After a gunman killed 19 children and two teachers in Uvalde, Texas, Fox News hosted network employee Katie Pavlich, who deflected blame from gun manufacturers and claimed that “the pro-gun control lobby” should be scrutinized instead. Fox News featured Pavlich without disclosing that she literally works for a gun manufacturer and is scheduled to promote their guns at the upcoming NRA meeting in Houston, Texas.
Pavlich is a host of the Fox News program Outnumbered and frequently appears on the network’s “news”-side programs, including Special Report with Bret Baier. She also is the news editor for the right-wing site Townhall.com, which heavily features pro-gun content.
She appeared on the May 25 edition of America’s Newsroom, where she took issue with President Joe Biden’s address criticizing the gun lobby in the wake of the Uvalde mass shooting. Pavlich claimed: “He blamed the gun lobby. I would say there is an argument to be made that the pro-gun control lobby also should be looked at in the sense there has been a concerted effort over the last two or three years to take armed officers out of schools.” She also went on to state that there are organizations "willing and able to train teachers to be ready for an emergency response and to issue deterrents and be on offense rather than on defense in these situations.”
At no point during the segment did Pavlich or co-anchor Bill Hemmer disclose that Pavlich works for a gun manufacturer.
Volquartsen Firearms is a manufacturer that claims to engineer “the world's finest rimfire rifles, pistols, and parts.” The company describes Pavlich as an “ambassador,” and she told the NRA in 2017 that “being able to be part of the Volquartsen brand has been such an honor and so much fun. They’re a family-owned business from Iowa and you can tell they take pride in the firearms they build.”
Pavlich’s ties to the gun manufacturer include:
- The company’s Facebook page features posts of her using its firearms.
- Pavlich has made multiple promotional posts for the company on her Instagram page.
- Pavlich has repeatedly filmed video promotions for the company.
- Pavlich even wrote an article for the company's 2022 retail catalog.
Pavlich is scheduled to appear at Volquartsen’s booth at the NRA’s annual meeting this weekend in Houston, Texas. She has done similar appearances in prior years.