Jimmy Kimmel has been taken off the air following comments made by the television host about the death of Charlie Kirk. It comes after the Chair of the US broadcast regulator threatened ABC’s broadcasting license unless action was taken against the comedian.
Jimmy Kimmel Live! Has been a staple of late night talk shows for over 20 years, but now the future of the show hangs in the balance as ABC confirmed on Wednesday that it would be suspended “indefinitely.” In a statement from the Disney-owned broadcaster, a spokesperson stated that “Jimmy Kimmel Live! will be preempted indefinitely,” meaning another show will be aired in its usual slot.
What did Jimmy Kimmel say?
You may be wondering what Kimmel could have said to have gotten his popular show pulled so fast. Well it is all connected to the killing of Charlie Kirk. On Monday, the talk show host touched on the murder that had happened less than a week prior. “Many in Maga-land are working very hard to capitalize on the murder of Charlie Kirk.” He said during his monologue.
Kimmel, who has always been outspoken against Trump’s government, accused MAGA of “doing everything they can to score political points from it.” He then went on to suggest that the alleged killer was one of “them,” meaning MAGA, of course.
“We hit some new lows over the weekend with the MAGA gang trying to characterize this kid who killed Charlie Kirk as anything other than one of them”
The talk show host continued his monologue, firing a few shots at JD Vance, who spoke on the now government owned Charlie Kirk Show. He claimed that “it is a statistical fact” that most “lunatics” in politics are far left. “And by ‘statistical fact,’” Kimmel responded, he means ‘complete bulls—’.”
Calls for the show to be canceled
The comments put him directly in the sights of prominent figures who immediately called for punitive measures to be taken against Kimmel. Brendan Carr, the Federal Communications Commission chair, pushed for broadcasters to stop airing the show. He also threatened the possibility of fines and license revocations as per The Guardian.
Meanwhile, Andrew Alford, the president of the broadcasting division of Nexstar Media (one of the biggest owners of TV stations in America), claimed that the comments were “offensive and insensitive,” and he called for the show to be pulled from the air, which it ultimately was.
Responding to the news, Donald Trump himself said it was “great news for America,” congratulating ABC for its “courage.” He then insinuated that Jimmy Fallon and Seth Meyers should be next.
Some would argue that this is censorship. According to Rolling Stone, many execs at ABC and Disney did not feel as though Kimmel’s comments overstepped the line; however, the threats from Trump’s government ultimately pushed the decision.
