News outlet TMZ has been forced to apologize after a ‘disgusting’ act following Charlie Kirk’s murder.
The assassination of the MAGA influencer has sent shock waves around the world, with footage of the brutal shooting being accessible across the internet.
Kirk founded Turning Point USA, a conservative nonprofit organization, when he was 18 years old.
The 31-year-old was hosting an event on a university campus in Utah when he was fatally shot in the neck.
Videos taken at the event have spread across social media, showing graphic images and videos of the moment the right-wing influencer was hit in the jugular.
The gunman accused of killing the 31-year-old has been identified as Tyler Robinson. The 22-year-old is a Utah resident.
In a news conference this afternoon, Utah Governor Spencer Cox, said that a member of the suspect’s family told investigators that the 22-year-old had become ‘more political’ in recent years.
The family member recalled a recent incident in which Robinson came to dinner, and mentioned that Kirk was coming to Utah.
During the interaction, he talked about why he ‘didn’t like him and the viewpoints he had.’
Robinson had told a family member on that evening that ‘Kirk was full of hate and spreading hate.’
Amid reports on Kirk’s death, news outlet TMZ has been forced to issue an apology after some staff members burst into laughter the moment Kirk’s death was announced during a livestream.
When hosts Harvey Levin and Charles Latibeaudiere were discussing the assassination, laughter erupted in the background.
After watching the livestream, people took to social media and slammed the outlet.
One person wrote: “Disgusting.”
Another remarked: “Despicable.”
The outlet has now broken its silence.
During an apology video, the hosts said: “When we were reporting the assassination of Charlie Kirk, there were some people in the back room, away from our news desk here, who were watching a car chase.”
They further explained that those individuals were laughing and clapping at the car chase, not Kirk being shot in the neck.
“We acknowledge that it was horrible timing,” they added.
Defending the outlet, one person said: “They were not cheering Charlie’s death. There were people in another room watching a car chase. Harvey was genuinely upset.”
Another agreed, commenting: “He literally says in the video that they were cheering a police chase that they had on another channel.”
“They are laughing at something completely different,” wrote a third.
In the FBI news conference earlier today (September 12), FBI Director Kash Patel said he is proud to bring Kirk’s family justice.
Patel said: “I just want to express my gratitude for giving us the resources we need to operate in this space to bring this sort of justice at this sort of speed.
“In 33 hours, we have made historic progress for Charlie.”
The Utah governor said the suspect was not a student at Utah Valley University – where the shooting happened.
