Jimmy Kimmel’s late-night talk show has been taken off air ‘indefinitely’ after the comedian referenced the death of Charlie Kirk in his recent shows.
Prompting concern within the entertainment world as an attack on freedom of speech, the broadcaster’s decision to halt the show has been widely condemned by many of Kimmel’s peers.
It comes after Kimmel accused Republicans of capitalising on the right-wing podcaster's death, who was shot and killed at a college campus in Utah last week.
While some right-wing figures have praised the broadcaster’s move, others have accused the US administration of ‘censorship’ while attempting to silence any opposition to Trump’s agenda.
"If you're a comedian + don't call out the insanity of pulling Kimmel off the air — don't bother spouting fof about free speech anymore," wrote comedian Mike Birbiglia.
"This isn’t right,” wrote Ben Stiller, while Wanda Sykes said, “Let’s see. He didn’t end the Ukraine war or solve Gaza within his first week. But he did end freedom of speech within his first year. Hey, for those of you who pray, now’s the time to do it. Love you, Jimmy.”
The US president has meanwhile hailed ABC’s decision to suspend the show, taking to social media to refer to the decision as ‘great news for America.’
Decisions to take Kimmel off the air came months after CBS television made the surprise announcement that fellow talk show host Stephen Colbert’s show would also be axed in a move many suspect was inspired by a Paramount deal with Donald Trump.
So what exactly did Jimmy Kimmel say about Charlie Kirk?
What did Jimmy Kimmel say?
Kimmel was presenting a monologue on Monday night when he raised questions about the motives of Kirk’s alleged killer, appearing to imply that some people have politicised the incident.
“The Maga Gang [is] desperately trying to characterise this kid who murdered Charlie Kirk as anything other than one of them, and doing everything they can to score political points from it,” he said.
He went on: “In between the finger-pointing, there was grieving.”
See also: What is and isn’t true about Charlie Kirk’s shooter
Then, in the opening segment, Kimmel also questioned Trump’s response to Kirk’s death by sharing a clip of the US president responding to a question about recent events and how he felt.
In the video, Trump was asked by the press how he was holding up and the 79-year-old responded: “I think very good and by the way, right there you see all the trucks, they’ve just started construction of the new ball room for the White House which is something they’ve been trying to get, as you know, for about 150 years. And it’s going to be a beauty.”
“He’s at the fourth stage of grief: construction,” Kimmel joked.
“This is not how an adult grieves the murder of someone he calls a friend. This is how a four-year-old mourns a goldfish,” Kimmel responded.
Why was Kimmel taken off air?
No official motive for Kirk’s alleged killer has been released. Still, the political discourse has been heated since his death, with Republicans openly declaring “war” on the left, and calling for people to be fired for criticising Kirk — even though this counters typical right-wing arguments that demand freedom of speech.
Although the comedian didn’t seemingly attack Kirk or his death, it appears his criticism of the Republicans’ response wasn’t taken very well by those in power.
The parent company that oversees several ABC channels said it would be dropping Jimmy Kimmel Live from affiliates, and then ABC also confirmed it would be suspending the show “for the foreseeable future, beginning with tonight’s show”.
In a statement, Nextar alleged that Kimmel’s remarks were “offensive and insensitive at a critical time in our national political discourse.”
Brendan Carr, chairman of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), then thanked the broadcasters “for doing the right thing”.
Kimmel’s axing came months after Trump cheered when another talk show host was taken off air.
“I absolutely love that Colbert got fired”, Trump wrote after Stephen Colbert’s show ended. “His talent was even less than his ratings. I hear Jimmy Kimmel is next. Has even less talent than Colbert!”
