Shouts of 'he should be shot' heard during GOP midterm convention speech criticizing Democratic candidates
After being named in Cruz’s speech, El-Sayed condemned the calls for violence and described their effect on his family.
SOURCE CHECK
TAP FOR WHYCredibility rates Yahoo News, which republished this story. The other scores rate the article itself.
The article is credited to a CNN reporter and shows signs of original reporting through attributed interviews, requests for comment and contextual reporting. Yahoo News is the host publisher, so this assessment principally reflects the reporting credited to CNN.
- Source type — The article is hosted by Yahoo News and credited to CNN, an established national news organization.
- Author attribution — A named reporter and CNN affiliation are provided.
- Editorial standards — The report distinguishes what was audible from what remains unknown, including whether Cruz heard the shouts.
- Transparency — It attributes statements and discloses that requests for comment had not received an immediate response.
The report includes named sources, direct quotations, attempts to obtain comment and context for the candidates’ past remarks. It is reasonably precise about what the broadcast captured and what is unknown, though Cruz and the RNC did not provide comment in the account.
HOW WE SCORE ↗The article presents Cruz’s remarks and criticism of the candidates, as well as condemnation of the shouts from El-Sayed and Rogers’s spokesperson. It also notes that representatives for Cruz and the RNC did not immediately respond, leaving their perspective unavailable in the report.
- Counterarguments presented — The article includes responses condemning the shouts and context for the statements Cruz criticized.
- Source diversity — The report draws on statements from candidates, political organizations and officials, plus prior reporting.
- Omitted context — Cruz and RNC representatives had not responded by publication, so their perspective on the shouts is absent.
- Loaded language — The article relies mainly on attributed language rather than using loaded descriptions in its own voice.
The article reports the shouts, Cruz’s criticism and responses from people who condemned the remarks without adopting a clear partisan position. Its language is largely descriptive and attributes contested claims to their speakers.
- Language tone — The report uses mostly descriptive language and attributes claims and quotations.
- Source selection — It includes Cruz’s speech, El-Sayed’s response and statements from Rogers’s spokesperson and other political figures.
- Framing — The story centers on the audible calls for violence and provides context without overtly endorsing a partisan interpretation.
Republished with credit
Republished from CNN, with credit to the original publisher.
31 stories · 84–86 · updated Oct 1, 2026
This is CNN's own score, and this article is credited to CNN. The host score in the Source Check is Yahoo News's.
At a Republican midterm convention, shouts calling for violence followed Sen. Ted Cruz’s criticism of Democratic candidates. Abdul El-Sayed condemned the remarks, while a spokesperson for Republican candidate Mike Rogers also denounced them.
During his convention speech, Ted Cruz criticized Zohran Mamdani, Abdul El-Sayed and James Talarico, and shouts of “He should be shot!” were audible after each name. It was unclear whether Cruz heard the shouts; representatives for Cruz and the Republican National Committee did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
El-Sayed said the calls to violence should be condemned. A spokesperson for Mike Rogers, who is running against El-Sayed, also condemned them. The article placed the incident amid Republicans’ statements about political violence on the anniversary of Charlie Kirk’s killing, and reported Cruz’s criticisms of the candidates alongside responses and context about their past remarks.
Community verdict
12 VOTES
People in this story
SWIPE →Michigan Senate candidate targeted by Cruz’s criticism who condemned the shouts.
Texas senator whose convention speech criticized Democratic candidates as shouts calling for violence were audible.
Cruz's version of this story ↗
Texas Senate candidate criticized by Cruz during the speech.
Michigan representative who called the shouts clear hate.
President whose assassination attempts Cruz mentioned in his speech.
Republican Senate candidate opposing El-Sayed; the article describes a Senate race, unlike the Alabama House office in the roster entry.
Vice president who gave a convention speech reflecting on Charlie Kirk’s killing.
Massachusetts representative who condemned the shouts in a social media post.
Part of a bigger story
3 OUTLETSAt a Republican midterm convention, shouts calling for violence followed Ted Cruz’s criticism of Democratic candidates, including Abdul El-Sayed, who condemned the remarks. Center outlets treat the shouts as calls for violence and emphasize condemnations, including El-Sayed’s; Newsweek adds that it was unclear whether Cruz heard the shout and includes reactions from Debbie Dingell and a professor.
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- OUTLETS
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- AVG CRED
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