ABC News Reporter Apologizes After His Odd Comments About Kirk Suspect's 'Touching' Messages Spark Anger
ABC News correspondent Matt Gutman apologized Wednesday for his reporting about the “touching” messages that alleged Charlie Kirk assassin Tyler Robinson sent to his transgender roommate lover.
Gutman’s report came after a Tuesday news conference in which Utah County Attorney Jeff Gray laid out the charges being brought against Robinson, which include, in part, aggravated murder, obstruction of justice, and witness tampering for instructing his roommate, Lance Twiggs, to delete incriminating messages between them following the shooting of Kirk.
Gutman said on air that the text messages between Robinson and Twiggs were “very touching, in a way, that I think many of us didn’t expect — a very intimate portrait into this relationship between the suspect’s roommate and the suspect himself, with him repeatedly calling his roommate, who is transitioning, calling him ‘my love.’ And ‘I want to protect you, my love.’”
Robinson text his partner “you are all my worry about love” before his boyfriend replied “I’m much more worried about you.”
Authorities have said Robinson’s lover/ roommate is fully cooperating with the investigation. pic.twitter.com/4E5EVEdSEn
— Oli London (@OliLondonTV) September 16, 2025
“So it was this duality of someone who the attorney said not only jeopardized the life of Charlie Kirk and the crowd, but was doing it in front of children, which was one of the aggravating circumstances of this case,” Gutman said.
“And on the other hand, he was, you know, speaking so lovingly about his partner. So a very interesting and … riveting press conference,” he concluded.
ABC’s Matt Gutman: The text messages between Robinson and his partner were “very touching, in a way, that I think many of us didn’t expect — a very intimate portrait into this relationship between the suspect’s roommate and the suspect himself, with him repeatedly calling his… pic.twitter.com/obQpIQBci3
— RedWave Press (@RedWave_Press) September 16, 2025
After receiving blowback on social media, Gutman posted early Wednesday morning, “Yesterday I tried to underscore the jarring contrast between this cold-blooded assassination of Charlie Kirk — a man who dedicated his life to public dialogue — and the personal, disturbing texts read aloud by the Utah County Attorney at the press conference.
“I deeply regret that my words did not make that clear. But let there be zero doubt here: I unequivocally condemn this horrific crime and the pain it caused Charlie Kirk’s family, those who were forced to witness it at UVU, and the millions of people he inspired,” he added.
2. I deeply regret that my words did not make that clear.
But let there be zero doubt here: I unequivocally condemn this horrific crime and the pain it caused Charlie Kirk’s family, those who were forced to witness it at UVU, and the millions of people he inspired.
— Matt Gutman (@mattgutmanABC) September 17, 2025
Many responded negatively to Gutman’s apology, with one writing, “Matt, you attempted to write a love story for a murdererous monster in order to appease your left-leaning brain. There’s nothing ‘touching’ about any of it. If you can’t see how disgusting that was, then you really need to reevaluate your life.”
Matt, you attempted to write a love story for a murdererous monster in order to appease your left-leaning brain. There’s nothing “touching” about any of it. If you can’t see how disgusting that was, then you really need to reevaluate your life.
— Coco 🇺🇸 (@CoClarified) September 17, 2025
Another posted, “You were trying to make the killer sympathetic for exactly the same reason so many of you journalists have been trying to demonize Kirk. In order to justify and inspire more leftist violence. Nothing less. You can’t gaslight us anymore.”
You were trying to make the killer sympathetic for exactly the same reason so many of you journalists have been trying to demonize Kirk. In order to justify and inspire more leftist violence. Nothing less. You can’t gaslight us anymore.
— Helot 🚩 (@Helot_) September 17, 2025
Fox News contributor Charlie Hurt responded to Gutman’s apology, saying, “The idea this guy is going to walk in to cover this story and have sort of these fantasies, these fairytale fantasies play out in his mind, I think, goes to the heart of the lack of seriousness, the lack of gravity that these people approach a story like this. It boggles my mind, I don’t understand it.”
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