ABC News reporter Matt Gutman apologizes for sympathetic Charlie Kirk assassin coverage

ABC News correspondent Matt Gutman issued a groveling apology Wednesday after coming under fire for his bizarre take on text messages sent by Charlie Kirk’s alleged killer, Tyler Robinson, and his transgender partner.

The network’s chief national correspondent said he now “deeply” regrets the way he breathlessly described the suspected assassin’s deranged texts as “intimate” and “very touching.”

“Yesterday I tried to underscore the jarring contrast between this cold-blooded assassination of Charlie Kirk — a man who dedicated his life to public dialogue- – and the personal, disturbing texts read aloud by the Utah County Attorney at the press conference,” Gutman said in his apology on social media.

“I deeply regret that my words did not make that clear,” he claimed.

“But let there be zero doubt here: I unequivocally condemn this horrific crime and the pain it caused Charlie Kirk’s family, those who were forced to witness it at UVU, and the millions of people he inspired,” Gutman continued.

His apology got short shrift from many conservatives.

“You were not trying to draw a contrast between Charlie’s assassination & ‘disturbing’ texts by Robinson — you were rather claiming the contrast was between Kirk’s assassination & ‘so touching’ & ‘very touching’ texts by Robinson who was ‘speaking so lovingly about his partner,’” one X user wrote.

“I don’t see an apology here. I see ‘sorry if you were too stupid to understand me and were offended.’ Shame on you. Shame. Shame. Shame,” wrote a second.

“Matt Gutman has still not been fired and should be fired,” a third added.

ABC News did not respond immediately to requests for comment.

Gutman, a 47-year-old Emmy-winning journalist, was reporting live on Tuesday’s press conference when he gave a sympathetic portrayal of Robinson’s confessional texts, sent hours after he allegedly shot and killed the conservative influencer Kirk on Sept. 10.

Stay up to date on the shooting of conservative activist Charlie Kirk

“A very intimate portrait into this relationship between the suspect’s roommate and the suspect himself, with him repeatedly calling his roommate, who is transitioning, calling him ‘my love.’ And ‘I want to protect you, my love,” Gutman said in his apparently glowing analysis.

“So, it was this duality of someone who the attorney said not only jeopardized the life of Charlie Kirk and the crowd, but was doing it in front of children, which is one of the aggravating circumstances of this case,” he added.

“And then, on the other hand, he was, you know, speaking so lovingly about his partner. So a very interesting, riveting press conference,” he told the host, later appearing to double down on his tone-deaf interpretation of the messages in an ABC livestream platform.

“I don’t think I ever experienced a press conference in which we’ve read text messages that are a) so fulsome, so robust, so apparently allegedly self-incriminating and yet, on the other hand, so touching, right?” Gutman said solemnly.