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Comcast Tells Staff to 'Do Better' After MSNBC Drops Matthew Dowd Over Charlie Kirk Coverage

The company frames the episode as a failure of respectful discourse requiring higher standards in breaking‑news commentary.

Overview

  • Executives Brian Roberts, Mike Cavanagh and Mark Lazarus issued a memo citing the contributor's removal and urging employees to maintain respectful debate, writing, "We need to do better."
  • MSNBC confirmed Thursday that analyst Matthew Dowd is no longer with the network after on‑air comments during initial reports of the shooting; Dowd and network president Rebecca Kutler each issued public apologies.
  • Dowd had called Kirk a divisive figure and linked rhetoric to violent actions, and he also speculated the shooter might have been a supporter celebrating, remarks that drew immediate backlash.
  • Repercussions have spread beyond MSNBC, with suspensions and firings at multiple organizations over posts or comments about the killing, including a Florida reporter and university staffers in Mississippi and Tennessee, according to AP reporting.
  • Law‑enforcement developments continued, with officials announcing the arrest of 22‑year‑old Tyler Robinson in connection with the assassination, as reported Friday.