Bluesky explodes with threats against Republican figures post Charlie Kirk's shooting; targets Trump, Elon Musk and more
Just hours after Charlie Kirk's shooting, threats against prominent Republicans emerged on Bluesky.
In the immediate aftermath of the fatal shooting of conservative activist Charlie Kirk at Utah Valley University on Wednesday, a wave of threatening posts surfaced on the social media platform Bluesky. These posts targeted prominent Republican figures and media personalities, as reported by The New York Post.
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Bluesky posters threaten Elon Musk, Trump and more
According to the screenshots shared by a social media user, in the hours following Kirk's death, some posters on Bluesky called for several prominent figures, including Tesla tycoon Elon Musk, conservative podcasters Ben Shapiro, Matt Walsh, and Michael Knowles, as well as Harry Potter author J.K. Rowling, naming them as potential “next."
Some brazen accounts went further, as one user wrote, “I hope they shoot Ben Shapiro next,” while another compared the violence to a game of “whack a mole”.
Shapir, who was mentioned in this post and is a close friend of Kirk, announced on Thursday on his podcast, The Ben Shapiro Show, that he will be going on a college tour in the wake of the 31-year-old's fatal shooting during an event at Utah Valley University, as reported by The New York Post.
Some users wished for another assassination of the president on Bluesky, as one wrote, “HEADED FOR TRUMP NEXT??? LET’S HOPE”
Also Read: Who is Tyler Robinson, Charlie Kirk shooting suspect identified after major manhunt?
Bluesky issues warning amid threat posters
On Thursday, Bluesky issued a warning against users, stating that posts celebrating the unfortunate killing of Kirk violated the platform's guidelines. Dozens of hateful comments and replies were taken down by the platform as of Thursday, as confirmed by The Post.
Bluesky, founded by former Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey and currently led by CEO Jay Graber, has grown rapidly since the 2024 election. It has positioned itself as an alternative to Elon Musk’s X (formerly Twitter). As of September 2025, the platform reports 1.5 million daily active users, according to data aggregated by the platform.
In response to the shooting of Kirk, major platforms, including Meta, Reddit, Discord, and YouTube, have also implemented content moderation measures to limit the spread of related violent or celebratory content.
