Late-night TV host Jimmy Kimmel has effectively been cancelled as the ABC network pulled his talk show from the air, both immediately and indefinitely.
The comedian addressed the assassination during his opening monologue of his show, a segment which is prewritten and thoroughly reviewed rather than extemporaneous. The move reportedly drew the ire of FCC chairman Brendan Carr, who threatened ABC with sanctions if Kimmel were not removed from the airwaves.
During the controversial segment, Kimmel referred to Kirk's assassin as a ‘kid’ and suggested he pursued violence due to his MAGA views. He also showed video footage of anti-Israel protesters repeatedly shouting, “Trump is Hitler.” To promote such hatred and disinformation simultaneously, within hours of a political assassination catalyzed by the victim’s conservative views, is at best reckless and at worst purposefully incendiary.
While some decried the move as a violation of America's core tenet of free speech, Kimmel is a private citizen and employee whose job is at risk due to decisions made in the private sector. Like the countless others who likewise lost their jobs for callous comments regarding Kirk's assassination, he is experiencing a consequence of opinion, rather than government censorship.
Two ABC affiliates, which are responsible for the distribution of television, were particularly upset by the host's comments, Sinclair and Nexstar. The former released a statement that read in part, that they will “not lift the suspension of 'Jimmy Kimmel Live!' on our stations until formal discussions are held with ABC regarding the network's commitment to professionalism and accountability.” The affiliate also indicated that Kimmel’s punishment should last until he has taken personal steps towards reconciliation, including making a donation to Charlie Kirk’s foundation and apologizing directly to his widow, Erika.
Ironically, Kimmel has previously championed the cancellation of other celebrities, often stemming from controversy surrounding their conservative beliefs. In 2017, he celebrated the removal of Roseanne Barr from his own network due to a controversial tweet. While she has been marginally re-accepted into the Hollywood community, Barr has yet to return to television, and her career was almost entirely ruined over the post for which she took full ownership and apologized.
The late-night host was similarly gleeful when President Trump was banned from Twitter in 2021. Despite company teams discovering that the then-former President had not violated internal guidelines, he was removed from the social media channel largely due to pressure from its primarily liberal employees. He remained silenced by Twitter for two years.
The President celebrated the cancellation of Jimmy Kimmel Live, having long been a target of the late-night host’s insult-laden monologues. The New York Post found that just five monologues from the past year of shows have not been centered around disrespecting Trump or his supporters, the most recent of which aired on December 11th, 2024. Trump posted on X, "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.”
Was it right for ABC to indefinitely suspend Jimmy Kimmel from his late-night hosting duties? Should he be allowed to return, and if so, what steps should first be required?
Hilary Gunn is a Connecticut native with a degree in Criminal Justice from the George Washington University. She works for a nonprofit and has previously collaborated with the CT GOP as an activist, political campaign manager and field director, and social media organizer. She is currently serving in her fourth term of municipal office and has previously acted as a delegate on the Republican Town Committee.