Nexstar Media Group, one of two broadcasting giants that have refused to bring Jimmy Kimmel back on the air, is providing insight into why.
The company, responsible for broadcasting over 30 ABC affiliate stations across the country, hinted at the possibility of taking back its decision to continue to preempt “Jimmy Kimmy Live!”
“Nexstar is continuing to evaluate the status of ‘Jimmy Kimmel Live!’ on our ABC-affiliated local television stations, and the show will be preempted while we do so,” the company said in a statement to USA TODAY on Wednesday, Sept. 24. “We are engaged in productive discussions with executives at The Walt Disney Company, with a focus on ensuring the program reflects and respects the diverse interests of the communities we serve.”
Disney, the parent company of ABC, preempted Kimmel’s show last week on Sept. 17, following pressure from Chairman of the Federal Communications Commission, Brendan Carr, after the late-night TV show host received criticism for comments he made in his Sept. 15 monologue regarding the killing of conservative commentator Charlie Kirk.
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In his monologue, Kimmel had claimed members of the MAGA movement weaponized Kirk’s death and implied that the suspect, 22-year-old Tyler Robinson, was “one of them.” He had also mocked President Donald Trump’s reaction to the fatal shooting and how he addressed the matter to the American people.
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Once the FCC got involved, Nexstar Media Group and Sinclair Broadcasting Group also put pressure on ABC to take action. ABC then pulled the program from the air “indefinitely.”
After a political firestorm ensued, with Disney’s own stars decrying threats to freedom of speech and many late-night comics sounding the alarm, ABC returned to Kimmel to air on Tuesday, Sept. 23.
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In his first monologue back, the host told audiences it was “never my intention to make light” of Kirk’s killing or to “blame any specific group for the actions of what was obviously a deeply disturbed individual,” but added that he understood it may have felt to some “ill-timed or unclear, or maybe both.”
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His ire towards Trump, however, who celebrated Kimmel’s brief suspension and urged NBC to pull both Seth Meyers and Jimmy Fallon’s shows as well, was not softened.
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“You almost have to feel sorry for him. He tried his best to cancel me. Instead, he forced millions of people to watch the show,” Kimmel quipped. “That backfired bigly. He might have to release the Epstein files to distract us from this, now.”
Striking a more serious tone, he added, “The president of the United States made it very clear he wants to see me and the hundreds of people who work here fired from our jobs. Our leader celebrates Americans losing their livelihoods because he can’t take a joke.”
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While any Kimmel fans anxious for his return to their local channel may have to hold their breath on Nexstar’s decision, Sinclair, the other broadcast company with ABC affiliate channels under its control, has signaled no movement.
Sinclair is the largest owner of ABC stations with 38 across the country.
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