Matt Gutman
Charlie KirkDemocratsMediaPolitics

ABC Reporter Describes Suspect’s Texts Confessing To Charlie Kirk Assassination As ‘Very Touching’

RNN Staff

In a moment that stunned viewers, ABC News correspondent Matt Gutman described the text messages between suspected Charlie Kirk assassin Tyler Robinson and his trans-identifying boyfriend as “very touching,” despite the messages being part of a confession to a politically motivated murder.

Gutman made the comments Tuesday while covering a press conference in which Utah authorities released shocking details about Robinson’s communications just before and after the assassination. Robinson is facing multiple felony charges, including aggravated murder, which could carry the death penalty under Utah law.

The texts in question were sent between Robinson and his roommate — a biological male in the process of transitioning — shortly after Kirk was shot in the neck and killed during a Turning Point USA event at Utah Valley University.

“Very Intimate Portrait” of a Killer?

Gutman acknowledged the disturbing nature of the case but appeared moved by the emotional tone of the messages.

“It was 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,” Gutman said during the live broadcast. He highlighted Robinson’s repeated use of the phrase “my love” and claims that he was trying to “protect” his partner.

The suspect had left a note under his keyboard for his partner to find, saying, “I had the opportunity to take out Charlie Kirk and I’m going to take it.” After discovering the note, the roommate responded with shock, sending messages asking if Robinson was joking. Robinson later instructed him to delete the messages and not speak to police.

Gutman admitted the duality of the case: “Obviously, Charlie Kirk was murdered brutally in front of a crowd of thousands… [but] on the other hand, there is this duality of a very human person, a very human experience from this entire family.”

Viewers React With Outrage

Gutman’s characterization of the texts as “touching” was met with swift backlash online. Critics accused ABC of downplaying the horror of the political assassination by emphasizing the emotional dynamics between the killer and his romantic partner.

“What part of planning and executing a murder in cold blood — during a live speech — is ‘touching’?” one commentator wrote on social media. “You don’t get to be a sensitive, poetic soul when you assassinate someone.”

Another wrote, “Charlie Kirk is dead. His wife is widowed. His kids will grow up without their father. But the media is fawning over the murderer’s love life? Disgusting.”

A Disturbing Media Shift

The ABC segment reflects a broader trend in legacy media’s handling of the Kirk assassination — an apparent reluctance to emphasize the political motive or the role of radical leftist ideology in Robinson’s descent. Instead, much of the coverage has drifted toward psychological profiles, academic achievements, and now, romantic expressions.

While FBI Director Kash Patel and President Donald Trump have both pointed to Robinson’s radicalization and obsession with leftist causes, reporters like Gutman have focused more on the assassin’s ACT score and “humanity.”

In a case that has rocked the political landscape, Gutman’s remarks mark yet another flashpoint in the media’s response — one that many Americans see as dangerously out of touch.

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