Joe Rogan fires back after 'lying' claims on Charlie Kirk killing, calls it 'dumb memory moment'

WASHINGTON, DC: Podcast giant Joe Rogan is pushing back after facing online backlash over a story he told about the killing of conservative activist Charlie Kirk - a story critics quickly flagged as inconsistent with what had actually happened.

What began as a passing anecdote on his show that premiered on Thursday, April 2, has now turned into a viral moment, with Rogan forced to publicly explain himself.

Joe Rogan responds after viral clip sparks accusations

The controversy stemmed from a recent episode of 'The Joe Rogan Experience', where Rogan, during a long-form conversation with comedian Theo Von, recalled how he first heard about Kirk’s killing.

In that version, Rogan suggested he was out elk hunting when the news broke - a detail that didn’t sit right with some listeners.

Social media users quickly dug up older footage and pointed out that Rogan had actually learned about the incident live on-air during a previous podcast episode.

One user stitched the clips together and bluntly accused him: “What a weird thing to lie about.”

Rogan didn’t ignore the criticism. Instead, he responded directly and firmly rejected the idea that he had fabricated anything.

“Honestly, I just remembered it wrong,” Rogan wrote, addressing the confusion head-on. 

He clarified that the elk hunting memory was tied to a different controversy altogether.

“I was elk hunting when Jimmy Kimmel was getting people angry at him for joking about the killing and blaming it on MAGA,” he clarified.

Making his position clear, Rogan added: “I would never ‘lie’ about that. I just had a dumb memory moment.”

Joe Rogan's shocking reaction to Charlie Kirk's death

Clips from an earlier episode of Rogan’s podcast show a very different and far more immediate reaction to the shocking news of Kirk’s death.

During that broadcast, Rogan was joined by actor Charlie Sheen when the information came in live.

“So this just happened, we just found out that Charlie Kirk got shot,” Rogan said during the episode, reacting in real time.

The moment was visibly raw and unprocessed. Sheen responded by calling the situation “awful,” while Rogan struggled to fully grasp what was unfolding.

“You think when something happens in the current, like right now with this one with Charlie Kirk, it doesn’t seem real,” Rogan said.

“It seems like it’s gonna take a long time before we reference this as something that happened,” he added.