Estimated read time: 3-4 minutes
- Conservative commentator Glenn Beck revealed plans to have Charlie Kirk succeed him in his role in media.
- Kirk, assassinated in Utah on Sept. 10, was praised by Beck for his dedication.
- Beck later clarified he wasn't retiring soon, saying on his radio show on Friday he had recently signed contract extensions.
GRAND FORKS, N.D. — Conservative commentator Glenn Beck said on Thursday he had hoped to be replaced on air by Charlie Kirk, the conservative activist and co-founder of Turning Point USA who was assassinated in Utah on Sept. 10.
Beck spoke to around 2,500 people at a Turning Point USA event at the University of North Dakota, where he had originally been scheduled to join Kirk as part of his "American Comeback" campus tour.
About halfway through his remarks, Beck shared that he had been planning significant changes for his life starting next year. He did not specify what those were, but he said he envisioned Kirk taking his place.
"I was grooming Charlie to replace me," Beck said. "Charlie was replacing me next year. He didn't know that because I wanted to say it to him as a surprise."
"I've watched you. You've surpassed me. You have worked so hard, you've done everything you're supposed to do. I haven't seen anyone like you," Beck continued. "I will turn my radio, my internet, whatever you need over to you because you deserve it."
Over the past two decades, Beck has built the fourth-largest radio talk show audience in America of around 8.75 million, according to Talkers magazine.
The former CNN and Fox News personality also co-founded Blaze Media, with a subscription TV product, BlazeTV, boasting around half a million paid users as of 2020.
Beck used a segment of his radio show on Friday morning to clarify that he wasn't announcing his retirement at the Turning Point USA event.
Beck noted he had just signed an extension to his contract, and said that his comments from the night before "came out all wrong."
"What I was trying to say was I was going to say to Charlie ... 'You deserve any way I can help you. I will mentor you," Beck said. "When I retire in 10 years — I'm never going to retire — but if I retire in 10 years, here are the keys. Take it. You deserve it."
A Blaze Media article published on Friday, however, reflected Beck's earlier statement, saying that Beck had indicated "he was readying to turn his radio slot over to Kirk."
In his Turning Point USA speech, Beck chose not to focus on politics. He shared nine principles he believed would help Kirk's young fans understand "who you are" as "a divine daughter and son of God."
Beck, a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, invited his audience to "question everything" so that God could lead them to truth.
Beck joked that he was led to become a member of the one church he had sworn he would never join because it teaches adherents not to drink coffee, swear or watch R-rated movies.
"God wants you to find Him. He wants you to find him. He is your Father," Beck said.
Beck encouraged his audience of mostly college students to seek their true identity as children of God, to choose their thoughts and who they serve carefully, to prioritize forgiveness, hard work, faith and gratitude.
Beck ended by calling on his listeners to spend less time online and more time in a real community where they are able to help meet the needs of others.
"Serve because that's the only thing that matters," Beck said. "That's how we change the world, one person at a time."
