Utah Governor Spencer Cox warned that America’s adversaries were trying to encourage violence by spreading disinformation online in the wake of the killing of conservative commentator Charlie Kirk, and he appealed to the public to reject those efforts.

Why It Matters

Kirk, one of America’s most prominent conservative commentators and a close political ally of President Donald Trump, was shot and killed at a speaking engagement at Utah Valley University on Wednesday.

The murder, while condemned by leaders on both sides of the U.S. political divide, has exposed deep divisions between supporters of both the left and the right, and some commentators have warned of the possibility of spiraling violence.

Social media posts can amplify extreme voices, with views that would previously have been marginal now finding a wider audience.

What To Know

Cox, speaking at a press conference in Utah to update the media on progress in the hunt for Kirk’s killer, said he wanted to add a note for “those people who are spending so much time on social media.”

Citing Kirk, Cox said: “When things get bad, we should put our phones down and spend a little time with our families.

“There is a tremendous amount of disinformation we are tracking,” Cox said. “What we’re seeing is our adversaries want violence.”

“We have bots from Russia, China, all over the world, that are trying to instill misinformation and encourage violence. I would encourage you to ignore those, to turn off those streams,” he said.

He did not elaborate but said more information would be released later.

Governments and actors within countries have always tried to influence public opinion in other counties, especially their rivals, and social media has provided a whole new area of opportunity for such efforts.

U.S. intelligence assessments have in the past revealed Russian, Chinese and Iranian interference in U.S. politics, with cyber actors from all three countries involved.

All of those countries consistently deny any such interference in U.S. elections and political affairs.

What People Are Saying

Juliette Kayyem, a professor at Harvard Kennedy School who served as a homeland security official during the Obama administration, told CNN, referring to the shooter: “We don’t know who the guy is, we don’t know what his motivation is. There are allegations about various groups and identities and sexual identities that are just not true and that’s where the Chinese and Russians fill the space with confirming these narratives that pit Americans against each other.”

What Happens Next

Law enforcement agencies are continuing to search for the shooter behind the attack on Kirk.