Republican presidential candidate Ben Carson is telling students at a Christian college in Virginia that they must be on guard for “propaganda” as they mull their votes in 2016.

A day after the fourth GOP primary debate, Carson told about 12,000 people at Liberty University on Wednesday that “many in the media want to bring me down, because I represent something that they can’t stand.”

Carson’s appearance at Liberty comes after a week of reports questioning various parts of the personal narrative that has helped propel Carson to the forefront of the Republican primary field.

He asked students to pray for “wisdom” for his family and “for the eyes of the nation to be opened to what’s going on.”

Evangelical Christians are a key part of Carson’s support.

(AP)