"The disparate statements from the conservative vice president and the liberal talk show host revealed a troubling fact: there is a deep schism in how Americans understand the assassination that took place a little more than a week ago. That gap is being widened by social media. More than half of U.S. adults now get their news sometimes or often from social media platforms, and those platforms are fragmenting how Americans view what's happening."
"Social media disseminated the act of violence that took Charlie Kirk's life in a matter of minutes. Kirk had just opened his event at Utah Valley University and many students were filming with their phones when a single shot rang out. Within the hour, videos of his death flooded the web. The images were uploaded and reuploaded by news outlets, independent journalists, influencers and others."
Vice President Vance blamed an "incredibly destructive movement of left-wing extremism" for Charlie Kirk's assassination, while Jimmy Kimmel said the "MAGA gang" was trying to portray the killer as anything other than one of them. Kimmel was suspended indefinitely for his comments, raising concerns about free speech. The divergent reactions reveal a deep schism in American perceptions of the killing that widened within a week. Social media accelerated and fragmented public understanding, with more than half of U.S. adults now getting news from those platforms. Videos filmed at Utah Valley University circulated within an hour, and multiple uploads produced a consistent forensic narrative about the shooter's location.
Read at www.npr.org
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