(NewsNation) — Talk show host Jimmy Kimmel has yet to release a response after ABC pulled “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” from the air indefinitely following his comments about the assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk.
The network’s move came after Nexstar Media Group announced it would preempt Kimmel’s show and replace it with other programming. Nexstar, which owns NewsNation, also owns 32 ABC affiliates.
During the show Monday, Kimmel said the country “hit some new lows over the weekend” when the “MAGA gang desperately tried to characterize this kid who killed Kirk as anything other than one of them.”
Kirk was fatally shot last week during an appearance at Utah Valley University, where he debated students with differing political views.
On the show, Kimmel accused Republicans of trying to “score political points” from his death.
Jimmy Kimmel fired over ‘lack of talent’: Trump
President Donald Trump said Thursday that Kimmel was fired over his “lack of talent.”
“Jimmy Kimmel was fired because he had bad ratings more than anything else,” Trump told reporters during a state visit to the United Kingdom. “He said a horrible thing about a great gentleman known as Charlie Kirk, and Jimmy Kimmel is not a talented person. He had very bad ratings, and they should have fired him a long time ago. So, you could call that free speech or not.”
Federal Communications Commission chair Brendan Carr praised ABC’s decision to pull Kimmel’s show, writing on social media: “Broadcast TV stations have always been required by their licenses to operate in the public interest—that includes serving the needs of their local communities … I am glad to see that many broadcasters are responding to their viewers as intended.”
Lawmakers argue ABC preempts Kimmel amid FCC pressure
Some lawmakers said this is a free speech issue, arguing that it wasn’t the value of Disney as a company that led to Kimmel being suspended, but pressure from Carr.
“We’re trying to bring people together. People that influence public opinion should be extremely careful about the bigger picture here,” Sen. Mike Rounds, R-S.D., told NewsNation on Thursday. “If other folks are out there saying things that cause harm or that are creating animosity, this is probably not the time in which news organizations should be promoting that.
“The question is, should the government tell Jimmy Kimmel what he can and cannot say. The whole First Amendment is written on the premise that it is not the role of the government,” said Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass.
On NewsNation’s “CUOMO,” Bill O’Reilly blasted Kimmel’s remarks.
“What Kimmel did is inexplicable to me,” O’Reilly said. “He had to know on Monday, in his dialogue, how raw the country was over this assassination of Charlie Kirk. He had to know that.”
Hollywood defends Jimmy Kimmel, citing free speech
Hollywood stars and labor unions have criticized ABC’s move, defending Kimmel’s right to free speech.
“This isn’t right,” actor Ben Stiller said in a social media post.
Comedian Wanda Sykes, who was scheduled to appear on the show Wednesday, urged support for Kimmel.
“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,” Sykes said. “Hey, for those of you who pray, now’s the time to do it. Love you, Jimmy.”
The Writers Guild of America, the American Federation of Musicians and SAF-AFTRA condemned the cancellation as an attack on free speech.
NewsNation’s Rob Taub contributed to this report.