In the aftermath of the assassination of Turning Point USA co-founder Charlie Kirk in September, conservatives were rightfully outraged — not just by the killing itself, but by the disturbing number of voices on the left who openly celebrated it. Social media was flooded with people claiming Kirk somehow “deserved” it because of what they branded as his “hateful, bigoted views.”
The outrage wasn’t aimed only at the leftists who mocked and cheered Kirk’s assassination, but also at the mainstream media — which many on the right believe helped paint a target on his back. For years, major outlets distorted his positions, ripped his comments out of context, and portrayed him as someone he simply wasn’t.
And even after his assassination, some outlets didn’t stop. The New York Times and others continued pushing falsehoods about Kirk, only to quietly issue corrections later. To many conservatives, it was proof that the media’s narrative-machine kept running long after the damage was done.
Now, three months later, Charlie Kirk’s wife, Erika, and their two young children have endured their first birthday and holiday season without him. And while no one is surprised that the mainstream media hasn’t changed its behavior, what is especially infuriating is how effective their misinformation campaign has been — particularly when it comes to shaping the public’s perception of Kirk’s alleged assassin, Tyler Robinson:
? EXCLUSIVE MRC POLL: Only 24% of likely voters know Charlie Kirk’s assassin was a radical leftist.
The elitist media are the enemy of the people.https://t.co/pcoX1Ncs41
— Media Research Center (@theMRC) December 3, 2025
What was worse, though, was what they found among students, whom Kirk regularly spoke to (and was speaking to the day he was killed):
Most disturbing: Our poll revealed that 33.2 percent of students believed Charlie Kirk’s accused murderer was right-wing, while a paltry 4.0 percent accurately labeled him left-wing. https://t.co/Kw9XMIuVCQ
— David Bozell ?? (@DavidBozell) December 3, 2025
Make that make sense. Kirk was some “right-wing” bigot to his critics – but a “right-wing” bigot shot him?
After the news broke, TPUSA spokesman Andrew Kolvet made it clear why so many on the right were immediately concerned. He said the fear all along was that the inconvenient facts about Robinson’s political leanings would be buried or spun by the usual suspects in the corporate media. That worry is exactly what prompted him — and many others — to call out late-night host Jimmy Kimmel for his false claim that Robinson was a MAGA supporter:
This is why I called out Jimmy Kimmel when he lied and said Charlie’s killer being part of MAGA. He was trying to whitewash the rise of leftwing political violence. The message was clear: You assassinate a conservative and the legacy media will play cover for you. https://t.co/8HE7mXPb1g
— Andrew Kolvet (@AndrewKolvet) December 3, 2025
In the days immediately following Kirk’s killing, Vice President JD Vance — one of Charlie Kirk’s closest friends — torched the media’s narratives about Robinson. He dismantled the spin quickly and unequivocally, refusing to let the press launder Robinson’s motives or rewrite the story to fit their preferred political frame:
“This is a person who grew up in a pretty normal family…who was radicalized by the far left, by the social networks of the far left and by the ideas of the far left,” he added. “And got so far down the path of radicalization that he killed my friend [Charlie Kirk]! That is not a ‘both sides’ problem.”
“My friend is dead because of left-wing political radicalization,” Vance concluded. “And if you want to cut that [..] out, then be honest about it and look yourself in the mirror.”
Prosecutors have charged that Robinson told his alleged transgender love interest and roommate that “I had enough of his hatred. Some hate can’t be negotiated out.” Further, there’s this:
A charging document filed by prosecutors in court said that Mr. Robinson’s mother told investigators that her son had grown more political, and that his political views had moved to the left over the last year or so. She also told the police that he had become “more pro-gay and trans-rights oriented.” Mr. Robinson’s partner, who was living with him, had been transitioning to being a woman from a man, prosecutors said.
I know I’m not alone in this, but seeing poll results like these feels like waving a red flag in front of a bull.
Pushing back against media misinformation and disinformation is a huge part of why we do what we do in the middle of this information war — to challenge and discredit the corporate press, to expose its deliberate lies, distortions, and strategic omissions. These outlets bend reality to maintain left-wing narratives, smear conservatives, and advance the Democratic agenda. It’s intentional, it’s relentless, and it’s corrosive.
And it’s exactly why public trust in legacy media has cratered to historic lows.
