The Debate Style That Propelled Charlie Kirk’s Movement

Charlie Kirk may be best remembered for arguing in public.

A cornerstone of Mr. Kirk’s devoted conservative following was his twice-yearly tours of universities around the country. For hours, he would cheerfully perch on a folding chair and challenge students and the public to, as he called it, “Prove Me Wrong.”

By tackling hot-button issues like abortion and trans rights, Mr. Kirk created content that became perfect fodder for brand-building on social media. Curated clips highlighting his wins, promoted with captions describing him as “destroying” liberals, have racked up tens of millions of views on TikTok, YouTube and Instagram.

Since his assassination, Mr. Kirk has been lionized, mostly by those on the right but also by some who did not share his views, as a champion of free speech and an interrogator of viewpoints that spanned the political spectrum.

The New York Times reviewed more than four dozen of Mr. Kirk’s debates, stretching back to 2017, and discussed them with four debate coaches and university professors.

The Times review — which examined content, tone, techniques and other hallmarks of each confrontation — reveals how Mr. Kirk used the debate format to deliver a consistent hard-line message while orchestrating highly shareable moments.

This genre of debate, which Mr. Kirk helped pioneer, is now a template that other social media personalities across the political spectrum have increasingly adopted. Here’s a look at how Mr. Kirk constructed his viral confrontations.

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