The 'gruesome' video game that kills off zombie Tea Partiers
Is a new first-person shooter game that lets you kill a zombie Sarah Palin in the Fox News studio just a fun way to blow off steam — or something more sinister?

The video: A new free video game lets players club, shoot, or otherwise destroy post-apocalyptic zombie versions of conservatives and Fox News personalities like Sarah Palin, Glenn Beck, Newt Gingrich, Sean Hannity, and Bill O'Reilly. Not all the target zombies are celebrities — you can also decimate undead creatures with generic right-wing names like "Pissed Off Stupid White Trash Redneck Birther Zombie." (Watch a clip below.) The "gruesome" online game — called "Tea Party Zombies Must Die" — was created as a "personal project" by Jason Oda of video game ad firm StarvingEyes Advergaming.
The reaction: This product of violent liberal hatred goes further than an exercise in "over-the-top stupidity," says Bryan Preston at Pajamas Media. Like "the propaganda hate films used to smear the Jews back in 1930s Europe," this game clearly incites violence against real people. Yes, this video game is "dumb and tasteless," says Joe Coscarelli at New York. But the "manufactured outrage" on the Right equals it for lameness. The difference between this "surprisingly slick" zombie first-person shooter game and, say, Palin's crosshairs map or Rick Perry's threats against Fed Chairman Bernanke is that "the game was not signed off on by a professional politician." Sample the game for yourself:
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
-
The rise and rise of VTubers
Under The Radar This anime-inspired internet subculture is going global
By Abby Wilson
-
Book reviews: 'The Thinking Machine: Jensen Huang, Nvidia, and the World’s Most Coveted Microchip' and 'Who Is Government? The Untold Story of Public Service'
Feature The tech titan behind Nvidia's success and the secret stories of government workers
By The Week US
-
Mario Vargas Llosa: The novelist who lectured Latin America
Feature The Peruvian novelist wove tales of political corruption and moral compromise
By The Week US
-
The JFK files: the truth at last?
In The Spotlight More than 64,000 previously classified documents relating the 1963 assassination of John F. Kennedy have been released by the Trump administration
By The Week Staff
-
'Seriously, not literally': how should the world take Donald Trump?
Today's big question White House rhetoric and reality look likely to become increasingly blurred
By Sorcha Bradley, The Week UK
-
Will Trump's 'madman' strategy pay off?
Today's Big Question Incoming US president likes to seem unpredictable but, this time round, world leaders could be wise to his playbook
By Sorcha Bradley, The Week UK
-
Democrats vs. Republicans: who are the billionaires backing?
The Explainer Younger tech titans join 'boys' club throwing money and support' behind President Trump, while older plutocrats quietly rebuke new administration
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK
-
US election: where things stand with one week to go
The Explainer Harris' lead in the polls has been narrowing in Trump's favour, but her campaign remains 'cautiously optimistic'
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK
-
Is Trump okay?
Today's Big Question Former president's mental fitness and alleged cognitive decline firmly back in the spotlight after 'bizarre' town hall event
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK
-
The life and times of Kamala Harris
The Explainer The vice-president is narrowly leading the race to become the next US president. How did she get to where she is now?
By The Week UK
-
Will 'weirdly civil' VP debate move dial in US election?
Today's Big Question 'Diametrically opposed' candidates showed 'a lot of commonality' on some issues, but offered competing visions for America's future and democracy
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK