MSNBC political contributor Matthew Dowd has been fired in the wake of comments he made about Charlie Kirk after his murder on a college campus in Utah. Shortly after Kirk was shot to death while speaking on stage at Utah Valley State University, Dowd told MSNBC anchor Katy Tur that “hateful thoughts lead to hateful words which then lead to hateful actions.”
The angry reactions on social media were immediate after Dowd’s further suggested that Kirk’s history of incendiary remarks led to his assassination.
MSNBC President issued an apology for comments late Wednesday afternoon. “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. “There is no place for violence in America, political or otherwise.”
Dowd later made his own apology. “My thoughts and prayers are with the family and friends of Charlie Kirk,” Dowd wrote on his Bluesky account. “I was asked a question on the environment we are in. 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.”
Dowd was scheduled to speak at Cumberland University in mid October. But now that speech has been canceled by the university.
Cumberland University President, Dr. Paul C. Stumb released a statement Thursday afternoon explaining the decision to cancel the event.
“The previous 24 hours have been filled with much tragedy and mourning. Our community is no stranger to the rippling effects and destruction of senseless violence. We at Cumberland express our deepest condolences to the Kirk family and Evergreen High School in the Denver area.”
“At Cumberland, we recognize the importance of freedom of expression and we honor the varied perspectives that make our campus a place where ideas can be challenged and shared. However, I want to affirm that all official university stances will be communicated via official Cumberland channels. Callous and insensitive comments that cause harm in the wake of tragedy have no place in our community and are not reflective of our University’s values. Violence of any kind for any reason is not condoned at Cumberland University and is in direct opposition to university values.”
“As many have heard, former MSNBC Political contributor, Matthew Dowd, was scheduled to be this year’s speaker at the Heifner-Martin Endowed Lecture Series. This Lecture Series was created to foster civil discourse and engagement, and in the aftermath of Mr. Dowd’s recent comments, we have decided to cancel the lecture scheduled in October.”
“In times of suffering such as these, I urge each of you to lean into respect and empathy. Processing information like this is not linear, and we should be cognizant of that. I encourage you to utilize the resources we have available to everyone on campus, including our University Chaplain and Counseling Services. We remain grateful for you, our Cumberland family.”
Steve Gill is Publisher and editor of TriStar Daily.
