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Kansas Republican Party Chairman Mike Brown issued a press release falsely identifying the University of Kansas instructor who was placed on leave Wednesday for making remarks endorsing political violence in a now-viral video.
Brown falsely accused a journalism professor of saying that men who don’t believe women are smart enough to be president of the United States should be lined up and “shot.” A KU spokesperson confirmed the instructor who made the inflammatory remark is actually Phillip Lowcock, a health sport and exercise lecturer who has worked at the university since 1993.
The Star is not publishing the name of the professor that Brown falsely accused in his press release, which was sent to all of the Kansas Republican Party’s email subscribers.
“This video is beyond disturbing and is exactly what’s wrong with education in America,” Brown said. “Radical professors like [the journalism professor] ―especially in a taxpayer-funded school of journalism―teaching vile and toxic hate to impressionable adults.”
The journalism professor did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the false accusations Wednesday afternoon.
After being notified of his error, Brown issued a second press release an hour later identifying Lowcock as the instructor featured in the viral video. The correction did not include an apology to the journalism professor, stating instead that he also “has a history of making vile and hateful comments against conservatives.”
The chairman did not respond to a request for comment on his error. Brown’s second press release goes on to rebuke Lowcock and call for the university to fire him.
“This deranged individual shows no remorse for his statements―only regret that it was recorded on camera. It should send a shiver down everyone’s spine if KU allows Phillip Lowcock to return to instructing students,” Brown added.
Lowcock has been placed on administrative leave pending the outcome of an investigation, the university said in a statement.
“The instructor offers his sincerest apologies and deeply regrets the situation,” the statement reads. “His intent was to emphasize his advocacy for women’s rights and equality, and he recognizes he did a very poor job of doing so. The university has an established process for situations like this and will follow that process.”
Lowcock did not respond to a request for comment. Asked whether he would be made available for an interview, a university spokesperson said he would not and reiterated that Lowcock expresses remorse for his statements.
Brown’s false accusations mirror those of three Missouri state senators who are facing federal lawsuits for sharing social media posts erroneously accusing a man of being a shooter at the Kansas City Chiefs Super Bowl parade shooting earlier this year.
All three Republican lawmakers are being represented in court by Republican Attorney General Andrew Bailey’s office, despite sharp criticism from lawmakers on both sides of the aisle over his decision to use state resources fighting the lawsuits.
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