ABC has pulled Jimmy Kimmel off the air “indefinitely” over his comments about Charlie Kirk’s killing.
The decision follows comments Kimmel made on Monday’s show.
“We had some new lows over the weekend with the MAGA gang desperately trying to characterize this kid who murdered Charlie Kirk as anything other than one of them,” Kimmel said.
Kimmel hosts “Jimmy Kimmel Live!,” which premiered in 2003. Until this suspension, he was the longest-serving late-night host currently on the air. He’s hosted the Primetime Emmy and Academy Awards multiple times.
ABC’s decision came after increasing pressure from both the Federal Communications Commission and a prominent company that owns ABC affiliate stations, Nexstar.
FCC chair Brendan Carr publicly condemned Kimmel’s comments, calling them “the sickest conduct possible.” In an interview with YouTuber Benny Johnson, Carr also warned that affiliate licenses could come under review, and that broadcasters are required to operate “in the public interest.”
Nexstar subsequently issued a statement saying it would pull Kimmel from the ABC stations it owned, citing his Kirk comments.
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“I want to thank Nexstar for doing the right thing,” Carr said in a statement to Business Insider after the news that ABC had pulled the show. “Local broadcasters have an obligation to serve the public interest. While this may be an unprecedented decision, it is important for broadcasters to push back on Disney programming that they determine falls short of community values. I hope that other broadcasters follow Nexstar’s lead. “
Some context: Nexstar is seeking FCC approval for its $6.2 billion mega deal to acquire TEGNA, which would come with 13 ABC stations and make Nexstar by far the country’s biggest local TV station owner. The FCC would have to raise the 40% ownership cap to let the deal advance.
The suspension of Kimmel’s show is the latest example of a company taking action against an employee in connection with comments about Kirk. In this case, the comments concerned the alleged killer.
The move falls squarely in the latest twist of the culture wars. Voices on the right have decried certain reactions to Kirk’s killing as heartless and horrifying, and others have said such contentions themselves are a form of suppression of speech. Meanwhile, defenders of such comments say people on the right who once criticized cancel culture are practicing it.
It also comes after controversy around the cancellation of Stephen Colbert’s late-night show in July. At the time, CBS executives said the move was “purely a financial decision against a challenging backdrop in late night.” Some lawmakers raised concerns that the cancellation could have had a political motivation, noting Colbert had just called out CBS’s parent, Paramount, for settling Trump’s lawsuit over “60 Minutes” for $16 million. Paramount won the FCC’s approval to merge with Skydance later that month.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates.
