Additional reading:
BBC Reporters, CBS News, and New York Times reporter who were actually in the city the day it happened who report mainstream news got it all wrong. BBC Source | CBS Source | NYTimes Source
Readings into what happened with the protests:
https://redsails.org/another-view-of-tiananmen
https://www.liberationnews.org/tiananmen-the-massacre-that-wasnt-2/
The protests were heavily astroturfed and backed by the US government looking to coup China and regime change the nation
I'd say showing the military was an appropriate response given the scale, influence, and success the US government has when it comes to couping and sabotaging foreign states
https://www.liberationnews.org/tiananmen-the-massacre-that-wasnt-2/