--- title: Reddit and Twitch CEOs Called to Testify on Radicalization description: CEOs of Discord, Steam, Twitch, and Reddit were invited to testify in Congress about online radicalization following Charlie Kirk's killing. canonical: https://time.com/7318082/tyler-robinson-reddit-twitch-charlie-kirk/ author: Connor Greene article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2025-09-17T20:27:42.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-03-11T00:17:04.547Z article:section: Politics og:title: Reddit and Twitch CEOs Called to Testify on Radicalization og:description: Tech CEOs were invited to testify in Congress about online radicalization following Charlie Kirk's killing. og:url: https://time.com/7318082/tyler-robinson-reddit-twitch-charlie-kirk/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt939fe77890b40197/6998c9d4e2d64b69d0c5fae6/GettyImages-2235267332.jpg?branch=production&width=2400&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 675 og:image:alt: Charlie Kirk Shooting Suspect Tyler Robinson Arraigned In Utah Court og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Reddit and Twitch CEOs Called to Testify on Radicalization twitter:description: Tech CEOs were invited to testify in Congress about online radicalization following Charlie Kirk's killing. twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt939fe77890b40197/6998c9d4e2d64b69d0c5fae6/GettyImages-2235267332.jpg?branch=production&width=2400&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # CEOs of Reddit and Twitch Called to Testify to Congress on Radicalization in Wake of Charlie Kirk Killing by [Connor Greene](https://time.com/author/connor-greene/) ## Connor Greene Editorial Fellow Sep 17, 2025 8:27 PM UTC  In this handout video screen grab provided by the Utah State Courts, Tyler James Robinson attends a virtual court hearing from Utah County Jail on September 16, 2025 in Spanish Fork, Utah. In this handout video screen grab provided by the Utah State Courts, Tyler James Robinson attends a virtual court hearing from Utah County Jail on September 16, 2025 in Spanish Fork, Utah.Utah State Courts via Getty Images by [Connor Greene](https://time.com/author/connor-greene/) ## Connor Greene Editorial Fellow Sep 17, 2025 8:27 PM UTC The CEOs of several major online social platforms have been invited to testify before Congress about the potential for radicalization on online forums following the killing of [conservative commentator Charlie Kirk.](https://time.com/7316280/charlie-kirk-dead-political-violence/) James Comer, chairman of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, invited the heads of Discord, Steam, Twitch, and Reddit to testify after authorities [revealed](https://www.pbs.org/newshour/nation/utah-gov-cox-shares-more-details-from-investigation-into-motive-of-kirk-shooting-suspect) that Tyler Robinson, the 22-year-old suspected of killing Kirk, was said to have been influenced by the “dark corners of the internet.” The oversight committee said it would examine the “radicalization of online forum users, including instances of open incitement to commit politically motivated acts,” on specific platforms, according to a congressional press [release](https://oversight.house.gov/release/chairman-comer-invites-ceos-of-discord-steam-twitch-and-reddit-to-testify-on-radicalization-of-online-forum-users/). **Read More:** [_The Killing of Charlie Kirk and the Political Violence Haunting America_](https://time.com/7316280/charlie-kirk-dead-political-violence/) “The politically motivated assassination of Charlie Kirk claimed the life of a husband, father, and American patriot. In the wake of this tragedy, and amid other acts of politically motivated violence, Congress has a duty to oversee the online platforms that radicals have used to advance political violence,” said Rep. Comer, a Republican from Kentucky. The FBI is currently investigating the involvement of “a lot more” than 20 users who participated in a Discord chat with Robinson before Kirk’s shooting, according to FBI Director Kash Patel, who spoke in front of the Senate Judiciary Committee on Tuesday. Utah Governor Spencer Cox said over the weekend that Robinson’s friends had told investigators that he was involved in “dark places” of the internet and “Reddit culture,” which was indicated by obscure messages inscribed on bullet casings recovered by authorities. Robinson, it was revealed in texts to his partner, inscribed those messages on the casings as one “big meme.” The messages contained references to online gamer culture that only a select audience would have understood. One read: “Hey fascist! CATCH! (up arrow symbol, right arrow symbol, and three down arrow symbols)”. Those words were likely a reference to a sequence of moves on a controller that unleashes a powerful bomb and accompanying phrase in a third-person shooter video game called Helldivers 2\. The phrase has morphed into a meme that is commonly used on message boards to signal an end to a conversation. Robinson appears to have been a frequent user of Discord, an instant messaging app and social platform popular with gamers and content creators. Messages said to be from Robinson show him admitting to killing Kirk on a Discord chat, according to a source who showed messages to the Washington Post. “Hey guys, I have bad news for you all,” a user in the chat that was allegedly Robinson said, according to the Post. “It was me at UVU yesterday. im sorry for all of this.” The most revealing messages about Robinson’s motive were in a text exchange between him and his partner, where investigators said he [confessed to the crime](https://time.com/7317634/tyler-robinson-death-penalty-charlie-kirk-charges-murder/) and said that he had “had enough of his hatred,” in reference to Kirk. “Some hate can't be negotiated out," Robinson texted his partner, prosecutors announced on Tuesday. Deputy Director of the FBI Dan Bongino said that Robinson had an “obsession” with Kirk based on his digital footprint and said the shooting was “clearly” an “ideologically motivated attack” in an interview on Fox on Monday. Discord, which was originally intended for gamers, has been [documented](https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2023/12/12/discord-app-extremism/) to have bred extremist rhetoric in the past. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/7318082/tyler-robinson-reddit-twitch-charlie-kirk/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/7318082/tyler-robinson-reddit-twitch-charlie-kirk/"},"headline":"CEOs of Reddit and Twitch Called to Testify to Congress on Radicalization in Wake of Charlie Kirk Killing","datePublished":"2025-09-17T20:27:42.000Z","dateModified":"2026-03-11T00:17:04.547Z","description":"CEOs of Discord, Steam, Twitch, and Reddit were invited to testify in Congress about online radicalization following Charlie Kirk's killing.","url":"https://time.com/7318082/tyler-robinson-reddit-twitch-charlie-kirk/","keywords":["Crime","News Desk"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt939fe77890b40197/6998c9d4e2d64b69d0c5fae6/GettyImages-2235267332.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Connor Greene","jobTitle":"Editorial Fellow","url":"https://time.com/author/connor-greene/"}],"articleSection":"Politics","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt939fe77890b40197/6998c9d4e2d64b69d0c5fae6/GettyImages-2235267332.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Charlie Kirk Shooting Suspect Tyler Robinson Arraigned In Utah Court","caption":"Charlie Kirk Shooting Suspect Tyler Robinson Arraigned In Utah Court","creditText":"Utah State Courts via Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/politics/","name":"Politics"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/crime/","name":"Crime"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/7318082/tyler-robinson-reddit-twitch-charlie-kirk/","name":"CEOs of Reddit and Twitch Called to Testify to Congress on Radicalization in Wake of Charlie Kirk Killing"}}]}] ```