This article was inspired by the many valued Newsweek members who contacted us decrying the lack of civility in public life and the American conversation. Please do keep your suggestions coming.

A country that spends its nights arguing online is spending its mornings tired. This week Oxford University Press declared "rage bait" its Word of the Year—defining it as "online content deliberately designed to elicit anger or outrage"—after more than 30,000 people voted and usage of the term tripled over the past 12 months. The pick felt like a diagnosis for American politics in 2025, and within hours, media outlets tied it to President Donald Trump’s communication style , perhaps hoping to gain from a little of the rage-bait effect themselves.

It's tempting to see rage everywhere—from the

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