Las Vegas Radio: Lotus Broadcasting Fires Producer Over Kirk Comments

Lotus Broadcasting, the parent company of FOX Sports KKGK 1340 AM, has announced the termination of a radio producer named Bobby Machado following backlash over his social media posts regarding the fatal shooting of conservative activist Charlie Kirk. 

Machado, who worked as a behind-the-scenes producer for shows like "JT the Brick" on FOX Sports Las Vegas and contributed to Vegas Golden Knights (NHL) radio broadcasts on the station, posted expletive-laden comments on X (formerly Twitter) shortly after news of Kirk's death broke. His account has since been deleted, but screenshots circulated widely, capturing phrases such as "Good f—ing riddance," "He’s a human piece of sht," "fck him all the way to hell," and suggestions that President Trump should "just suck [Kirk's] dead dck." 

Machado also wrote, "karma is a motherfcker," seemingly celebrating the assassination.

Bobby Machado

These posts quickly drew outrage from listeners, conservative social media users, and corporate partners, including the Vegas Golden Knights, whose games Machado helped produce. The backlash amplified online, with users tagging the station and Lotus, demanding accountability. This incident is part of a broader wave of firings across the sports and media industries in response to similar posts celebrating or mocking Kirk's death, highlighting tensions over political expression in professional settings.

Lotus Communications initially placed Machado on leave on September 11, 2025, while investigating the posts, as announced via the FOX Sports Las Vegas X account: "While we respect personal beliefs, we do not tolerate hate or discrimination. The individual is on leave. These views do not reflect Lotus Stations or our partners. We apologize sincerely."

By the evening of September 12, 2025, Lotus issued a full statement confirming his immediate termination: "We are deeply disturbed by a hateful and despicable social media post made by a now-former employee in Las Vegas regarding the tragic assassination of Charlie Kirk. This post was made independently on the individual’s social media account and in no way reflects the views or values of Lotus Communications, our stations, our employees or our valued partners. We do not and will never condone this kind of rhetoric. The individual was terminated immediately and is no longer an employee of our company. We extend our sincere apologies for his horrible and offensive words."

The company emphasized that Machado's views were personal and not representative of the organization.