MSNBC’s Dowd blames Charlie Kirk’s ‘hateful words’ after shooting

MSNBC issued an apology on Wednesday after liberal analyst Matthew Dowd suggested Charlie Kirk’s “hateful” rhetoric led to his shooting and speculated that one of his supporters may have fired the shot in celebration.

“During our breaking news coverage of the shooting of Charlie Kirk, Matthew Dowd made comments that were inappropriate, insensitive and unacceptable,” MSNBC president Rebecca Kutler said in a statement. “We apologize for his statements, as has he. There is no place for violence in America, political or otherwise.”

After Kirk was shot Wednesday afternoon, Dowd suggested it was caused by a chain reaction from his “hateful words” against various groups. Kirk, a leading conservative activist and top ally of President Donald Trump, later died at the age of 31.

Before the news that Kirk had died, Dowd told MSNBC host Katy Tur, “We don’t know any of the full details of this yet. We don’t know if this was a supporter shooting their gun off in celebration.”

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Turning Point USA Founder Charlie Kirk was shot and killed on Wednesday on a campus in Utah. (Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)

While the news of Kirk’s shooting was met with swift condemnations and calls for prayer across the political aisle, Dowd appeared to blame Kirk for bringing the circumstances on himself. 

Dowd said Kirk has been “one of the most divisive, especially divisive younger figures in this, who is constantly sort of pushing this sort of hate speech or sort of aimed at certain groups. And I always go back to, hateful thoughts lead to hateful words, which then lead to hateful actions.”

“I think that’s the environment we’re in, that the people just — you can’t stop with these sort of awful thoughts you have, and then saying these awful words, and not expect awful actions to take place. And that’s the unfortunate environment we’re in,” he added.

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Matthew Dowd is a liberal MSNBC political analyst. (Screenshot/MSNBC)

“And that’s the unfortunate environment we’re in,” the MSNBC analyst concluded.

During coverage of the shooting, Tur called Kirk “a divisive figure, polarizing, lightning rod. Whatever term you want to use.”

After the segment, Dowd took to Bluesky and apologized for his comments. 

My thoughts & prayers are w/ the family and friends of Charlie Kirk.  On an earlier appearance on MSNBC I was asked a question on the environment we are in.  I apologize for my tone and words,” he wrote. “Let me be clear, I in no way intended for my comments to blame Kirk for this horrendous attack.  Let us all come together and condemn violence of any kind.”

Editor-in-chief of The Federalist and Fox News contributor Molly Hemmingway criticized MSNBC’s handling of the situation, saying they issued a “very quiet tweet on an account with 20K followers.”

Dowd, a Democrat who was formerly a Republican strategist and an independent, is one of the most rabidly anti-GOP voices on cable news. He made a failed bid for the Democratic nomination for Texas lieutenant governor in 2021.

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Turning Point USA Founder Charlie Kirk speaks during a campaign rally, Oct. 24, 2024, in Las Vegas.  (John Locher/AP Photo)

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