Ex-ESPN host reveals the 'real problem' in US after getting 'vicious' messages following Charlie Kirk's death

Sportscaster Samantha Ponder discusses Charlie Kirk’s assassination and how his faith inspired Americans on ‘Saturday in America.’

Former ESPN host Samantha Ponder opened up on the "vicious" messages she received on social media after she mourned the loss of Charlie Kirk following his assassination.

Ponder appeared on Fox News Channel’s "Saturday in America" and recalled to Kayleigh McEnany that she reshared a video of Kirk and his family on social media and thought nothing of it.

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Then-ESPN reporter Samantha Ponder watches her husband, Minnesota Vikings quarterback Christian Ponder (not pictured) at training camp at Blakeslee Fields, July 27, 2025. (Bruce Kluckhohn/USA TODAY Sports)

"The strange thing is I didn’t really say much. I reposted a video of his family just because I thought it was so relatable to see because he’s a dad. You forget when you watch people on TV sometimes that this is just a dad who is a husband and has these little kids," she said. "So, I reposted a video of their family on vacation and I immediately lost thousands of followers – and who cares? This is not about me. 

"But it was more about seeing what’s going on in our country right now and I got just vicious messages, which any of us who have worked in TV get all the time. I’m used to that. But it was in response to something that I thought we could all agree on – man, it’s sad when someone’s murdered. I thought that was just something the general public could agree on."

Ponder was concerned about what people are seeing on different sides of social media as every person’s algorithm is different. She contrasted what she was seeing about Kirk and his family versus the messages she received.

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