ABC will renew Jimmy Kimmel’s late-night program after the network pulled the host off the air forever in the wake of criticism over his remarks about the killing of conservative activist Charlie Kirk previously this month.
The network stated executives had “thoughtful conversations with Jimmy” and “reached the decision to return the show on Tuesday.”
Kimmel’s remarks did not thoroughly concentrate on Kirk, who was a close ally of President Donald Trump, however took objective at Trump and what Kimmel called his “MAGA Gang” of advocates for their reaction to the Sept. 10 killing.
2 of ABC’s biggest affiliate owners, Nexstar and Sinclair, stated they will not bring Kimmel’s return on their stations, which represent about 25% of all affiliates. They had actually stopped airing “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” in response to Kimmel’s monologue before ABC suspended the program.
Sinclair stated it will run news shows because time slot while it continues conversations with ABC and assesses the program’s “potential return.” Nexstar stated it is looking for “assurances that all parties are committed to fostering an environment of respectful, constructive dialogue in the markets we serve.”
“Disney and ABC caving and allowing Kimmel back on the air is not surprising, but it’s their mistake to make. Nexstar and Sinclair do not have to make the same choice,” Andrew Kolvert, a representative for Kirk’s company, Turning Point USA, stated in a post on X.
Kimmel, whose agreement with The Walt Disney Co.-owned network ends in May 2026, did not right away discuss his suspension or reinstatement.
Here’s what we understand:
Why was Kimmel’s program suspended and after that restored? ABC did not discuss why on Wednesday it forever suspended “Jimmy Kimmel Live!,” which the network has actually aired considering that 2003. Nexstar and Sinclair mentioned “problematic comments regarding the murder of Charlie Kirk.”
On Monday, The Walt Disney Co., which owns ABC, provided more of a description: “We made the decision to suspend production on the show to avoid further inflaming a tense situation at an emotional moment for our country. It is a decision we made because we felt some of the comments were ill-timed and thus insensitive.”
Federal Communications Commission Chairman Brendan Carr called Kimmel’s remarks “truly sick” and had actually cautioned that the network and its regional affiliates might deal with effects if Kimmel was not penalized. On Monday, Carr rejected that he threatened to withdraw ABC’s regional station licenses over Kimmel’s remarks.
In putting Kimmel back on air, The Walt Disney Co. stated “we have spent the last days having thoughtful conversations with Jimmy, and after those conversations, we reached the decision to return the show on Tuesday.”
What did Kimmel state after Kirk’s death? Kimmel called Kirk’s death a “senseless murder” a day after the deadly Utah shooting, and he condemned those who appeared to commemorate it – along with Trump for attempting to cast blame on the “radical left.”
He likewise spoke about the after-effects throughout his program the following week, targeting the action from both Trump and the president’s fans, whom he implicated of “working very hard to capitalize on the murder of Charlie Kirk.”
The comic concentrated especially on the male implicated of the killing, Tyler Robinson.
“The MAGA Gang (is) desperately trying to characterize this kid who murdered Charlie Kirk as anything other than one of them and doing everything they can to score political points from it,” Kimmel stated in his monologue last Monday. “In between the finger-pointing, there was grieving.”
Kimmel stated Trump’s reaction “is not how an adult grieves the murder of someone he called a friend. This is how a 4-year-old mourns a goldfish, OK?” He likewise stated that FBI chief Kash Patel has actually managed the examination into the killing “like a kid who didn’t read the book, BSing his way through an oral report.”
On Tuesday night, Kimmel buffooned Vice President JD Vance’s efficiency as visitor host for Kirk’s podcast.
How did Trump react to the suspension? Kimmel’s suspension came along with broader efforts by Trump and other conservatives to cops speech after Kirk’s killing. It likewise marks the Trump administration’s most current effort to affect the U.S. media landscape.
In a post on his Truth Social platform after Kimmel’s suspension, Trump praised ABC for “finally having the courage to do what had to be done” and declared that Kimmel “has ZERO talent” – concentrating on what he stated were bad rankings, while berating other names in late-night television.
How have others reacted? Kimmel’s suspension drew both condemnation and appreciation.
Former President Barack Obama composed in a social networks post Thursday that the present administration had actually reached a “new and dangerous level by routinely threatening regulatory action against media companies unless they muzzle or fire reporters and commentators it doesn’t like” – which media business required to withstand the “government coercion” instead of capitulate to it.
Conservative podcaster Megyn Kelly, a previous Fox News and NBC character, preserved that Kimmel’s idea that Kirk’s killer might have been a Trump fan was a “vile, disgusting lie.”
Others revealed shock and issue over what the relocation implied free of charge speech, consisting of star Jean Smart. “What Jimmy said was FREE speech, not hate speech. People seem to only want to protect free speech when it suits THEIR agenda,” Smart composed on social networks, keeping in mind that she was still “sickened” by Kirk’s death.
Congressional Democrats later on revealed an expense focused on strengthening totally free speech securities versus federal government authorities. While it’s not likely to acquire traction in a Republican-controlled Congress, the relocation echoed sharp criticism over Kimmel’s suspension. Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer likewise required Carr’s shooting.
