{"id":37994,"date":"2025-09-12T17:06:02","date_gmt":"2025-09-12T17:06:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/usdailys.com\/?p=37994"},"modified":"2025-09-12T17:06:02","modified_gmt":"2025-09-12T17:06:02","slug":"left-wing-media-matters-abruptly-stops-publishing-after-charlie-kirk-shooting-distressing-upsetting-time","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/usdailys.com\/?p=37994","title":{"rendered":"Left-wing Media Matters abruptly stops publishing after Charlie Kirk shooting: \u2018Distressing, upsetting time\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Media Matters for America has abruptly suspended its publishing operations\u00a0following the assassination of Charlie Kirk<\/a>\u00a0\u2014 with the left-wing watchdog citing what it called a \u201cdistressing, upsetting time.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cToday did not feel like the right moment to publish some of the longer-lead pieces we\u2019ve been working on that did not address\u00a0this fraught moment<\/a>,\u201d a Media Matters spokesperson\u00a0told the Status newsletter on Thursday.<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s obviously been a distressing, upsetting time following Charlie Kirk\u2019s tragic murder for those engaged in media work and everyone concerned about the state of American democracy broadly,\u201d the spokesperson said.<\/p>\n

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\"Media4<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a><\/div>
Media Matters for America has suspended publishing operations following the assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk.mediamatters.org<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u201cOur primary concern has been ensuring the well-being of our staff while simultaneously continuing to monitor the information ecosystem.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Post has sought comment from Media Matters.<\/p>\n

Media Matters has repeatedly targeted Kirk, calling him a \u201cpro-Trump troll\u201d and accusing him of spreading hoaxes and conspiracy theories.<\/p>\n

The watchdog blasted Kirk for saying young women were \u201cinfected [with] the Jezebel spirit\u201d and for telling Taylor Swift to \u201csubmit to your husband and have a ton of children,\u201d framing those remarks as misogynistic.<\/p>\n

On immigration, it cited his statement that he can\u2019t find \u201cChrist-like compassion\u201d for long-term immigrants who don\u2019t speak English as an example of xenophobia.<\/p>\n

Media Matters also denounced his push for a federal takeover of Chicago under the Insurrection Act, which it described as extreme and dangerous rhetoric.<\/p>\n

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\"Media4<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a><\/div>
Media Matters went silent Wednesday, halting all content publication in response to what it called the \u201cdistressing, upsetting time\u201d following Charlie Kirk\u2019s murder.AP<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The decision to halt publishing comes as Media Matters battles multiple fronts of legal and regulatory warfare that have already drained its resources and forced staff layoffs.<\/p>\n

Tesla CEO Elon Musk is hammering Media Matters with lawsuits across three continents \u2014 while the Federal Trade Commission is probing the watchdog over its reports about his social media site X.<\/p>\n

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Follow The Post\u2019s live coverage of the Charlie Kirk shooting for the latest news and updates<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

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The nonprofit says the twin offensives are bleeding it dry,\u00a0forcing layoffs and draining its donor support.<\/a><\/p>\n

Musk sued the group in Texas, Ireland, and Singapore after\u00a0Media Matters revealed that ads for major brands<\/a>\u00a0were appearing alongside antisemitic content on X.<\/p>\n

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\"Progressive4<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a><\/div>
Progressive watchdog Media Matters faces a costly multi-front legal war with Tesla CEO Elon Musk.via REUTERS<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

He accused the\u00a0outfit of tanking his ad business.<\/a><\/p>\n

Media Matters fired back in San Francisco, calling the blitz a case of \u201clibel tourism\u201d meant to punish criticism by dragging the group into hostile courts.<\/p>\n

The FTC subsequently opened an investigation after Media Matters documented extremist content running next to ads on X. Judges have since blocked the probe, ruling it looked like retaliation against protected speech.<\/p>\n

Federal courts also tossed similar fishing expeditions by the attorneys general of Texas and Missouri, who accused the group of conspiring to hurt Musk.<\/p>\n

But the damage was done. Internal records show Musk\u2019s lawyers demanded access to Media Matters\u2019 donor communications, a move the nonprofit said would chill support. A federal appeals court put that demand on ice, citing First Amendment concerns.<\/p>\n

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\"Media4<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/a><\/div>
Media Matters has repeatedly targeted Kirk, calling him a \u201cpro-Trump troll,\u201d reporting that he spread hoaxes and conspiracy theories.via REUTERS<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Still, the legal warfare has cost the group dearly. It has slashed staff, lost partners, and struggled to raise funds while fending off what it calls abusive litigation.<\/p>\n

MAGA figures have openly urged investigations of progressive outfits they blame for political unrest, making Media Matters a prime target despite repeated court rulings in its favor.<\/p>\n

Whether Media Matters can survive depends on whether donors and allies stick with it through the costly fight \u2014 or whether the combined legal and financial pressure forces a permanent retreat.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    Media Matters for America has abruptly suspended its publishing operations\u00a0following the assassination of Charlie Kirk\u00a0\u2014 with the left-wing watchdog citing what it called a \u201cdistressing, upsetting time.\u201d \u201cToday … <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":37993,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-37994","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/usdailys.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/37994","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/usdailys.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/usdailys.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usdailys.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usdailys.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=37994"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/usdailys.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/37994\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":37995,"href":"https:\/\/usdailys.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/37994\/revisions\/37995"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usdailys.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/37993"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/usdailys.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=37994"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usdailys.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=37994"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usdailys.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=37994"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}