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** Social Media Reacts to Charlie Kirk's Death
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Charlie Kirk, the founder of the conservative youth political group Turning Point USA and an ally of President Donald Trump, was speaking at Utah Valley University in Orem, Utah, on Sept. 10 when he was shot and killed. He was 31 years old.

After the shooting, social media claims offering political views of the assassination and the reaction to it quickly spread. Readers have asked us about several of the messages, including one post that claimed: “I would like it to be noted that every Democrat on Twitter,” including California Gov. Gavin Newsom, “is condemning the shooting of Charlie Kirk but not a single Republican condemned the assassination of Melissa Hortman.” The claim about Republicans is false.

As Assignment Editor Alan Jaffe and Director Lori Robertson write, many Republicans, including Trump, condemned the June 14 killing of Hortman, a Democrat and a Minnesota House of Representatives speaker emerita, and her husband, Mark. Democratic state Sen. John Hoffman and his wife, Yvette, were also shot but survived an assault by the same man, who was posing as a police officer and was captured with a list of politicians he intended to target, all of them Democrats, authorities said.

The entire Minnesota congressional delegation, including Republican House Majority Whip Tom Emmer, joined in a statement expressing “outrage, grief, and condemnation” of the attack. The Republican leaders of the state Legislature praised Hortman’s accomplishments and condemned the violence.

Trump also said in a statement, “Such horrific violence will not be tolerated in the United States of America.” Trump declined to call Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, a Democrat, to express his condolences, ABC News reported, though Vice President JD Vance did speak with the governor.

Lawmakers of both parties have been targeted in a spate of violent acts in recent years, including the assassination attempt against Trump in Pennsylvania last summer and an arson attack at the home of Democratic Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro earlier this year.

For more, see our full story: “After Kirk’s Death, a False Social Media Post on Partisan Reaction to Violence ([link removed])
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HOW WE KNOW
After a large study provided reassurance that aluminum-containing vaccines are not associated with increased rates of chronic health conditions in children, including autism, Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. called for the journal to “immediately retract this badly flawed study.” The journal defended the study, calling it "among the strongest research currently available” on the subject. Experts told us Kennedy was misrepresenting the study. Read more: "RFK Jr. Cherry-Picks and Misuses Data on Aluminum-Containing Vaccines ([link removed]) ."

FEATURED FACTS
A study ([link removed]) by the Igarapé Institute, an independent Brazilian think tank, listed cities of 250,000 inhabitants or more by highest homicide rates in 2023. Chicago was not among its ranking of the 50 cities in the world with the highest rates. The list did include U.S. cities (by highest ranking): Memphis (number 21 in world ranking); New Orleans (25); St. Louis (30); Baltimore (36); Cleveland (37); Detroit (48); and Washington, D.C. (50). The top 10 international cities are in Ecuador, South Africa, Brazil and Mexico. Read more: "Adding Context to Trump’s Misleading Claims About Crime in Chicago ([link removed]) ."
SOCIAL MEDIA POST OF THE WEEK

In a Sept. 4 congressional hearing, HHS Secretary Kennedy misleadingly claimed that “anybody” can still get a COVID-19 vaccine this fall. HHS policies have created roadblocks to vaccine access.

As we explain in this social media video, the Food and Drug Administration approved COVID-19 vaccines for the upcoming season but limited approval to those 65 years old and over or those who have at least one underlying health condition. That means that many people may need to get a prescription to get a vaccine and, in some places, may not be able to get vaccinated at a pharmacy. Read more: "COVID Vaccines Are Harder to Get, Despite Claims from HHS, RFK Jr ([link removed]) ."

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** Wrapping Up
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Y lo que publicamos en español ([link removed]) (English versions are accessible in each story):
* Contexto para las afirmaciones engañosas de Trump sobre la delincuencia en Chicago ([link removed])
El feriado del Día del Trabajo se convirtió en un fin de semana violento en la ciudad de Chicago, con más de 50 personas baleadas y nueve asesinadas entre el 29 de agosto y el 2 de septiembre. A pesar de estas sombrías estadísticas, el presidente Donald Trump se equivocó cuando dijo en Truth Social el 2 de septiembre: “¡CHICAGO ES LA CAPITAL MUNDIAL DEL ASESINATO!”
* RFK Jr. elige y hace mal uso de datos sobre vacunas que contienen aluminio ([link removed])
Un amplio estudio danés confirmó recientemente que las vacunas con aluminio no están asociadas con un aumento en las tasas de enfermedades crónicas infantiles, incluido el autismo. Sin embargo, el secretario de Salud y Servicios Humanos, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., tergiversó las conclusiones del estudio, afirmando que los datos complementarios del artículo “muestran pruebas calamitosas de daños”.

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