Right-Wing Rhetoric Incites Assassinations
False Assumption: Rhetoric from conservatives like Sarah Palin and the Tea Party motivates shootings of Democrats.
Written by FARAgent on February 10, 2026
In the early 1960s, media figures began linking political violence to right-wing rhetoric. After John F. Kennedy's assassination in Dallas in 1963, NBC anchors Chet Huntley and David Brinkley pointed to the city's conservative atmosphere as fostering a "climate of hate." They suggested this environment had incited the shooting. Five years later, following Robert F. Kennedy's murder in 1968, some outlets portrayed the assassin, Sirhan Sirhan, as fitting a right-wing profile, though he was a Palestinian nationalist motivated by Middle East politics. This narrative gained traction, helping fuel the rise of left-leaning activism amid the era's social upheavals.
The assumption resurfaced in 2011, after the Tucson shooting that wounded Democratic congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords. New York Times columnist Paul Krugman and others blamed Sarah Palin's electoral map, which used crosshairs over districts, along with Tea Party activism and Arizona's immigration debates. They argued such rhetoric had motivated the gunman, Jared Loughner. Media outlets amplified the claim, tying it to broader conservative incitement against Democrats.
Growing evidence now suggests this view is flawed. Investigations revealed Loughner acted from personal delusions, not political rhetoric; Lee Harvey Oswald was a Marxist defector, not a right-winger; and Sirhan's motives centered on anti-Zionism. Critics increasingly recognize the pattern as overstated, though the debate persists in discussions of media bias and political violence.
Status: Growing recognition that this assumption was false, but not yet mainstream
People Involved
- In January 2011, after the shooting of Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords in Tucson, Paul Krugman, a columnist for the New York Times, pointed to right-wing rhetoric as the cause. He believed in good faith that figures like Sarah Palin had incited the violence. [1]
- Decades earlier, in November 1963, NBC anchors Chet Huntley and David Brinkley attributed President Kennedy's assassination to a 'climate of hate' in conservative Dallas. They promoted this view sincerely, linking local politics to the crime. [2] Media figures also mishandled the 1968 assassination of Robert Kennedy, portraying the killer as a right-wing archetype when he was in fact a Palestinian terrorist angered by Kennedy's support for Israel. [2]
▶ Supporting Quotes (3)
“the way so many New York Times writers, such as Paul Krugman, did in January 2011”— Charlie Kirk's Assassin
“JFK’s assassination was initially blamed on a “Climate of Hate” in conservative Dallas by NBC news anchors Huntley & Brinkley.”— Lone Gunmen vs. Mob Violence
“when RFK was assassinated by a Palestinian terrorist in 1968, virtually nobody got the story right.”— Lone Gunmen vs. Mob Violence
Organizations Involved
The New York Times rushed to blame conservative rhetoric for the Giffords shooting in 2011, publishing pieces that tied Sarah Palin's campaign imagery to the attack. This stance amplified the assumption across its readership.
[1] NBC played a similar role after Kennedy's death in 1963, broadcasting reports that pinned the blame on Dallas's conservative environment. The network's coverage helped embed the idea of a right-wing 'climate of hate' in the public mind.
[2]▶ Supporting Quotes (2)
“If you are the New York Times, you can get away with memoryholing your embarrassing behavior.”— Charlie Kirk's Assassin
“JFK’s assassination was initially blamed on a “Climate of Hate” in conservative Dallas by NBC news anchors Huntley & Brinkley.”— Lone Gunmen vs. Mob Violence
The Foundation
The assumption gained traction after the 2011 Giffords shooting, with media outlets citing Sarah Palin's map featuring crosshairs over Democratic districts, Tea Party protests, Arizona's immigration laws, and hints of anti-Semitism. These elements appeared to connect conservative speech to real violence amid heated partisan divides.
[1] Growing evidence suggests this link was flawed, as the shooter's motives proved unrelated to politics.
[1] Earlier, in 1963, reports focused on Dallas's right-leaning culture as fostering a 'climate of hate' that led to Kennedy's murder. This narrative seemed plausible at the time and spawned broader beliefs about conservative rhetoric inspiring assassinations.
[2] Increasingly, such foundations are seen as overstated, ignoring the idiosyncratic nature of the perpetrators.
[2]▶ Supporting Quotes (2)
“the shooter was motivated by Sarah Palin, the Tea Party, Arizona’s Republican governor’s attempts to crack down on illegal immigration, anti-Semitism, and whatever else they were against.”— Charlie Kirk's Assassin
“Lots of people blamed JFK's assassination on the "climate of hate" among conservative Texans.”— Lone Gunmen vs. Mob Violence
How It Spread
Mainstream media outlets propelled the assumption forward in 2011, publishing articles that directly faulted conservatives for the Giffords attack within hours of the event. This rapid coverage shaped public opinion before full details emerged.
[1] Television networks like NBC contributed similarly in 1963, airing immediate segments on the supposed 'climate of hate' in Dallas following Kennedy's assassination. Such broadcasts spread the idea widely and influenced subsequent discussions.
[2]▶ Supporting Quotes (2)
“The mainstream media immediately jumped to the conclusion”— Charlie Kirk's Assassin
“JFK’s assassination was initially blamed on a “Climate of Hate” in conservative Dallas by NBC news anchors Huntley & Brinkley.”— Lone Gunmen vs. Mob Violence
Harm Caused
Media organizations faced embarrassment when the true facts about the Giffords shooter came to light in 2011, damaging their credibility and prompting them to downplay their initial errors.
[1] The broader misperception from the 1960s, rooted in the Kennedy assassination coverage, helped fuel the rise of leftism in American culture during that decade.
[2] Growing evidence suggests these assumptions caused unnecessary division, though the full impact remains debated.
[1][2]▶ Supporting Quotes (2)
“you can get away with memoryholing your embarrassing behavior.”— Charlie Kirk's Assassin
“Much of the rise of leftism in America in the 1960s was influenced by misperceptions like that.”— Lone Gunmen vs. Mob Violence
Downfall
By mid-2011, investigations revealed the Giffords shooter as a deranged individual with a personal obsession against her, unrelated to conservative politics. This disclosure increasingly exposed the assumption of right-wing incitement as flawed.
[1] Efforts to extract political lessons from lone gunmen, like the assassin of President Kennedy in 1963, later appeared misguided as patterns failed to hold.
[2] The 1968 killing of Robert Kennedy further highlighted media shortcomings, when the perpetrator's Palestinian terrorist motives contradicted the right-wing narrative.
[2] Growing evidence suggests these events undermined the assumption, though recognition of its flaws is not yet universal.
▶ Supporting Quotes (3)
“But the shooter quickly turned out to be a complete lunatic who had some crazy personal grudge against Rep. Giffords.”— Charlie Kirk's Assassin
“horrifying as lone gunmen are, quick attempts to draw broader lessons from them often go awry, as happened during the 1960s.”— Lone Gunmen vs. Mob Violence
“when RFK was assassinated by a Palestinian terrorist in 1968, virtually nobody got the story right.”— Lone Gunmen vs. Mob Violence