A student television network at the University of Delaware, which houses the Biden Institute, offered "SPECIAL THANKS" to "CHARLIE KIRK'S KILLER" at the end of a comedy program, then quickly and quietly removed the joke from the episode.
The credits for last week’s episode of the Biweekly Show, a student comedy program produced under the university’s supervision, included a "special thanks" section with entries like "COCAINE," "AMNESTY WEEK," "VIOLENCE"—and "CHARLIE KIRK'S KILLER."
Delaware Republican Party executive director Nick Miles told the Washington Free Beacon the video was uploaded to YouTube the evening of Sept. 25 and replaced with a version that omitted the credits the following afternoon. The episode does, however, still include another dark jab at Kirk, who was assassinated on Sept. 10 while speaking at a Utah college.
"More like ‘Charlie Twerk’ the way that ass dropped," the show’s host, Reed Stoltz said. Student actors playing President Donald Trump, Vice President JD Vance, a drunken Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, and two soldiers barge in, throwing him on a table and putting a sack over his head. A student portraying second lady Usha Vance joins and says, "Charlie’s body isn’t even cold yet, have some respect."
While the network, STN49, is student-run, it’s supervised by the University of Delaware’s Department of Communication. Adjunct faculty member Carlos Hervas serves as adviser and studio manager for the student network, according to the network’s bylaws.
It’s unclear whether Hervas or any students will face disciplinary action. A University of Delaware spokesman told the Free Beacon it "unequivocally condemns the deeply offensive and insensitive language that appeared in the rolling credits" of the broadcast. He said the student group removed the credits after a member of the station raised concerns "among student peers about offensive language" immediately after the episode was livestreamed.
"We want to state clearly that UD does not condone the use of any language that diminishes the value of human life. Respect and civility are core University values," the spokesman said. "UD remains committed to fostering opportunities for dialogue about civility and the responsibilities that come with free expression in a diverse and inclusive community."
While the Biweekly Show did not respond to a request for comment, a litany of people have been fired or otherwise punished for celebrating Kirk’s death.
Miles said thanking Tyler Robinson, Kirk’s alleged killer, was "disturbing and unacceptable."
"This program operates under faculty oversight, with taxpayer-funded resources, and carries the University’s stamp of approval," Miles wrote in a statement. "For something like this to make it on air is both disturbing and unacceptable."
The University of Delaware is home to the Biden Institute, a domestic policy think tank established in 2017 under the leadership of Valerie Biden Owens, the sister of former president Joe Biden, an alumnus.
In 2020, as Biden ran for president, the institute refused to provide the Free Beacon with records regarding its donors. Public universities are typically required to comply with open records laws since they receive taxpayer funding (the University of Delaware receives over $100 million), but the Biden Institute argued it’s privately funded.
But a 2023 Free Beacon review of U.S. Department of Education records found that since the Biden Institute opened in 2017, the University of Delaware had received millions in donations from foreign entities, including China, Saudi Arabia, Oman, and Turkey.
