A conservative commentator at station owned by the Sinclair Broadcast Group has resigned after facing backlash for a crude tweet he posted about a Parkland, Fla., student.
Jamie Allman — who hosted a nightly news show on a Sinclair-owned ABC affiliate in St. Louis and a morning FM radio show — posted a tweet last month in which he appeared to threaten to sexually assault David Hogg, according to The Washington Post.
“When we kick their ass they all like to claim we’re drunk. I’ve been hanging out getting ready to ram a hot poker up David Hogg’s ass tomorrow,” the tweet read, according to a screenshot posted by the St. Louis Post-Dispatch. “Busy working. Preparing.”
{mosads}The tweet sparked backlash and some advertisers said they would no longer sponsor Allman’s shows, according to the Post.
Ronn Torossian, chief executive of the PR firm 5W, who is acting as a Sinclair spokesman, said the company has “accepted Mr. Allman’s resignation, and his show has been canceled.”
Hogg has become a vocal advocate for gun control since a gunman opened fire at his high school in February, killing 17 people.
He helped to organize the “March for Our Lives” event last month in Washington, D.C., and nationwide to protest gun violence and has been warning lawmakers they will be voted out of office if they don’t take action on gun control.
Since becoming a national figure, Hogg has faced criticism from the right and been at the center of some conspiracy theories.
Fox News host Laura Ingraham faced backlash earlier this month and several companies stopped advertising during her show after she posted a tweet critical of Hogg, mocking him for college rejections.
Sinclair has also been facing controversy in recent days over an anti-“fake stories” promo the company mandated its anchors read on the air, which critics say smacked of authoritarianism.