Dave Portnoy sharply criticized what he described as "insane" rhetoric on the American left following the fatal shooting of conservative activist Charlie Kirk, while saying former president Donald Trump's polarizing profile "played a part" in the violence.
Portnoy, founder and president of Barstool Sports, spoke about the Utah shooting during an appearance on the Barstool podcast The Unnamed Show, saying he did not place direct blame on Trump but argued that the former president's divisiveness helped fuel hostile political discourse.
Kirk, 31, was shot while hosting a question-and-answer event with students at Utah Valley University in Orem on Wednesday and later died at a hospital. Graphic footage of the shooting circulated online, and law enforcement officials said the shooter remained at large as the FBI and Utah police conducted a manhunt. Authorities initially detained two people but later clarified that the suspected gunman had not been captured.
On the podcast, Portnoy called the left's rhetoric "insane" and said it "boils" into violence. He said Americans repeatedly labeling opponents as "Nazis" or "fascists" can create a mindset in which violence is rationalized. "If you truly think you're killing a Nazi, or you truly think you're killing a fascist, in your head you're thinking 'I did good for society,'" Portnoy said.
Portnoy also addressed Trump's role in shaping the political climate. "When I say Trump has a huge part in it, I don't necessarily mean he's to blame for it, but he's so divisive [that] his face is divisive. People hate him so much," Portnoy said. He pointed to the momentary calls to "tone down the rhetoric" after an assassination attempt on Trump last year, saying the calls were short-lived.
Charlie Kirk, a conservative commentator and founder of the nonprofit Turning Point USA, was a visible figure in right-leaning media and a vocal supporter of Trump. Kirk leaves behind his wife, Erika Frantzve, and two young children: a three-year-old daughter and a 16-month-old son. The couple had celebrated their fourth wedding anniversary in May.
President Trump, who survived a separate shooting at a 2024 campaign rally, posted on his social media platform Truth Social on Wednesday that "The Great, and even Legendary, Charlie Kirk, is dead." In the post, Trump expressed condolences to Kirk's family and called him deeply admired by "ALL, especially me."
The shooting has intensified conversations about political rhetoric, violence and public safety at events where public figures and influencers speak. Law enforcement agencies urged anyone with information to come forward as they continued their search for the alleged shooter.
Portnoy's comments, delivered on a program with a large, politically attentive audience, add to a broader cultural debate over how media, personalities and political leaders influence public discourse. Analysts and commentators from across the spectrum have for years debated the impact of heated rhetoric on real-world violence, and the Kirk killing has prompted renewed calls for restraint from some quarters and critiques of political rhetoric from others.
Investigators have not publicly identified a motive, and police statements stressed that the investigation was ongoing. As the manhunt continued, Kirk's death prompted statements of grief and condemnation from political figures and media personalities across the ideological spectrum, underscoring the event's national reverberations.
Portnoy, who rose to prominence as a sports and culture commentator and expanded into political commentary, has a history of provocative statements and has frequently spoken about the interplay between media, politics and public reaction. His assessment that both left-wing rhetoric and Trump's polarizing profile contributed to an atmosphere that can enable violence reflects a view shared by some commentators, while others have disputed the causal link between public rhetoric and criminal acts.
Authorities asked the public to avoid spreading unverified footage or speculation that could hinder the investigation. The FBI said it was coordinating with local law enforcement to locate the suspect, and Utah officials said they would release additional information as it became available.