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US authorities said Friday they had captured the man accused of killing prominent right-wing activist Charlie Kirk after a family member helped to turn him in, ending a frantic manhunt.”We got him,” Utah Governor Spencer Cox told a press conference.Cox identified the suspect as Tyler Robinson and said the arrest was made after one of Robinson’s relatives contacted a friend, who then contacted the police.The arrest raised a bitterly divided country’s hopes of finding answers to the shocking political murder on Wednesday.The 31-year-old was killed when hit by a single bullet in his neck while addressing a large crowd at Utah Valley University in the town of Orem.Kirk was an electrifying presence on the US far-right, with a huge following that helped Donald Trump build the youth vote in his election victory last November.The president immediately treated the killing of his ally as a matter of top national importance, ordering flags to fly at half-mast and saying he will attend Kirk’s funeral.Kirk’s hardline views on race, gender, gun ownership and what many said was his antisemitism made him an intensely divisive figure, although even opponents praised his willingness to debate.While authorities said they did not know the motive, Cox noted that anti-fascist slogans were inscribed on two of the unused bullet casings.One cartridge had written on it, “Hey, fascist! Catch!”Another featured “Bella ciao,” apparently a reference to a World War II-era Italian anti-fascist song.Other cartridges were marked with symbols and wording that appeared to be from the online gaming culture- Breakthrough in manhunt -Authorities took 33 hours to make the arrest.They quickly found the alleged murder weapon, a high-powered hunting rifle, and released photos of a young man dressed in a baseball cap and casual clothing.However, after detaining, then releasing, two people who turned out to be unconnected to the case, the police and FBI appeared to struggle.Late Thursday, officials in Orem released more details about the suspect’s clothing and initial movements after the shooting, pleading with the public to help identify him.FBI Director Kash Patel said the arrest was finally made at 10:00 pm Thursday.Cox credited assistance from the alleged killer’s own family.”On the evening of September 11th, a family member of Tyler Robinson reached out to a family friend, who contacted the Washington County sheriff’s office with information that Robinson had confessed to them or implied that he had committed the incident,” he said.Students at the university on Thursday described their shock and their broader fears as political divisions deepen across the country.Dave Sanchez told AFP witnessing the killing made him “sick to my stomach.””We watch him all the time and so it really does feel like one of your own family members, your own brother’s been killed,” said Sanchez, 26.In Orem Park, several hundred people wearing red MAGA caps and holding American flags attended a vigil on Thursday evening, where they prayed and held a moment of silence.”It still feels insane that this happened,” Jonathan Silva, 35, told AFP. “It’s totally surreal.”- Seeking death penalty -Trump said he wanted the death penalty for the gunman.Reflecting the highly political nature of the killing, Kirk’s coffin was transported to his home city of Phoenix on Vice President JD Vance’s official plane.Footage showed Vance with his hands on the casket as it was carried to Air Force 2.Kirk, whom supporters have hailed as a martyr, co-founded Turning Point USA in 2012 to drive conservative viewpoints among young people, with his natural showmanship making him a go-to spokesman on television networks.The father-of-two used his audiences on TikTok, Instagram and YouTube to build support for anti-immigration policies, outspoken Christianity and gun ownership, and to spread carefully edited clips of his interactions during debates at his many college events.burs-sms/bgs

Authorities have taken into custody a person they believe is linked to the killing of Charlie Kirk, a right-wing activist and close ally of Donald Trump, the president himself announced Friday.Here is what we know so far:- The shooting -Kirk, head of the country’s largest conservative youth movement, which he co-founded in 2012 at the age of 18, was speaking around noon Wednesday on the campus of Utah Valley University.Former Utah congressman Jason Chaffetz, who was at the event, told Fox News that Kirk was responding to a question when a shot rang out.The 31-year-old collapsed with a neck wound, according to a video clip shot from a nearby location. He was pronounced dead soon after in an announcement by Trump.Authorities said the killer used a high-powered, bolt-action rifle, firing from the roof of a building up to 200 yards (185 meters) away from his target. They said the killer was lying prone, a position that can increase accuracy.- Person detained – Trump announced Friday on Fox News that authorities have apparently taken into custody the main suspect — but he was not definitive.”We have the person that we think is the person we’re looking for.”Trump did not identify the person. Law enforcement and local authorities were set to give a press conference shortly in Orem, Utah.Until Trump’s announcement, delivered on Fox’s popular breakfast news show, police had appeared to be struggling to make a breakthrough.Late Thursday, officials in Orem held a press conference releasing more details about the suspect’s clothing and initial movements after the shooting, pleading with the public to help identify him.That may have helped. Trump said that the suspect was turned in by “somebody very close to him.”Utah Governor Spencer Cox said prosecutors “will pursue the death penalty.”- The motive -No official suggestion has been made about the motive.In a briefing late on Thursday, Cox warned that social media was filling with “a tremendous amount of disinformation.” He said “our adversaries want violence” and cited China and Russia in particular as using bots to spread discord online.Kirk was a star on the Republican right and a particularly close ally of Trump, helping him to make surging gains in the youth vote when he won election last November.However, Kirk espoused multiple far-right views, making him hugely controversial for Democrats. He also fell out at times with fellow members of the Republican right — some of them, such as white nationalist leader Nick Fuentes, saying he was not hard-right enough.The United States has seen repeated political violence over the last decade, including two assassination attempts on Trump — and in addition to a long history of political violence stretching back decades.- The political reaction -Politicians on all sides quickly condemned the killing, many of them calling on Americans to heal growing divisions.Trump’s first reaction on Wednesday was to blame “the radical left.” He toned his rhetoric down on Thursday and said that Kirk had been “an advocate of nonviolence.””That’s the way I’d like to see people respond,” he said.Kirk is being treated as a national hero by the Trump administration.Trump announced on Thursday he would posthumously decorate Kirk with America’s highest civilian honor, the Medal of Freedom.The Republican president also told reporters that he would attend Kirk’s funeral.Kirk’s coffin was transported to his home city of Phoenix on Vice President JD Vance’s official plane.

US President Donald Trump on Friday announced that the suspect had been taken into custody over the killing of right-wing activist Charlie Kirk after a massive manhunt.Trump said the suspect had been turned in by a person close to him — and added that he hoped the killer of his close ally Kirk would get the death penalty.”I think, with a high degree of certainty, we have him,” Trump said in a surprise announcement during a live interview with Fox News. “He’s in custody.”Trump said the suspect was identified with the help of photos issued by US authorities following the murder of Kirk, who was killed by a single fatal shot during an appearance at a Utah university.”Somebody very close to him turned him in,” Trump said. “Somebody that’s very close to him said, ‘that’s him.'”Trump added that he had only been told five minutes before going on air.”It was a minister, and the minister went to a friend, a minister who was involved with law enforcement, by the way, and his good friend is a top US Marshal,” Trump said. “Then it was a father got involved, namely his father, and said, ‘we’ve got to go in.'”CNN reported separately that the man in custody had confessed to his father, who then secured him until he could be detained.”They drove into the police headquarters, and he’s there now,” added Trump.US authorities were due to give a press conference in Utah shortly after Trump’s interview.Hundreds of agents from across 20 law enforcement agencies were involved in the hunt for the killer of Kirk, a 31-year-old who rallied youth support for Trump.Images released Thursday showed a man wearing Converse shoes, a black baseball cap, dark sunglasses and what appeared to be jeans, with a long-sleeved top emblazoned with a design that included an American flag.Police say they believe the shooter fired from a rooftop up to 200 yards (180 meters) away, hitting Kirk in the neck.Video footage showed a figure running across a roof at the university, then jumping to the ground and making his way off campus towards some trees — apparently the location where a high-powered bolt-action rifle was recovered.- Death penalty? -Utah Governor Spencer Cox said his state would pursue the death penalty over the case.Trump said he would back such a move. “I hope he gets the death penalty,” he told Fox.Reflecting the highly political nature of the killing, Kirk’s coffin was transported to his home city of Phoenix on Vice President JD Vance’s official plane.Footage showed Vance with his hands on the casket as it was carried to Air Force 2.Students at Utah Valley University on Thursday described their shock and their broader fears as political divisions deepen across the country.Dave Sanchez told AFP witnessing the killing made him “sick to my stomach.””We watch him all the time and so it really does feel like one of your own family members, your own brother’s been killed,” said Sanchez, 26.In Orem Park, several hundred people wearing red MAGA caps and holding American flags attended a vigil on Thursday evening, where they prayed and held a moment of silence.”It still feels insane that this happened,” Jonathan Silva, 35, told AFP. “It’s totally surreal.”Kirk, whom supporters have hailed as a “martyr,” co-founded Turning Point USA in 2012 to drive conservative viewpoints among young people, with his natural showmanship making him a go-to spokesman on television networks.The father-of-two used his audiences on TikTok, Instagram and YouTube to build support for anti-immigration policies, outspoken Christianity and gun ownership, and to spread carefully edited clips of his interactions during debates at his many college events.The US right-wing media was in a state of grief and anger, with contributors recounting the impact Kirk had on their lives, but Trump has urged supporters to respond peacefully.

The vast manhunt for the shooter who killed right-wing activist Charlie Kirk stretched into a third day on Friday, after police released fresh images in an effort to crack a case that has raised tensions in the United States.The gunman fired a single, fatal shot into Kirk — a 31-year-old who rallied youth support for President Donald Trump — during an appearance at a Utah university on Wednesday. Despite hundreds of agents from across 20 law enforcement agencies working the case, investigators appealed for the public’s help on Thursday and unveiled new images of a man they want to question.”We cannot do our job without the public’s help,” Utah Governor Spencer Cox told reporters, adding they had received more than 7,000 leads.The images released Thursday showed a man wearing Converse shoes, a black baseball cap, dark sunglasses and what appeared to be jeans, with a long-sleeved top emblazoned with a design that included an American flag.Police say they believe the shooter fired a single bullet from a rooftop up to 200 yards (180 meters) away, hitting Kirk in the neck.A video played at the press conference shows a figure running across a roof at the university, then jumping to the ground and making his way off campus towards some trees — apparently the location where a high-powered bolt-action rifle was recovered.Cox, the Utah governor, said his state “will pursue the death penalty” when the shooter is captured.- Dark moment -Reflecting the highly political nature of the killing, Kirk’s coffin was transported to his home city of Phoenix on JD Vance’s official plane.Footage showed the vice president with his hands on the casket as it was carried to Air Force 2.The right-wing mediasphere was in a state of heightened emotion Thursday, with Fox News contributors recounting the impact Kirk had on their lives.Fox News host Jesse Watters said Wednesday the killing showed his side of the political spectrum was under attack.”Whether we want to accept it or not, they are at war with us. And what are we going to do about it?” he asked his audience.Trump urged supporters to respond peacefully, telling reporters that Kirk had been “an advocate of nonviolence.””That’s the way I’d like to see people respond,” he said.- ‘Totally surreal’ -Students at Utah Valley University on Thursday described their shock, and their broader fears as political divisions deepen across the country.Dave Sanchez told AFP witnessing the killing made him “sick to my stomach.””We watch him all the time and so it really does feel like one of your own family members, your own brother’s been killed,” said Sanchez, 26.In Orem Park, several hundred people wearing red MAGA caps and holding American flags attended a vigil on Thursday evening, where they prayed and held a moment of silence.”It still feels insane that this happened,” Jonathan Silva, 35, told AFP. “It’s totally surreal.”Silva’s wife Angelina, 27, told AFP about how the violent political polarization made the couple question their plans to have a child.”It seems a little hopeless to try to start a family and raise children in a society where there’s so much hatred and so much division,” she said.Kirk, whom supporters have hailed as a “martyr”, co-founded Turning Point USA in 2012 to drive conservative viewpoints among young people, with his natural showmanship making him a go-to spokesman on television networks.The father-of-two used his audiences on TikTok, Instagram and YouTube to build support for anti-immigration policies, outspoken Christianity and gun ownership, and to spread carefully edited clips of his interactions during debates at his many college events.Three months ago, a Minnesota man shot dead a Democratic lawmaker and her husband in their home. In July 2024, Trump survived an assassination attempt during his election campaign.

Investigators searching for the man who killed right-wing activist Charlie Kirk appealed for the public’s help Thursday, with no one in custody more than a day after a murder that has rocked America’s fractious politics.Kirk, a 31-year-old superstar on the Republican right who harnessed surging youth support for US President Donald Trump, was shot dead while addressing a large crowd at Utah Valley University on Wednesday.Hundreds of agents from across 20 law enforcement agencies are combing for clues to the identity of the culprit, but at a Thursday evening media briefing, they appeared to have little to show.”We cannot do our job without the public’s help,” Utah Governor Spencer Cox told reporters, adding they had received more than 7,000 leads.”We need as many, as much help as we can possibly get. Any videos or photos that you might have… should be submitted to our digital media tip line.”FBI Director Kash Patel, who on Wednesday tweeted that agents had someone in custody before having to walk that back, stood mutely as Cox spoke.No one took any questions from the assembled press corps.Pictures released Thursday showed a man detectives want to question.He was wearing Converse shoes, a black baseball cap, dark sunglasses and what appeared to be jeans, with a long-sleeved top emblazoned with a design that included an American flag.Police say they believe the shooter fired a single bullet from a rooftop up to 200 yards (180 meters) away, hitting Kirk in the neck.A video played at the press conference shows a figure running across a roof at the university, then jumping to the ground and making his way off campus towards some trees — apparently the location where a high-powered bolt-action rifle was recovered. – Dark moment -Reflecting the highly political nature of the killing, Kirk’s coffin was transported to his home city of Phoenix on JD Vance’s official plane.Footage showed the vice president with his hands on the casket as it was carried to Air Force 2.Kirk’s widow, Erika, held hands with Vance’s wife after the plane arrived in Arizona, the headquarters of the powerful Turning Point USA.The right-wing mediasphere remained in a state of heightened emotion Thursday, with Fox News contributors recounting the impact Kirk had on their lives.Fox News host Jesse Watters said Wednesday the killing showed his side of the political spectrum was under attack.”Whether we want to accept it or not, they are at war with us. And what are we going to do about it?” he asked his audience.Trump urged supporters to respond peacefully, telling reporters that Kirk had been “an advocate of nonviolence.””That’s the way I’d like to see people respond,” he said.- ‘Totally surreal’ -Students at Utah Valley University on Thursday described their shock, and their broader fears as political divisions deepen across the country.Dave Sanchez told AFP witnessing the killing made him “sick to my stomach.””We watch him all the time and so it really does feel like one of your own family members, your own brother’s been killed,” said Sanchez, 26.In Orem Park, several hundred people wearing red MAGA caps and holding American flags attended a vigil on Thursday evening, where they prayed and held a moment of silence.”It still feels insane that this happened,” Jonathan Silva, 35, told AFP. “It’s totally surreal.”Silva’s wife Angelina, 27, told AFP about how the violent political polarization made the couple question their plans to have a child.”It seems a little hopeless to try to start a family and raise children in a society where there’s so much hatred and so much division,” she said.Kirk, whom supporters have hailed as a “martyr”, co-founded Turning Point USA in 2012 to drive conservative viewpoints among young people, with his natural showmanship making him a go-to spokesman on television networks.The father-of-two used his audiences on TikTok, Instagram and YouTube to build support for anti-immigration policies, outspoken Christianity and gun ownership, and to spread carefully edited clips of his interactions during debates at his many college events.Three months ago, a Minnesota man shot dead a Democratic lawmaker and her husband in their home. In July 2024, Trump survived an assassination attempt during his election campaign.

Green Bay quarterback Jordan Love threw for 292 yards and two touchdowns as the Packers romped to a 27-18 NFL victory over the Washington Commanders on Thursday.After beating the NFC North division champion Detroit Lions in week one, the Packers cruised past a Commanders team that made it to the NFC championship game last season.”It’s a great start to the season, we’ve just got to keep building on it,” Love said.Green Bay’s offense put up 404 total yards compared to Washington’s 230.Love connected with tight end Tucker Kraft six times for 124 yards, including an eight-yard TD in the fourth quarter that helped squelch any thoughts of a Commanders comeback.Love had hit Romeo Doubs for a touchdown in the first quarter and Josh Jacobs ran for a two-yard TD to put Green Bay up 14-0 before the Commanders’ Matt Gay drilled a 51-yard field goal that made it 14-3 at halftime.A Brandon McManus field goal pushed Green Bay’s lead to 17-3 midway through the third.Washington quarterback Jayden Daniels found Zach Ertz for a 20-yard touchdown early in the fourth.But Green Bay responded with Kraft’s touchdown and a 56-yard field goal by McManus.In his second game since joining Green Bay in a blockbuster trade from Dallas, Micah Parsons had a pair of tackles and was credited with half a quarterback sack and three quarterback hits.Love credited the Packers’ defense with containing the Commanders.”You hold a good offense like that (to) 18 points and let us go score, we’re gonna win those games,” he said.Packers coach Matt LaFleur also praised the defensive performance.”I think our players are doing a great job of feeding off one another,” he said. “It’s definitely exciting to watch our defense go out there and perform because they allow us to get up on somebody.”The Packers did suffer a blow on the opening drive when wide receiver Jayden Reed was injured after making a catch and reaching the end zone.The touchdown was also negated by a holding penalty.Reed, who landed hard on his right shoulder on a tackle by Quan Martin, made his way to the sideline but was ruled out for the rest of the game with what LaFleur later said was a broken collarbone.”He’s going to miss a lot of time, unfortunately,” the coach said. “Certainly I would expect him back at some point this season.”The Commanders lost defensive lineman Deatrich Wise Jr. to a quadriceps injury and tight end John Bates to a groin injury.Washington running back Austin Ekeler departed on a cart after suffering a non-contact Achilles injury in the fourth quarter.

For university student Dave Sanchez, seeing Trump acolyte Charlie Kirk murdered during a campus event was like watching his own brother get shot. “It still makes me sick to my stomach,” said Sanchez, who returned to campus on Thursday to mourn the Republican superstar who was gunned down while addressing a large crowd of students.”We watch him all the time and so it really does feel like one of your own family members, your own brother’s been killed,” said Sanchez, an accounting student whose father came to the United States from Peru.The 26-year-old became captivated by Kirk’s social media videos and admired his “dedication to faith, family and freedom.””He did change the political climate on campuses, leading young people to look at conservatism in a different way,” said Sanchez, who voted for Donald Trump in both 2020 and 2024 and was sporting a red “Make America Great Again” cap.- ‘I hope he is qualified’  -At 31, Kirk was an influential figure on the American right, and host of a conservative talk show. His youth organization, Turning Point USA, has branches on more than 800 American campuses.The ally of President Donald Trump toured campuses across the country holding debates with students to “push back against left-wing indoctrination in academia.”But the Christian nationalist and fierce defender of traditional family values faced accusations of homophobia and racism and had many enemies.”If I see a Black pilot, I’m gonna be like ‘Boy, I hope he is qualified,'” Kirk said on a podcast in 2024, causing an outcry.At Utah Valley University, where Kirk was killed on Wednesday, students condemned the shooting. But even in one of the most conservative, Trump-backing US states, some also called the right-wing youth activist’s rhetoric dangerous. While no culprit has been identified more than a day after the murder, Utah’s Republican governor has called the shooting a “political assassination”.- ‘Spokesman for our generation’ -Computer science student Carson Caines said Kirk was “a martyr of free speech.””He was a huge spokesman for our generation,” Caines, 23, told AFP.Caines, a Mormon, admitted feeling livid at Kirk’s killing, but realized that aggression was not the answer.”I think, like a lot of people, my first initial reaction was like, wanting to do something physical about it,” Caines said. “But I refuse to feed this cycle of violence.”Instead, Caines says he will join Kirk’s organization Turning Point USA. The group bused youth activists to Washington for the January 6, 2021 rally, which turned into a riot and the storming of the US Capitol.Alexander, another student at the university, lamented that Kirk’s death would only deepen animosity and polarization in the United States.”I hear a lot of people saying he was an extremist. But in the right-wing community, he’s one of the more moderate voices out there,” Alexander, who would not give his last name, told AFP. “Killing him is only going to make it worse and increase the divide between Americans.”Alexander, who supports gun ownership and is against abortion, says he and fellow-minded Americans have felt ostracized and silenced by those on the left.”In the past decade, I think anyone who leans conservative has had to censor their beliefs, even basic ones like being pro-family or pro-Second Amendment, in order to avoid public backlash,” the 23-year-old added, referring to the Constitutional right to bear arms.  “Cancel culture has gone crazy,” he said. “This killing is a cultural artifact, I think, of everything that happened during the last decade or so.”

New York star Aaron Judge homered twice to tie Yankees legend Joe DiMaggio for fourth on the club’s all-time list on Thursday in a game attended by President Donald Trump on the anniversary of the September 11, 2001 attacks.Judge homered in each of his first two at-bats against the Detroit Tigers, collecting the 360th and 361st of his career.Ahead of him on the storied franchise’s all-time homers list are Babe Ruth, who hit 659 of his 714 as a Yankee, along with Mickey Mantle (536) and Lou Gehrig (493).A pre-game ceremony honored victims of the attacks as well as first responders.Trump, who received a mix of cheers and boos from the Yankee Stadium crowd, had visited the Yankees in the clubhouse before the game, telling them, “You’re gonna win.”Trump is the first sitting president to attend a game at Yankee Stadium since game three of the 2001 World Series, when President George W. Bush threw out the ceremonial first pitch.The White House had confirmed earlier this week that Trump would attend the game. After his appearance at the US Open tennis men’s final caused long waits for security, the Yankees opened the gates early and advised fans to be prepared for extra security measures.Yankees manager Aaron Boone said before the contest that he was looking forward to Trump’s attendance.”I’ve had the honor and fortune of (seeing) some presidents over the years, first pitches or whatever it may be, so the fact that he’s going to be here is something that I’m excited to be a part of,” Boone said.

President Donald Trump urged supporters Thursday to respond peacefully to the killing of right-wing campaigner Charlie Kirk, as the murderer continued to evade a manhunt more than 24 hours after a shooting that put an already divided United States on edge.Trump, who soon after the killing angrily pledged a wide-ranging response against the “radical left,” told reporters that Kirk had been “an advocate of nonviolence.””That’s the way I’d like to see people respond,” he said.Kirk, a 31-year-old superstar on the Republican right who harnessed surging youth support for Trump, was shot while addressing a large crowd at Utah Valley University on Wednesday.But a day later, authorities said the gunman remained at large.”Multiple leads are currently being investigated, but no suspect is in custody,” Utah law enforcement officials posted.”We’re doing everything we can to find him, and we’re not sure how far he has gone yet,” FBI Special Agent Robert Bohls said earlier.The FBI, which described the attack on Kirk as “targeted,” published photos of a young person it called “the potential shooter.”The pictures showed a man wearing a black baseball cap, dark sunglasses, and what appeared to be jeans, with a long-sleeved top emblazoned with a design that included an American flag.A reward of up to $100,000 was posted for information leading to his capture.Police say they believe the shooter fired a single bullet from a rooftop up to 200 yards (180 meters), hitting Kirk in the neck.A high-powered bolt-action rifle was recovered in a wooded area.- ‘Dark moment’ -Reflecting the highly political nature of the killing, Kirk’s coffin was transported to his home city of Phoenix on JD Vance’s official plane.Footage showed the vice president with his hands on the casket as it was carried to Air Force 2.Kirk’s widow, Erika, held hands with Vance’s wife as they got off the plane in Arizona, the headquarters of the powerful Turning Point USA.The right wing mediasphere remained in a state of heightened emotion Thursday, with Fox News contributors recounting the impact Kirk had on their lives.Conspiracy theories ricocheted around the internet, while calls for a return to civility vied with those demanding vengeance.”THIS IS WAR” wrote the popular right-wing X account of @LibsofTikTOK.Fox News host Jesse Watters on Wednesday said the killing showed his side of the political spectrum was under attack.”Whether we want to accept it or not, they are at war with us. And what are we going to do about it?” he asked his audience.- ‘Martyr’ for the right -Students at the Utah Valley University on Thursday described the shock, and their broader fears as political divisions deepen across the country.Dave Sanchez told AFP witnessing the killing made him “sick to my stomach.”We watch him all the time and so it really does feel like one of your own family members, your own brother’s been killed,” said Sanchez, 26.Kirk, who supporters have hailed as a “martyr” for conservative ideals, had an outsized influence in US politics.He co-founded Turning Point USA in 2012 to drive conservative viewpoints among young people, with his natural showmanship making him a go-to spokesman on television networks.Kirk used his enormous audiences on TikTok, Instagram and YouTube to build support for anti-immigration policies, outspoken Christianity and gun ownership, and to spread carefully edited clips of his interactions during debates at his many college events.Three months ago, a Minnesota man shot dead a Democratic lawmaker and her husband in their home, and Trump survived an assassination attempt during his election campaign in July 2024.

With a fire hose of misinformation surrounding the assassination of US right-wing activist Charlie Kirk, social media users have turned to AI chatbots for reliable updates — only to encounter contradictory or inaccurate responses, further fueling online confusion.The trend highlights how chatbots often generate confident responses, even when verified information is unavailable during fast-developing news events, energizing misinformation across platforms that have largely scaled back human fact-checking and content moderation.A day after Kirk, a 31-year-old prominent ally of President Donald Trump, was fatally gunned down at a university in Utah, the X account of AI chatbot Perplexity falsely stated that the activist was never shot and was “still alive,” according to the watchdog NewsGuard.When posts containing an authentic video of Kirk being shot swirled online, the X account of Grok — Elon Musk’s AI chatbot — stated that it was a satirical clip.”The video is a meme edit — Charlie Kirk is debating, and effects make it look like he’s ‘shot’ mid-sentence for comedic effect. No actual harm; he’s fine and active as ever,” Grok wrote.Grok also falsely claimed that a Utah-based registered Democrat named Michael Mallinson had been identified as the shooter, wrongly attributing the information to major news outlets such as CNN and the New York Times.Mallinson, in reality a 77-year-old retired Canadian banker living in Toronto, said he was “shocked” by thousands of social media posts that labeled him the culprit.Breaking news events often spark a frantic search for new information on social media, frequently leading to false conclusions that chatbots then regurgitate, contributing to further online chaos.The tide of misinformation comes amid a volatile environment in the United States following Kirk’s assassination, with many right-wing influencers from Trump’s Make America Great Again (MAGA) political base calling for violence and “retribution” against the left.The motives of the gunman involved in the shooting — who remains at large — are unknown.- ‘Liar’s dividend’ -Meanwhile, some conspiracy theorists have baselessly claimed that the video showing Kirk being shot was AI-generated, asserting that the entire incident was staged.The assertion underscores how the rise of cheap and widely available AI tools has given misinformation peddlers a handy incentive to cast doubt about the authenticity of real content –- a tactic researchers have dubbed as the “liar’s dividend.””We have analyzed several of the videos (of Kirk’s shooting) circulating online and find no evidence of manipulation or tampering,” said Hany Farid, the co-founder of GetReal Security and a professor at the University of California, Berkeley.Farid also reported seeing some AI-generated videos.”This is an example of how fake content can muddy the waters and in turn cast doubt on legitimate content,” he said. The falsehoods underline how facts are increasingly under assault in a misinformation-filled internet landscape, an issue exacerbated by public distrust of institutions and traditional media.It has exposed an urgent need for stronger AI detection tools, experts say, as major tech platforms have largely weakened safeguards by reducing investment in human fact-checking.Researchers say chatbots have previously made errors verifying information related to other crises such as the Israel-Hamas war in the Middle East, the recent India-Pakistan conflict and anti-immigration protests in Los Angeles.A recent audit by NewsGuard found that 10 leading AI chatbots repeated false information on controversial news topics at nearly double the rate compared to one year ago.”A key factor behind the increased fail rate is the growing propensity for chatbots to answer all inquiries, as opposed to refusing to answer certain prompts,” NewsGuard said in a report last week.”The Large Language Models (LLMs) now pull from real-time web searches — sometimes deliberately seeded by vast networks of malign actors.”