Independent journalist Nick Shirley said that the death threats have poured in since his viral video exposed what appears to be rampant fraud in Minnesota daycares, particularly within the Somali community, and that even his little sister is fielding calls from journalists.

Shirley told “PBD Podcast” host Patrick Bet David that he’s been threatened on numerous occasions — and has even been warned that he would be “Kirked,” in an obvious reference to the assassinated Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk.

WATCH:

🚨NEW: @nickshirleyy says people telling him he’ll get “KIRKED” after viral Somali fraud video😡

“They’re saying, ‘You’re going to be Kirked … you’ll be the next Kirk.’ And it’s just like, are you kidding me?”@DailyCaller pic.twitter.com/CPF7KxRso8

— Jason Cohen 🇺🇸 (@JasonJournoDC) December 31, 2025

Shirley said that he’d received threats both “in person and online,” adding, “Like … Kirked. They’re saying, ‘You’re going to be Kirked … you’ll be the next Kirk.’ And it’s just like, are you kidding me?”

“It’s not even like — I hate what’s happening right now,” Shirley continued. “I feel bad for my family, honestly, because it’s like, we didn’t do anything wrong, and yet you guys are coming after me like I’m some sort of villain.”

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Shirley went on to explain that even his little sister was getting calls from journalists attempting to investigate him — and that members of his family had been doxxed by “some news in India.”

“It was really weird. And I haven’t even told my dad about that, because I just don’t even want to bother him about it,” Shirley added. “It’s just like, are you guys kidding me? Why are you guys coming after somebody for going against fraud? Like, I didn’t make this a right or left issue, I just showed you guys that fraud was happening, and now you guys are coming after me. You’re saying, you know, I’ll be the next Kirk, and you’re literally stopping at intersections and coming after me, trying to attack me. Why are you so evil? What’s wrong with you? Why are you defending fraud?”

Legacy media outlets have addressed Shirley’s reporting, primarily in an effort to downplay it or discredit his efforts as “amateur.”

POLITICO reporter Josh Gerstein suggested that “amateur” reporters knocking on doors at daycares would ultimately lead to a dangerous situation if the people inside were armed.

CNN correspondent Whitney Wild made a few phone calls to the daycare centers Shirley had visited, and reported that the person who answered the phone at the one center where she was able to get a response had told her that they were a legitimate business.

CNN’s effort to discredit Nick Shirley does not work out so well for them. pic.twitter.com/EsVdc0IKuq

— Big Fish (@BigFish3000) December 31, 2025

Tens of thousands of Iranians closed out 2025 on Wednesday with a fourth consecutive day of protests, as demonstrations sparked by the country’s collapsing economy escalated into open anti-regime unrest.

The protests, beginning in Tehran, have engulfed university campuses and led to merchants shutting down their stores to join in all over the country, The Guardian reported. Videos posted to social media show protesters chanting ‘Freedom” and “death to the dictator.”

Iran has faced economic turmoil this past year, with the Iranian rial reportedly dropping to 1.42 million to the dollar — a more than 56% loss in value over six months, resulting in soaring inflation and food prices up 72% compared to last year.

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In response, Iran appointed a new governor to the central bank, Abdolnasser Hemmati, a former economics minister. When the previous governor, Mohammad Reza Farzin, took office, the rial traded 430,000 to the dollar, reported the Associated Press. At the time of the 2015 nuclear agreement, the rial traded at 32,000 to the dollar.

Iranian government spokeswoman Fatemeh Mohajerani called the protests “a natural reaction to economic and livelihood pressure.”

“When people raise their voices it shows the high level of pressure they are under,” she added.

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said the protesters have “legitimate demands” and met with the heads of guilds, unions, chambers of commerce, and others, The New York Times reported.

The protests are the largest since the massive 2022 protests following the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini, who died after her arrest by the Iranian regime’s morality police for allegedly violating hijab rules. In the wake of her death, protests erupted with the slogan “Women, Life, Freedom,” until the regime brutally cracked down on demonstrators with mass arrests, lethal force, and executions.

The protests this week have also included chants of “Women, Life, Freedom.”

On Monday, during a meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, President Donald Trump said he would back more Israeli military strikes on Iran if Tehran continues to develop ballistic missiles or pursue nuclear capabilities.

“The missiles, yes. The nuclear, fast,” Trump said. “One would be yes, absolutely, the other was, we’ll do it immediately.” 

The president also noted that the Iranian people were expressing discontent as their country suffers from inflation, a “bust” economy, and the threat of violence or death when protesting.

“Every time they have a rioter or someone forms a group, little or big, they start shooting people. You know, they kill people,” Trump said. “They’re vicious, vicious people.”

Ali Shamkhani, a representative of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Republic of Iran, responded, claiming that “any aggression” will face a “harsh response that is immediate and beyond the imagination of its designers.”

“In Iran’s defense doctrine, some responses are determined before the threat reaches the execution stage,” he tweeted. “Missile and defensive Iran capabilities are neither containable nor in need of permission.”