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Alastair Campbell, who previously served as the communications director for Labour Prime Minister Tony Blair, found himself having to apologize following his dissemination of false information about Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk, after Kirk’s assassination.
Currently, Campbell co-hosts the well-known Westminster establishment podcast This Rest Is Politics with Rory Stewart, a neo-liberal and former Conservative Party government minister. During the show, Campbell claimed that Charlie Kirk had once said homosexuals should be stoned to death.
He remarked, “The guy’s died and it’s tragic … but it’s important we don’t lose sight of some of the views he expressed because they were horrific. I remember one clip I saw of him saying that, following a literal reading of the Bible, gay people should be stoned to death.”
The comments were then shared in a clip on X by political satirist and openly gay British journalist Andrew Doyle, who refuted the claim: “No… Charlie Kirk categorically did NOT support the stoning to death of gay people”.
“Will you retract this reckless and ignorant smear?”
In reality, the widely circulated clip of Kirk’s statements, often presented without context, was centered on a discussion about how certain individuals selectively use Biblical quotes to support their political views while overlooking other parts, like those in Leviticus describing homosexuality as an “abomination” deserving of the death penalty.
Following the backlash over his false claims, Campbell retracted his statement and issued an apology.
“Apologies for this. I had seen a clip on social media which did not have the full context, and had seen others making the same claim,” Campbell stated on X.
“The full exchange shows it was a debate about Biblical interpretation, not a call for the stoning of gay people. Kirk did have views with which I strongly disagree, but this was not among them,” Campbell continued.
“Note to self – especially amid tragic and potentially deeply polarising events, be extra careful about social media, mis- and disinformation,” he concluded.
The promotion of the false claim about Kirk’s position has not been confined to Campbell, with out-of-context clips frequently being shared on social media.
Other notable figures to promote the falsehood include horror author Stephen King, who wrote on X in the wake of Kirk’s assassination: “He advocated stoning gays to death. Just sayin’.”
Like Campbell, King was forced to issue an apology and retract the claim, amid calls for Charlie Kirk’s estate to sue the author for defamation.
False claims about Kirk’s positions were also spread by the legacy media, including the New York Times, which was forced to issue a correction after falsely reporting that he had made an antisemitic remark. The liberal paper was forced to issue a correction, admitting that Kirk was merely quoting a position with which he disagreed.
