The American Broadcasting Company (ABC), one of the principal television networks in the United States, declared on Wednesday that it has suspended the “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” show “indefinitely” following controversial remarks made by its host regarding the conservative activist and influencer Charlie Kirk, who was tragically shot last week.
Nexstar Media Group, Inc. issued a statement indicating that the company’s owned and partner television stations affiliated with the ABC Television Network will preempt “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” for the foreseeable future, starting with Wednesday night’s episode. Nexstar operates the largest local television broadcasting group in America, which includes leading network affiliates, with over 200 owned or partner stations serving 220 million viewers, as stated on its website.
“Nexstar strongly disapproves of the recent comments made by Mr. Kimmel concerning the death of Charlie Kirk and will substitute the show with alternative programming in its ABC-affiliated markets,” the statement noted. “Mr. Kimmel’s remarks regarding Mr. Kirk’s death are both offensive and insensitive during a crucial period in our national political dialogue, and we do not believe they represent the range of opinions, views, or values of the local communities we serve,” stated Andrew Alford, president of Nexstar’s broadcasting division.
Shortly after the statement was released, NBC News cited an ABC spokesperson as saying that “‘Jimmy Kimmel Live’ will be pre-empted indefinitely.” In his monologue on Monday night, Kimmel implied that Tyler Robinson, the individual suspected in Kirk’s murder, might have been a pro-Trump Republican, according to reports from Xinhua news agency. “The MAGA Gang is desperately attempting to portray this individual who killed Charlie Kirk as anything other than one of their own and is doing everything possible to gain political advantage from it,” Kimmel remarked.
US President Donald Trump and senior administration officials have accused the “radical left” of being responsible for the death of Kirk, while rejecting the Democrats’ argument that political violence has been a problem from both sides. In an interview with conservative commentator Benny Johnson earlier Wednesday, Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Chair Brendan Carr threatened to take action against Disney and its subsidiary ABC over the comments, noting that the FCC could consider revoking licenses of ABC affiliate stations as a penalty.
Criticising the FCC chair on the social platform X, FCC commissioner Anna Gomez, the only Democrat on the panel, said, “An inexcusable act of political violence by one disturbed individual must never be exploited as justification for broader censorship and control.” “This Administration is increasingly using the weight of government power to suppress lawful expression,” said Gomez. “Jimmy Kimmel Live” is one of the several nationally recognised late-night talk shows in the country.
