The Medal of Freedom ceremony for Charlie Kirk drew millions of viewers nationwide.
But one major network stood completely alone.
And MSNBC made one disgusting move during Charlie Kirk’s Medal of Freedom ceremony that left conservatives fuming.
MSNBC stands alone as only network refusing to air Kirk ceremony
President Trump posthumously awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom to conservative icon Charlie Kirk in an emotional Rose Garden ceremony.¹
The honor came on what would have been Kirk’s 32nd birthday, just over a month after the Turning Point USA founder was assassinated while speaking at Utah Valley University on September 10.²
CNN, Fox News, ABC News, NBC News, NewsNation, Newsmax, One America News, and Right Side Broadcasting Network all carried the ceremony live.³
https://twitter.com/MargoMartin47/status/1978200500035047809
MSNBC didn’t.
Instead, the left-wing network aired a segment attacking Trump’s tariffs while Americans across the political spectrum paid their respects to a young conservative leader gunned down for his beliefs.⁴
The backlash was swift and brutal.
"In a pathetic, biased tantrum, MSNBC—the propaganda arm of the radical left—stands alone as the ONLY network boycotting President Trump’s heroic Medal of Freedom ceremony for Charlie Kirk, proving once again they’re too cowardly to cover real American patriotism," Republican commentator Eric Deters wrote on social media.⁵
Conservative voices flooded social media with condemnation, calling MSNBC’s decision "disgusting" and pointing out that even CNN – no friend of Trump or conservatives – found it appropriate to broadcast the ceremony honoring an assassinated American.⁶
Trump honors Kirk’s legacy with nation’s highest civilian honor
The ceremony showcased the profound impact Kirk had on American conservatism and the younger generation he inspired.
"We’re here to honor and remember a fearless warrior for liberty, beloved leader who galvanized the next generation like nobody I’ve ever seen before," Trump said during the ceremony.⁷
The President called Kirk "an American patriot of the deepest conviction, the finest quality and the highest caliber — the late, great Charlie Kirk."⁸
Kirk’s widow Erika accepted the medal on her husband’s behalf, delivering emotional remarks about his faith, his dedication to freedom, and his commitment to inspiring young Americans.⁹
She was joined by Vice President JD Vance and House Speaker Mike Johnson, who both spoke in remembrance of the conservative activist.¹⁰
Trump had rushed back to Washington, D.C. from the Middle East after brokering a historic ceasefire between Israel and Hamas to ensure he could present the award on Kirk’s birthday.¹¹
The President admitted he briefly considered asking Erika Kirk to reschedule but quickly decided "I would not have missed this moment for anything in the world, nothing."¹²
MSNBC’s long history of hostility toward conservatives
MSNBC’s refusal to air the ceremony fits a well-established pattern of bias against conservative Americans and President Trump.
The network has positioned itself as the propaganda wing of the Democrat Party for years, with former Biden press secretary Jen Psaki hosting her own show and former Kamala Harris aide Symone Sanders-Townsend co-hosting a weekend program.¹³
During Trump’s first administration, MSNBC repeatedly made editorial decisions to ignore or minimize coverage of presidential events they disagreed with politically.
When Trump held daily coronavirus briefings in 2020, the network frequently cut away before health officials like Dr. Anthony Fauci and Dr. Deborah Birx could speak, denying viewers critical public health information because they didn’t want to air Trump.¹⁴
Former Democratic National Committee Chairman Howard Dean even called for guests to boycott MSNBC if the network continued airing Trump’s pandemic briefings, demanding the network actively censor the President of the United States during a national health emergency.¹⁵
The network’s coverage of Trump has been overwhelmingly negative, with hosts and contributors regularly attacking the President, his policies, and his supporters.¹⁶
According to media watchdog groups, MSNBC is one of the most biased news outlets in America, with nearly half of its audience identifying as consistently liberal.¹⁷
The contrast that exposed MSNBC’s true priorities
The decision to skip Kirk’s ceremony while every other major network covered it live exposed something critical about MSNBC’s values.
Even CNN – which has spent years attacking Trump and conservatives – recognized that honoring a young American assassinated for his political beliefs transcended partisan politics.
The ceremony wasn’t about Trump’s policies or political debates.
It was about remembering Charlie Kirk, a husband and father of two who built one of the most influential conservative organizations in America from nothing.
Kirk founded Turning Point USA as a college student and grew it into a powerhouse that played a crucial role in Trump’s 2024 victory by mobilizing young voters across the country.¹⁸
The organization’s campus activism and voter registration efforts helped deliver record turnout among young men, particularly in battleground states.¹⁹
Kirk was speaking to students at Utah Valley University – doing exactly what he’d done hundreds of times before – when he was murdered by 22-year-old Tyler Robinson.²⁰
Prosecutors charged Robinson with seven criminal counts: aggravated murder, felony discharge of a firearm causing serious bodily injury, two counts of obstruction of justice, two counts of witness tampering, and commission of a violent offense in the presence of a child.²¹
For MSNBC to look at that situation and decide their viewers shouldn’t even have the option to watch the ceremony honoring Kirk’s life and legacy speaks volumes.
The network chose tariff coverage over acknowledging the assassination of a prominent conservative voice.
That’s not journalism – that’s activism masquerading as news coverage.
Conservatives noticed the pattern and they’re not staying quiet about it.
Social media erupted with calls for boycotts and demands that viewers recognize MSNBC for what it really is: a propaganda outlet that can’t even bring itself to honor an American murdered for his political beliefs.
The contrast between MSNBC and every other network made it impossible to ignore where the real bias lives in American media.
¹ "Trump posthumously awards Charlie Kirk the Presidential Medal of Freedom a month after his killing," NBC News, October 14, 2025.
² Ibid.
³ "’Disgusting’: MSNBC Receives Backlash For Being the Only Major News Network Not to Air Charlie Kirk Medal of Freedom Ceremony," Mediaite via Yahoo News, October 14, 2025.
⁴ Ibid.
⁵ Ibid.
⁶ Ibid.
⁷ Ibid.
⁸ Ibid.
⁹ "Trump awards posthumous Presidential Medal of Freedom to Charlie Kirk," CNN Politics, October 14, 2025.
¹⁰ "’Disgusting’: MSNBC Receives Backlash For Being the Only Major News Network Not to Air Charlie Kirk Medal of Freedom Ceremony," Mediaite via Yahoo News, October 14, 2025.
¹¹ "Trump awards Charlie Kirk the Medal of Freedom on what would have been his 32nd birthday," Fox News Digital, October 14, 2025.
¹² "Trump posthumously awards Charlie Kirk the Presidential Medal of Freedom," ABC News, October 14, 2025.
¹³ "In hyperpartisan environment, MSNBC drawing fire for anti-Trump, pro-Harris programming," Fox News, September 24, 2024.
¹⁴ "Howard Dean calls for guests to boycott MSNBC over Trump briefings," The Hill, April 7, 2020.
¹⁵ Ibid.
¹⁶ "In hyperpartisan environment, MSNBC drawing fire for anti-Trump, pro-Harris programming," Fox News, September 24, 2024.
¹⁷ "MSNBC – Bias and Credibility," Media Bias/Fact Check, December 6, 2024.
¹⁸ "Trump posthumously awards Charlie Kirk the Presidential Medal of Freedom a month after his killing," NBC News, October 14, 2025.
¹⁹ Ibid.
²⁰ "’Pathetic, Biased Tantrum’: MSNBC Stands Alone Refusing To Air Charlie Kirk Medal Of Freedom Ceremony," The Daily Caller, October 14, 2025.
²¹ Ibid.
