'Do we believe him?' Robert F Kennedy Jr trolled after blaming social media manager for flirty comment on model's TikTok

The controversial comment, a simple 'wow' accompanied by two smiling heart emojis, was posted by Kennedy's account in September 2022 on video
PUBLISHED FEB 2, 2024
Robert Kennedy, Tyler Idol (Getty Images, Instagram/oftyidol)
Robert Kennedy, Tyler Idol (Getty Images, Instagram/oftyidol)

BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS: Independent presidential candidate Robert F Kennedy Jr found himself engulfed in a social media storm on Thursday, February 1, as his campaign's TikTok account faced intense scrutiny over a resurfaced comment on an OnlyFans model's video.

Kennedy took to X, the platform formerly known as Twitter, to address the issue, stating, “The TikTok comment in question was made in 2022 long before I ever had a TikTok account. This comment now appears on my account because the account was previously owned by one of the campaign’s young social media managers.”



 

A simple 'Wow' turned heads

The controversial comment, a simple 'Wow' accompanied by two smiling heart emojis, was posted by Kennedy in September 2022 on a video featuring Tyler Idol, a popular OnlyFans performer. The video is said to have depicted Idol twerking on a cake in skimpy black shorts.

The incident, though not on the scale of historical political scandals, provided an opportunity for both Joe Biden and Donald Trump to poke fun at the longshot presidential hopeful, potentially turning him into the butt of late-night TV jokes.

However, the Kennedy campaign moved swiftly to mitigate the backlash, pointing fingers at a young campaign aide identified as social media manager Rijoun Murphy, 33, from Georgia. The campaign clarified that Murphy's account, previously owning the TikTok handle, was transferred to Kennedy's to broadcast his presidential announcement in April 2023, per Radar Online.

"When Mr. Kennedy announced his run for the presidency in April of 2023 the team wanted it broadcasted on every social media platform, including TikTok," Stefanie Spear, a spokeswoman for Kennedy, explained. "However, TikTok does not allow live streaming for accounts that have less than 1,000 followers."

Therefore, Murphy's account, with over 1,000 followers, was repurposed for the campaign, inadvertently transferring all previous personal comments, including the infamous one to Tyler Idol, to Kennedy's account.

"The social media manager decided to transfer his account which had more than 1,000 followers to Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. in order to stream Kennedy's announcement on TikTok," said Spear.


 
 
 
 
 
View this post on Instagram
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

A post shared by Tyler Idol (@oftyidol)


 

In an attempt to defuse the situation, the campaign reached out to TikTok for assistance. A campaign aide named 'Amaryllis' detailed the confusion surrounding the comment, initially assuming it was photoshopped.

Amaryllis stated, "Given that other social media platforms do not allow users to change their name without documentation of name change, we were confused about what was going on."

However, she subsequently answered her own question.

"Rijoun concluded that since RFK had not previously had an account, he would have no followers on Day One and therefore decided that he would repurpose his own account, which had just over 1,000 followers, to be sure he could complete his task. In the rush of his preparation, it never occurred to him that any previous comments he had made would then be attributed to RFK," Amaryllis explained.

Social media reactions

Despite RFK Jr's explanation, many on social media trolled him for the TikTok comment.

"Oh Yea! Gotta be the social media person. Mr. Kennedy," one posted on X.

"Do we believe him?" another wondered.

"He’s tarnishing the Kennedy family name!" someone else added. 



 



 



 

In the midst of this, Tyler Idol continues her regular postings to her 701,300 followers, maintaining her provocative content on the platform and promoting her OnlyFans account for paying subscribers.

MORE STORIES

Trump posted a scathing montage, accusing Democrats of shutting down the government to please their 'radical left' base
17 hours ago
John Kennedy is calling out Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer over the tough spot he’s in amid government shutdown
18 hours ago
Top officials in the Trump administration discussed invoking the Insurrection Act, which allows the president to deploy military forces on US soil
23 hours ago
Gavin Newsom rejected the bipartisan bill, calling it too costly and warning it could disrupt how California determines firefighter pay
1 day ago
The vote comes as California’s education agencies face a US Department of Justice lawsuit over alleged Title IX violations in girls’ sports
1 day ago
Donald Trump took aim at Sen Richard Blumenthal after his tense face-off with Attorney General Pam Bondi during a congressional hearing
1 day ago
Dick Durbin pressed Pam Bondi to justify sending troops to Illinois, accusing the Justice Department of hiding key information from the public
2 days ago
The comedian dubbed Chuck Schumer 'Hack-ie Mason', and then went on a rant against Democratic leadership in general
2 days ago
Trump promised America’s men and women in uniform that their pay is safe despite the government shutdown
3 days ago
The stipend is part of measures taken by the Trump administration to reduce illegal immigrants in US
5 days ago