Cultural struggle – false joke about the murder of Charlie Kirk

In times of the new cultural struggles for political hegemony, satire is a suspended field. Waves of excitement over false or correct punches spill through social media almost daily. Individual gags swirl in storms of enthusiasm or rejection.

In the current case, the main author of the brand new DC comic series “Red Hood”, Gretchen Felker-Martin, caught it. In response to the murder of the American right-wing extremist Charlie Kirk, she published a message on a short message service that cost her. She explained that her thoughts and prayers of the “Nazi Bitch” would apply and added: “I hope the ball is okay after she touched Charlie Kirk”.

The DC-Comic publishing house immediately responded to the author’s public statements and stopped the “Red Hood” series. Because comments “which can be seen as promoting hostility or violence violate the behavioral standards of DC”. The shops already supplied should receive a complete refund, not only for the remaining stocks, but also for copies that have already been sold. It was supposed to appear monthly, the first issue was only delivered on Wednesday, the day when Charlie Kirk had been killed by a previously unknown assassin.

“Red Hood”, drawn by Jeff Spokes and texted by Felker-Martin, is a spin-off from the Batman universe, which was very well received by critics because it spiced up the somewhat dusty world of the time-honored Batman again. It was actually advertised with the saying: »Out of Gotham City. Not out of bullets «(out of Gotham City, but not without balls).

It was only in July that the German satirist El Hotzo was acquired from the accusation of approval of the assassination attempt on Donald Trump in July 2024 during an election campaign event. At that time, El Hotzo asked the question of what “the last bus” and Trump had in common on a short message service. Answer: “Unfortunately just missed”. Furthermore, the 29-year-old commented that he finds it “absolutely fantastic”, “when fascists die”. His then client, the Bundfunk Berlin-Brandenburg, immediately ended the cooperation.

In the past, the author Gretchen Felker-Martin has often noticed aggressive statements. So she claimed that “Zionism was a full-fledged National Socialism” and made the world-famous writer JK Rowling die in her very successful science fiction novel “Manhunt” (2022). Both led to larger waves of arousal, but not to have the order for “Red Hood” had been withdrawn. That made her wrong joke at first.