MSNBC fired Matthew Dowd on Wednesday evening after the political pundit insinuated that Charlie Kirk brought assassination upon himself through his conservative activism.
Appearing on MSNBC alongside Katy Tur soon after Kirk was shot, Dowd emphasized that the details around the shooting were still unclear and then suggested that the Turning Point USA founder’s use of “awful words” inevitably led to violence.
“He’s been one of the most especially divisive younger figures in this, who is constantly sort of pushing this sort of hate speech, sort of aimed at certain groups,” Dowd said. “I always go back to, hateful thoughts lead to hateful words, which then lead to hateful actions.”
“And I think that is the environment we are in,” Dowd continued. “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.”
Before the news that Kirk had died was reported, Dowd suggested to 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.”
Social media erupted with calls for Dowd’s firing, leading to a public apology from MSNBC’s president, Rebecca Kutler, on Wednesday evening, via the MSNBC public relations X account, calling Dowd’s comments “inappropriate, insensitive and unacceptable.”
“During our breaking news coverage of the shooting of Charlie Kirk, Matthew Dowd made comments that were inappropriate, insensitive and unacceptable,” Kutler said in a statement. “We apologize for his statements, as has he. There is no place for violence in America, political or otherwise.”
Dowd, a former Republican who worked on George W Bush’s campaign before becoming a Democrat, also posted his won apology on social media.
“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,” Dowd wrote on Bluesky. “I apologize for my tone and words. 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.”
Shortly thereafter, Variety first reported that the network had cut ties with the veteran political pundit. Dowd had been with MSNBC as a political analyst since 2022.