Matthew Dowd, the political analyst fired by MSNBC over his commentary on the death of Charlie Kirk, has revealed that the network agreed his remarks were being misconstrued but dismissed him anyway. Speaking on Katie Couric's podcast, Dowd said he told MSNBC executives they were making a 'huge mistake' and that they knew his comments had been taken out of context. 'They agreed it had been misconstrued. But they said it didn't matter. The decision's been made,' he said.
Dowd's firing came after he suggested on air that Kirk's own rhetoric may have contributed to the shooting. He said, 'Hateful thoughts lead to hateful words, which then lead to hateful actions. You can't stop with these sort of awful thoughts you have saying these awful words, and then not expect awful actions to take place.' At the time, authorities had not yet confirmed that Kirk was the target; they later arrested a suspect who said he acted out of feeling sick of Kirk's 'hatred'.
MSNBC publicly condemned Dowd's analysis as 'inappropriate, insensitive and unacceptable'. Dowd, however, accused the network of caving to a 'rightwing media mob' that dishonestly framed his comments. He also expressed confusion over what he saw as a double standard, noting that MSNBC shows were outraged over ABC's suspension of Jimmy Kimmel while ignoring his own dismissal.
