.
Since Submit didn’t need to point out the numbers on-air and Dickerson didn’t pry for them, NewsBusters sought them out.
In response to Northwestern’s webpage for the research, the FAWB would have stopped 38 of the 184 “public mass shootings” that occurred between 1966 and 2022. Discover that these so-called assault weapons solely made up a fraction of all mass shootings. The research additionally admitted that “there was no distinction in traits when it got here to mass shootings the place the perpetrator didn’t convey an assault weapon[.]”
Regardless of Submit’s insistence that mass shootings have been prevented due to the ban, the research didn’t seem to handle the apparent notion that, when met with the shortcoming to get an assault weapon, the would-be shooter would simply use a distinct weapon not lined by the ban; which, by their very own numbers, was the overwhelming majority of mass shootings.
Considered one of Submit’s co-authors on the research, Northeastern College Criminology professor James Alan Fox had a much less alarmist method to mass shootings.
In a Could 26 interview with The Reload’s Stephen Gutowski, Fox famous that there was a reasonably main decline within the variety of mass shootings in 2025; in full distinction to the media narrative that there’s an “epidemic of mass shootings”:
However what we noticed in 2024 over 2023 was a 24 % decline in mass shootings. And this yr, in comparison with final yr on the identical time limit, one other huge drop, mass shootings of 4 or folks injured or killed are down this yr by a 3rd. And mass killings by gunfire, which this time final yr have been 11, now they’re all the way down to 4.
“But it surely’s nonetheless excellent news and nobody is aware of about it as a result of it has not been reported,” he lamented.
Talking on the general public’s misperception of mass shootings and the media’s consideration, Fox famous that “45 % of mass killings and mass shootings are throughout the household in a personal residence. These do not scare folks as a result of they are saying, ‘properly, that is not my household.’ They usually do not are inclined to get the identical stage of publicity both, however they’re simply as lifeless.”
Fox additionally took situation with how the media had drummed up undue concern in regards to the probability of a college taking pictures:
The FBI energetic shooter database, the typical variety of energetic shooters in a college is two-a-year. And that is out of 130,000 faculties. And by the typical variety of college students who have been killed in class a yr is 5 … however the common is 5. And that is out of fifty million college youngsters, which principally is the probability that your college students gonna get killed in class by an armed assailant is 1 in 10 million. Now once more, I do not need to reduce and one is one too many, however evaluate it to the truth that there are lots of and lots of of school-age youngsters who, who drowned in swimming pools yearly. What we actually want is extra lifeguards at swimming pools, possibly not armed guards at faculties.
The transcript is beneath. Click on “broaden” to learn:
CBS Night Information Plus
August 28, 2025
7:18:50 p.m. JapJOHN DICKERSON: For a decade, there was a ban on so-called assault weapons and high-capacity ammunition magazines, like these used within the taking pictures at Annunciation Catholic College on Wednesday. Minneapolis` mayor at this time referred to as for the ban, which expired in 2004, to be renewed. A research revealed final fall regarded on the ban`s effectiveness.
So, for tonight`s interview, we’re joined by Lori Ann Submit, Director of the Institute for Public Well being and Drugs at Northwestern and a co-author of that report.
Professor, thanks for becoming a member of us. What does your research inform us about so- referred to as assault weapon bans and the affect they might have on mass shootings?
LORI ANN POST (Director of the Institute for Public Well being and Drugs at Northwestern): Nicely, thanks for having me, initially. Mainly, we discovered that in the course of the imposition of the federal assault weapons ban that there was a big discount in mass shootings, and that went from September of 1994 by September of 2004.
DICKERSON: And stroll me by the research. What — what accounted for that discovering? How did you — how did that conclusion — how was that conclusion reached?
POST: Mainly, we simply do a pure experiment the place we have a look at what — you recognize, principally what was the affect on the variety of mass shootings. We checked out additionally the lethality, the variety of accidents. And we discovered that it`s intuitive that you probably have assault weapons with high-capacity magazines, that you could shoot many extra rounds, you recognize, per minute.
And so we discovered that shooters have been taking pictures — once they — once they didn`t have entry to assault weapons, far fewer folks have been killed in mass shootings. And much fewer folks have been injured throughout mass shootings. And so we checked out earlier than, throughout, and after. After which we discovered vital distinction.
DICKERSON: So, if I — I feel I hear you, you`re saying that it`s each the variety of fatalities, but in addition the precise variety of shootings. Is that — is that proper?
POST: That’s right. However we additionally discovered one thing else actually attention-grabbing, and that’s that it really stopped some mass shooters from committing mass shootings as a result of the variety of mass shootings themselves stopped. So, there`s one thing about assault weapons that emboldens mass shooters to commit a mass taking pictures.
DICKERSON: And is it doable to know the mechanics of how a chunk of laws like that one really play out? In different phrases, what friction they put within the system that — that causes fewer incidents?
POST: Simply laborious to acquire. I imply, now it`s — you recognize, tougher to say what can be the affect of a federal assault weapons ban if one other one have been put into place as a result of so many weapons have been offered. In 1994, not that many individuals had them.
However anyhow, simply having them dry up or disappear or entry to them turned very tough. And so anyone who would plan a brand new, you recognize, mass taking pictures wouldn`t have a manner or means to take action. So, prohibiting that was, you recognize, very efficient at stopping mass shootings after which decreasing the lethality.
DICKERSON: Is there — is there something that may be realized or that you simply realized in regards to the psychology, the psychological function that a few of these weapons play within the form of fantasy that these shooters interact in?
POST: Yeah, properly, initially, let me begin off with I`m not a psychologist. Nonetheless, we do have a look at, you recognize, many mass shooters, what they wrote about, what they might publish on social media. And there are lots of mass shooters that like to decorate up commando type. It`s virtually like placing on a dressing up and needing an assault rifle to do this and posing with it, taking footage of it, posting indicators or social media postings on how they might use these weapons.
DICKERSON: And are you engaged on something for the time being on this — on this space?
POST: Yeah, I’m. I`m working at present on a research about mass shooter typologies as a result of we are able to`t predict from previous mass shootings about who future mass shooters is likely to be, however we are able to look and determine what typologies are.
DICKERSON: All proper, Professor Lori Ann Submit, thanks a lot for being with us.
POST: Thanks.
