The Left is desperate to distance itself from Tyler Robinson, the man who allegedly assassinated TPUSA founder Charlie Kirk.
Late-night host Jimmy Kimmel is currently off the air because of remarks he made about Kirk, remarks that claimed Robinson was "MAGA" and blamed conservatives for Kirk's death. Several media outlets insisted the Robinson's motives remained elusive or unknown -- even after law enforcement said their investigation showed Robinson was Left-wing and hated Kirk -- and CNN panelists denied the deluge of Leftist social media posts celebrating Kirk's death (and calling for more violence).
Now NPR is chiming in, insisting we really don't know Robinson's politics.
NPR: maybe Tyler Robinson was a radical centrist https://t.co/dN8SJUZz1c pic.twitter.com/oiuol7AGwP
— Chuck Ross (@ChuckRossDC) September 18, 2025
In fact, little is still known about Robinson's politics. According to the charging document, his mother told investigators that he had become more "pro-gay and trans-rights oriented" within the last year. It also includes a text message, allegedly written by Robinson, that said "since trump got into office [my dad] has been pretty diehard maga." But Robinson is not registered with a political party in Utah. There is no evidence of his positions on other issues of importance to the left, such as immigration or labor.
The dearth of information about Robinson's political views has suggested to some researchers of online culture and shootings that there may not, in fact, be much more to Robinson's alleged violence than a single-issue grievance. They say that one particular piece of information shared in the charging document lends support to this theory.
In the opening paragraphs, NPR acknowledges law enforcement documents that show Robinson killed Kirk because Robinson had "had enough of [Kirk's] hatred." But that's apparently not enough for NPR -- they need to know how Robinson felt about the minimum wage and tax policy before they can claim him as one of their own.
The Left is not so big on nuance when they can blame Republicans as a group for the actions of someone, like when there's a mass shooting and all gun owners are to blame.
Of course, this reporting doesn't help NPR's cause as they continue to play the victim after being defunded by President Trump. Despite pretending to be objective, NPR had no qualms about parroting Democratic Party talking points in the majority of its stories. Even veteran reporter Uri Berliner said NPR had become to political and Left-wing, "It’s true NPR has always had a liberal bent, but during most of my tenure here, an open-minded, curious culture prevailed. We were nerdy, but not knee-jerk, activist, or scolding. In recent years, however, that has changed. Today, those who listen to NPR or read its coverage online find something different: the distilled worldview of a very small segment of the U.S. population."