Right-wing commentator Charlie Kirk shot dead at university event - National & International News - WED 10Sep2025 -

Right-wing commentator Charlie Kirk dies after being shot at university event. Shooter reportedly still at large after detained man released.

Right-wing commentator Charlie Kirk dies after being shot at university event

This afternoon, controversial far-right commentator Charlie Kirk was holding an event at Utah Valley University in Orem, UT. He was inviting college students to debate him underneath a tent in the campus courtyard when a single shot rang out. There are numerous videos of the incident online which are not for the faint of heart. A rush of blood came as Kirk was shot in the neck and appeared to lose consciousness. Panicked screams can then be heard has the hundreds of spectators rushed to find cover.

Kirk was rushed to an area hospital and his condition was reported as “critical”. He has now reportedly died. Kirk was 31 years old and was married with two children under 5 years old.

Plans for Kirk’s appearance at the campus had sparked pushback among students, with about 1000 students signing a petition to bar his appearance. The university responded by saying the even would go to head as part of the school’s commitment to free speech.

Coincidentally, at the moment he was shot, he was debating an audience member about mass shootings – specifically mass shootings committed by transgender people and whether trans people should be barred from purchasing firearms.

Previous reports indicated that a suspected shooter was in custody, but that person has now been released. At time of writing, it appears the shooter is still at large.

Kirk’s controversial career

Kirk’s assassination comes as politically-motivated violence is on the rise in the US, including recent assassinations and assassination attempts.

Kirk was known for going viral with statements which outraged liberals and shocked even many conservatives. He was particularly noted for his anti-abortion, anti-LGBT, anti-immigrant, and anti-gun control stances. He has also been accused of making racist statements and has even condemned Martin Luther King, Jr., and the Civil Rights Act of 1968.

He was a free-speech absolutist and it was a credo he lived by. Although he supported Israel despite many accusations of war crimes, Kirk opposed anti-BDS laws that would ban and even criminalize boycotts of Israel nationwide.

Kirk was also CEO and co-founder of Turning Points USA, which advocates for conservative politics on high school and university campuses. Ironically, Kirk told a Turning Points audience in 2023, “I think it’s worth it. I think it’s worth to have a cost of, unfortunately, some gun deaths every single year so that we can have the Second Amendment to protect our other God-given rights”.