Posted on 09/24/2025 9:53:32 PM PDT by nickcarraway
Jimmy Kimmel’s comment about the Charlie Kirk shooting suspect was a mess, and a miss, which gets less clear the more you look at it.
Never has a snarky, clumsily worded and insensitive-sounding aside caused so much trouble.
Jimmy Kimmel’s comment about Charlie Kirk shooting suspect Tyler Robinson has sparked a cascading series of dramatic (and chilling) events that have resulted Disney suspending Jimmy Kimmel Live! “indefinitely.”
But many — if not most — are interpreting the comment in a way that its phrasing does not entirely support. Entirely being the operative word.
Let’s look at his viral quote again: “We hit some new lows over the weekend with the MAGA gang desperately trying to characterize this kid who murdered Charlie Kirk as anything other than one of them and doing everything they can to score political points from it.”
The overwhelming read on this has been: Jimmy Kimmel said, or at least strongly suggested, that Robinson was MAGA. That’s been the contention of countless conservatives and plenty of not-so-conservatives. And the facts about Robinson released by authorities so far suggest the suspect was not, in fact, MAGA (according to The New York Times, his mother told prosecutors that her son had recently shifted toward the political left and had become “more pro-gay and trans-rights oriented,” among other details about the suspect).
But let’s take a close look at this section: “….the MAGA gang desperately trying to characterize this kid who murdered Charlie Kirk as anything other than one of them….”
As part of a sentence, this is so blurry that your eyes cross trying to get it. Kimmel doesn’t actually say “this kid” was “one of them.” You could read it a different way: Robinson wasn’t MAGA, and therefore MAGA is out there trying to characterize him as something else. Or even: Who knows if Robinson was or wasn’t MAGA, either way MAGA is trying to score points based on his politics.
Kimmel himself would seem to be of this opinion. In Hollywood Reporter‘s latest story detailing how the suspension went down behind the scenes, Kimmel is said to have been “defending what he said [as] being grossly mischaracterized by a certain group of people.”
That said, it’s also reasonable to read the comment the way most are taking it. The snarky tone. The use of “desperately.” Kimmel’s well-established anti-MAGA stance. The debate around the killer’s motives, which have seen others on the left attempt to insist he’s a conservative. All this context make it natural to assume Kimmel simply meant, “Hey, we all know this kid is MAGA and now MAGA is out there trying to convince everyone he isn’t.” That was, admittedly, the whole vibe (and was how I took it). Yet its clunky wording make this line into a Rorschach test the more you look at it. There is some element of presumption — a bit of connective tissue formed in the mind of the reader — which converts it from the exact words he said into the inflammatory conclusion that has been widely reached.
Now. Do these alternative possible meanings change anything?
Not really.
In an essay I wrote in January about Elon Musk’s viral so-called “Nazi salute,” I pointed out that communications experts agree that being understood properly is the responsibility of the speaker. That if you’re widely misinterpreted for something you said or did, it’s not your audience’s fault, it’s your fault. Same goes here. If a tidal wave of angry people assume Kimmel meant one thing and it causes a huge network headache, even if it wasn’t what he intended, the man still made a poor choice of words if a reasonable person could view it the “wrong” way. Hopefully, this is a mistake that won’t spell the end of Kimmel’s career. If he was going to blow out of late night by saying something hugely controversial on air, Kimmel would surely have preferred to say something that was perfectly clear.
Translation:
Jimmy Kimmel Did Not Say Exactly What He Said
So he’s like the serpent in the Garden of Eden.
Deceptive wording that sounds right but isn’t.
Yeah, what a pantload of horse shit.
Are you kidding me?
😂😂😂😂😂
How much more ridiculous can you get than this? I don't know that you can...
Translation: “Don’t Believe Yer Lyin’ Ears!”
It depends on what the meaning of the word “is” is. No lie.
Lefties are so clever with words.
Jerry Nadler: You called?
The news of the killer's left-leaning motives were public knowledge hours before Kimmel went on the air. Kimmel's words were suggesting that MAGA was planting this news to indict the left.
That was the "desperate... character[ization] of this kid" that Kimmel was implying was untrue MAGA disinformation.
-PJ
It's like the 51 spooks who signed the letter stating that the information about Hunter's laptop "has all the classic earmarks of a Russian information operation". Now normally in spookworld that's enough evidence to start eliminating opponents or even start a war, but "has all the classic earmarks of" gives them a slight shield in court when they know darn well a compliant media will instantly convert it to "is definitely".
It didn't just sound insensitive - it was insensitive (as well as deceitful and insulting). Nor was it an "aside" - rather, it was the lead-in of his entire monologue.
The debate around the killer’s motives, which have seen others on the left attempt to insist he’s a conservative.
Let me get this right: The author is saying that the killer's motives saw something - namely: they saw others on the left do something - namely: they saw them attempt something - namely: they saw them attempt to insist something - namely...
Talk about "clumsy wording!" The author's sentence structure is appalling!
Regards,
Krybaby Kimmel meant exactly what he meant.
Monk: [Runs in and vomits in fireplace] Great booze-up, Edmund.
Lady Whiteadder: Do you know that man?
Blackadder: No.
Lady Whiteadder: He called you "Edmund".
Blackadder: Oh, know - him? Oh, yes, I do.
Lady Whiteadder: Then can you explain what he meant by "great booze-up"?
Blackadder: [very long pause] Yes, I can. My friend is a missionary and on his last visit abroad brought back with him the chief of a famous tribe. His name is Great Boo. He's been suffering from sleeping sickness and he's obviously just woken because as you've heard, Great Boo's up.
and he shifted to calling it non-political violence
even though clearly leftist violence
Anyone remember “The Man show” that was hosted by Kimmel and Adam Carolla? I always found it curious that after that show was cancelled/done, Kimmel the leftist got a late night talk show that paid him millions while Carolla who leans right was relegated to cheap podcasts
We’re back to the; “it’s nuance and you all just don’t understand it”.
Pretty clear English. Clear insinuation that the kid was MAGA which he obviously wasn't.
Don't believe your ears. You're too dumb to know what you heard. That's what this guy is saying.
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