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Mullin draws backlash over reporter violence ‘joke’
A: Main, news
April 16, 2025
Mullin draws backlash over reporter violence ‘joke’
By KATRINA CRUMBACHER GAYLORD NEWS

Oklahoma Sen. Markwayne Mullin received pushback Wednesday after “joking” that violence could solve “fake news” in a video posted on X late last week.

Freedom of Information Oklahoma’s Executive Director Kurt Gwartney called the whole matter “disheartening.”

“When political leaders joke about violence against those they disagree with or dislike, they demean their elected roles in American public life and the people they represent,” Gwartney said in a statement.

Founded in 1990, FOI Oklahoma is a statewide organization dedicated to supporting individuals and organizations trying to obtain access to open records or open meetings that have been “illegally closed,” according to its website.

The video, which made national headlines this week, opened with Mullin telling a story about a reporter who shot and killed a congressman-turned-lobbyist in 1890.

However, as the story came to an end, it took a dark turn.

“Now, there’s a lot we could say about reporters and the stories they write,” Mullin said, “but I bet they would write a lot less false stories — as President Trump says, ‘fake news’ — if we could still handle our differences that way.”

Across the United States in 2024, journalists were assaulted 80 times, according to the U.S. Press Freedom Tracker. Of the 1,100 incidents of assault that have been reported since the organization started keeping track in 2017, three happened in Oklahoma.

“Each assault can be viewed as an attack on First Amendment freedoms,” Gwartney wrote. “Using violence against journalists is an established chapter in the anti-democratic playbook used by politicians across the globe and here at home.”

FOI Oklahoma was not the first to air grievances about Mullins’s comments.

On Sunday, The Oklahoman published a news article about Mullin’s remarks, and a couple of hours later, Mullin responded on X, calling the newspaper “out of touch with Oklahoma.” The Oklahoman followed with an editorial on Monday, saying Mullin is “out of touch with the dignity of his office and the volatile environment our country currently finds itself in.”

“In a time when Mullin could have gone before the cameras to help alleviate all the fears that consume Oklahomans in these uncertain times — worry about their Social Security benefits, whether their Medicaid insurance will be cut, among others — he chose to talk about the potential benefits of harming journalists,” The Oklahoman editorial board wrote.

The editorial contrasted Mullin’s remarks with the Oklahoma Standard and the upcoming 30-year anniversary of the Oklahoma City bombing on April 19.

“Markwayne Mullin’s response to an argument is violence,” The Oklahoman wrote. “But thousands of Oklahomans, including survivors, families, friends and others affected by the bombing responded to an unspeakable horror 30 years ago with dignity, grace and kindness.”

On Tuesday in another post on X, Mullin again responded to “the few reporters pretending to be upset about this video.”

“If you watched… it was a *reporter* who shot a congressman in 1890. You don’t see me crying,” Mullin wrote. “Take a joke and quit trying to find a reason to be offended. Focus on your low readership and declining relevance.”

According to Gwarteny, violence isn’t something public officials should joke about.

“Expressions of violence in our political system are something you don’t joke about or expect from a member of the U.S. Senate unless you’re willfully ignorant of civics and history,” Gwartney wrote.

Gaylord News is a reporting project of the University of Oklahoma Gaylord College of Journalism and Mass Communication. For more stories by Gaylord News go to GaylordNews.net.

Eufaula Memorial Library
A: Main, news
Eufaula Memorial Library
July 2, 2025
A llama and a youngster got acquainted at a petting zoo at the Eufaula Memorial Library Wednesday, June 25. Dozens of kids and adults enjoyed the llama, goats, donkey and other animals, provided by Ma...
A: Main, news
Eufaula hosting July 4 Celebration
July 2, 2025
Mayor James Hickman and the City of Eufaula are honored to invite residents and visitors to the annual Fourth of July Fireworks Celebration on Friday, July 4. The fireworks will begin shortly after su...
A legacy lives on
A: Main, news
A legacy lives on
By LaDonna Rhodes Staff Writer 
July 2, 2025
Selby Minner’s Celebration of Life on Saturday at the Checotah Performing Arts Center was a beautiful 3-hour-long tribute to an amazing soul who loved the blues and more importantly, loved people. As ...
Lightning strike kills Eufaula woman in cemetery
A: Main, news
Lightning strike kills Eufaula woman in cemetery
By JERRY FINK MANAGING EDITOR 
July 2, 2025
A 57-year-old Eufaula woman was killed by lightning during a routine stroll through a cemetery Friday evening. Joy Ann Rogers was walking through Greenwood cemetery shortly before 7 p.m. when a thunde...
A: Main, news
Native American Arts & Crafts show Saturday
July 2, 2025
Eufaula Indian Community will host an Arts and Crafts show and sale Saturday, July 5 at the IEC Center, 800 Birkes Road, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. In addition to this event, a chair volleyball tournament...
Olivia Shackelford honored with 2025 Youth Prevention Award
news
Olivia Shackelford honored with 2025 Youth Prevention Award
July 2, 2025
On June 5, local student Olivia Shackelford of Eufaula was recognized as the recipient of the prestigious 2025 Youth Prevention Award in Oklahoma City at the Heartland Conference. This past week Olivi...
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Family, friends and fans bid farewell to Blues legend
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Family, friends and fans bid farewell to Blues legend
By LENORE BECHTEL 
July 2, 2025
Her casket rested below center stage at the Checotah Performing Arts Center, open for friends, fans, and family to view her precious body before her life’s celebration began. No one lingered long. Tha...
Another busy week in the district
commentary
Another busy week in the district
By REP. TIM TURNER 
July 2, 2025
I started last Saturday June 21, bright and early at Stigler Reunion Days. I kicked things off at the Haskell County GOP Tent, answering questions and catching up with friends and supporters. Then I h...
Killing them with kindness
commentary
Killing them with kindness
July 2, 2025
What a month it’s been for me personally and in our close-knit communities. Trying to cope with the loss of loved ones has been extremely difficult and downright demanding. Yet having to come to terms...
‘Big Beautiful Bill’ overhauled in Senate, would cause even more government borrowing
commentary
‘Big Beautiful Bill’ overhauled in Senate, would cause even more government borrowing
By JOE DORMAN OICA CEO 
July 2, 2025
OKLAHOMA CITY – Over the past month, I have highlighted portions of the federal “Big Beautiful Bill” as passed by the U.S. House of Representatives. Currently, the bill is under consideration by the U...
Hays Supports MOHA Executive Order
commentary
Hays Supports MOHA Executive Order
July 2, 2025
OKLAHOMA CITY – Rep. Neil Hays, R-Muskogee, today expressed strong support for Gov. Kevin Stitt’s new “Make Oklahoma Healthy Again” (MOHA) executive order, which targets artificial food additives and ...
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