The indefinite suspension of Jimmy Kimmel’s late-night show has prompted impassioned calls for a boycott against Disney, ABC’s parent company, and other major media conglomerates that have refused to air Kimmel’s show.
Boycott calls grew after ABC announced it would indefinitely suspend the popular show following complaints from the Federal Communications Commission chair, Brendan Carr. Carr’s complaints stem from Kimmel’s recent monologue in which he addressed the killing of the rightwing activist Charlie Kirk by saying: “Many in Maga land are working very hard to capitalize on the murder of Charlie Kirk.”
Carr, who was appointed by Donald Trump earlier this year, said Kimmel’s comments were “truly sick” and that ABC had violated its “public interest” broadcast obligations. ABC’s suspension of the show also came after Nexstar Media, one of the US’s largest owners of TV stations, said it “strongly object[ed]” to Kimmel’s comments and would pre-empt, or halt, any of the show’s episodes set to air on its stations “for the foreseeable future”.
Meanwhile, the conservative TV conglomerate Sinclair announced it would run a tribute to Kirk during Kimmel’s time slot on Friday. It also called on Kimmel to issue a formal apology and make a personal donation to Kirk’s family and his rightwing political advocacy group, Turning Point USA.
Overnight, calls to boycott ABC and Disney emerged, with Nelini Stamp, organizing director of the pro-labor union political group Working Families Party, sharing a viral boycott resource guide online that says: “Jimmy Kimmel wasn’t suspended because of what he said. He was suspended because the FCC threatened his employer. That’s state-sanctioned censorship and it is a giant red flag … Authoritarianism isn’t coming, it’s already here. Today it’s Jimmy. Tomorrow it’s the rest of us.
Stamp added: “Nexstar Media Group and Sinclair Broadcast Group own the largest number of local ABC affiliates. These two companies are currently seeking approval from the FCC for business deals. In other words these media giants have every incentive to bend the knee to authoritarian pressure coming from the FCC and the administration to get their deals across the finish line. We’re done watching this unfold in silence … It’s time we speak in the only language they seem to respect – their money.”
The boyott guide urged the public to write to ABC, Nexstar and Sinclair with the following script: “I object to the cancellation of Jimmy Kimmel Live after pressure from the administration. This is censorship plain and simple and it’s not what American values stand for. We need leaders to protect freedom of speech, not punish it.”
In a statement to the Guardian, grassroots political advocacy group 50501, which shared Stamp’s boycott efforts, said: “The government is using absurd accusations of hate speech to silence comedians who offend the wannabe king.
“Now more than ever, all Americans need to stand up in protest against censorship and for the First Amendment. As such, 50501 is calling on all Americans to boycott Nexstar, Sinclair, and ABC-Disney.”
Boycott calls have also emerged on numerous Reddit threads as well as on X via the hashtag #BoycottDisney.
One user wrote on BlueSky: “Heard from a friend at Disney+ that there are multiple levels of freakout internally, both from internal dissatisfaction, concerns about subscription cancelations, and of course the big one: concern about a boycott spilling over into parks and cruises.”
On Wednesday, the CNN correspondent Brian Stelter wrote on X that he asked Carr if he had any new comments following Kimmel’s show suspension. “He sent me this gif,” Stelter said, alongside a gif from The Office, where two characters, Michael Scott and Dwight Schrute, are shown celebrating with their hands in the air.
The Guardian has contacted ABC, Disney, Nexstar, Sinclair and the FCC for comment.
Reacting to the news of Kimmel’s show suspension, Trump responded gleefully, saying: “Great News for America: The ratings challenged Jimmy Kimmel Show is CANCELLED. Congratulations to ABC for finally having the courage to do what had to be done.” He added that Kimmel had “worse ratings than even Colbert, if that’s possible”.
In July, Trump celebrated Paramount’s decision to cancel The Late Show With Stephen Colbert – the US’s highest rated late-night show – after Colbert also mocked Trump. Writing on TruthSocial, Trump said: “I hear Jimmy Kimmel is next. Has even less talent than Colbert!”
The suspension of Kimmel’s show has also prompted condemnation from the public and lawmakers, with House Democratic leaders demanding the resignation of Carr.
The free speech advocacy group Pen America, decried ABC’s decision, saying: “This marks a dark new level of capitulation and censorship of speech more redolent of autocracies than democracies.”
