Social media is shattering America's understanding of Charlie Kirk's death
toggle caption Lindsey Wasson/AP
When Vice President Vance hosted an episode of conservative activist Charlie Kirk's podcast on Monday, he blamed an "incredibly destructive movement of left-wing extremism" for Kirk's assasination. That same night, talk show host Jimmy Kimmel said the "MAGA gang" was desperately trying to characterize the killer as "anything other than one of them." Kimmel was suspended indefinitely for his comments, raising concerns about free speech.
The disparate statements from the conservative vice president and the liberal talk show host revealed a troubling fact: there is a deep schism in how Americans understand the assassination that took place a little more than a week ago.
toggle caption Jae C. Hong/AP
That gap is being widened by social media. More than half of U.S. adults now get their news sometimes or often from social media platforms, and those platforms are fragmenting how Americans view what's happening.
American politics has long been home to conspiracies and even fracturings of understanding around events, said Nicole Hemmer, a professor of history at Van
Continue Reading on NPR
This preview shows approximately 15% of the article. Read the full story on the publisher's website to support quality journalism.