Disney and ABC pulled “Jimmy Kimmel Live” off the air last week under pressure from the Federal Communications Commision (FCC), in the wake of backlash over remarks made by the host about the killing of conservative activist Charlie Kirk. The unprecedented suspension has fueled a fierce debate about free speech, media regulation and corporate pressure.
“There is a continued lurch to the right throughout much of our major media in the United States right now,” Victor Pickard, a professor of media policy and political economy at the University of Pennsylvania, said to Reuters. “I expect to see more of this to come. There’s no countervailing force against it.”
Kimmel, who has hosted the ABC late-night show since 2003, made remarks during his monologues criticizing conservatives — commenting on their response and attitudes toward the killing of Kirk, an ally of President Donald Trump.
“We hit some new lows over the weekend with the MAGA gang desperately trying to characterize this kid who murdered Charlie Kirk as anything other than one of them and doing everything they can to score political points from it,” Kimmel said in his monologue.
After the show aired, Brendan Carr, the chairman of the FCC, criticized Kimmel’s conduct.
“I mean, look, we can do this the easy way or the hard way,” Carr said on Wednesday. “These companies can find ways to change conduct and take action, frankly, on Kimmel, or you know there’s going to be additional work for the FCC ahead.”
Carr, a Republican, was nominated to the Commission in 2017 and named chairman in January 2025 — both times by Trump.
Because radio spectrum is finite, and considered a public resource, the FCC is chiefly responsible for ensuring that broadcast stations and other users make efficient use of this spectrum by using a licensing structure and developing standards to prevent harmful interference.
In exchange for a broadcast license, owners must operate their facilities in service of the “public interest, convenience and necessity.” Generally, this means it must remain technically stable and air programming that is responsive to the needs and problems of its local community.
“Broadcasters — not the FCC or any other government agency — are responsible for selecting the material [stations] air,” their “The Public and Broadcasting” manual states. “The First Amendment and the Communications Act expressly prohibit the Commission from censoring broadcast matter. Our role in overseeing content is very limited…[except for] regulation of obscene and indecent programming.”
Broadcast networks, such as ABC, CBS, NBC and PBS, are not regulated by the FCC; they are primarily content providers. Local stations in different geographic areas affiliate with the networks to relay their programming, filling in the rest of their airtime with locally-produced content like newscasts and specialty shows relating to the station’s community.
“They’re 97% against me, they give me only bad publicity,” President Trump said to reporters on Thursday. “I mean, [the TV networks are] getting a license. I would think maybe their license should be taken away. It will be up to Brendan Carr… They’re not allowed to do that.”
Although one can watch a network’s content on a local station, and stations may use branding which include network names and logos, most are owned by independent companies. The corporations which operate networks do own and operate a certain number of local stations, such as in New York, Los Angeles and other markets, but do not necessarily have to program those stations with the network’s content.
Trump’s comments do not line up with the FCC’s licensing rules; after the second presidential debate last year, he took aim at ABC, saying “I mean, to be honest, they’re a news organization. They have to be licensed to do it. They ought to take away their license for the way they [conducted the debate].”
A fundamental freedom afforded by the First Amendment is that news organizations, as in those who report news, do not have to be licensed whatsoever.
“This FCC does not have the authority, the ability, or the constitutional right to police content or punish broadcasters for speech the government dislikes,” Democratic FCC Commissioner Anna Gomez said in a statement. “If [the FCC] were to take the unprecedented step of trying to revoke broadcast licenses…it would run headlong into the First Amendment and fail in court on both the facts and the law.”
The network-wide Kimmel cancellation was spurred by two large ABC station owners, Nexstar Media Group and Sinclair Broadcasting, pulling the show “indefinitely.”
“Mr. Kimmel’s comments about the death of Mr. Kirk are offensive and insensitive at a critical time in our national political discourse, and we do not believe they reflect the spectrum of opinions, views, or values of the local communities in which we are located,” said Andrew Alford, president of Nexstar’s broadcasting division, in a press statement.
“We appreciate FCC Chairman Carr’s remarks today and this incident highlights the critical need for the FCC to take immediate regulatory action to address control held over local broadcasters by the big national networks,” Sinclair’s statement read. “Sinclair 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.”
Nexstar and Sinclair are some of the largest TV owner groups, and both lean conservatively according to the Columbia Journalism Review; their stations’ local news operations may differ editorially.
Nexstar, which owns WTNH Channel 8 (ABC) and WCTX Channel 59 (Ind.) in Connecticut, agreed to begin a merger with another broadcast holdings company — Tegna, who operate WTIC Channel 61 (Fox) and WCCT Channel 20 (The CW) locally, for $6.2 billion in August. While there is no limit on the number of television stations a single entity may own nationwide, and mergers and acquisitions happen often, the deal would run afoul of the FCC’s rule mandating that no one owner collectively reaches more than 39% of all national TV households.
The merged Nexstar-Tegna would likely have to divest many stations under the current rule — if not for the fact that major commercial station owners are lobbying for the FCC to remove the ownership cap. Supporters of dropping the rule claim that the cap makes it harder to compete with streaming and new media outlets.
Nexstar previously acquired the broadcast assets of the Tribune Company in 2018 — which forced the sale of WTIC and WCCT to a neutral party, Tegna, due to the rules.
“The ‘suspending indefinitely’ of Jimmy Kimmel immediately after the Chairman of the FCC’s aggressive yet hollow threatening of Disney is yet another example of out-of-control intimidation,” said former Disney President Michael Eisner on social media. “Maybe the Constitution should have said, ‘Congress shall make no law abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press, except in one’s political or financial self-interest.'”
“May I just say, it is a privilege and an honor to call Jimmy Kimmel my friend in the same way it is an honor to do this show every night,” Seth Meyers, the host of NBC’s “Late Night” said. “I wake up every day and count my blessings that I live in a country that at least purports to value freedom of speech, and we’re going to keep doing our show the way we’ve always done it with enthusiasm and integrity.”
Earlier this year, the CBS network settled a lawsuit brought on by Trump for $16 million. He said the network engaged in biased portrayal during last year’s election with how it chose to edit an interview segment with candidate Kamala Harris. It happened in the midst of a now-completed merger of CBS’ parent company, Paramount, and conglomerate Skydance Media — one that required the signature of Carr and, by extension, Trump’s blessing.
Some have theorized that the announcement that CBS decided to cancel their late-night show, “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert,” was a casualty of trying to appease Trump.
“Stephen Colbert, an extraordinary talent and the most popular late-night host, slams the [Paramount-Skydance] deal, days later, he’s fired,” Senator Bernie Sanders said on social media. “Do I think this is a coincidence? NO.”
“This is what authoritarianism is about: government silencing dissenting voices,” Sanders added after the Kimmel suspension.
Kimmel and Colbert have aired multiple critical comedy pieces on Trump over the years. Although broadcast on and produced by the network, late-night shows are editorially distinct and managed separately from networks’ news operations.
On his show, Colbert mocked Carr’s statements suggesting the FCC will take action if program content falls short of “community values.”
“Well, you know what my community values are, buster?” Colbert said during his monologue. “Freedom of speech.”
“The FCC has long held that ‘the public interest is best served by permitting free expression of views’,” their consumer guide “The FCC and Speech” states. “Rather than suppress speech, communications law and policy seeks to encourage responsive ‘counter-speech’ from others. Following this principle ensures that the most diverse and opposing opinions will be expressed, even though some views or expressions may be highly offensive.”
Even though Trump vowed upon entering the office of the presidency to “immediately stop all government censorship and bring back free speech to America,” his actions would indicate that only those with views he approves of may be permitted to “speak freely” — making attempts at smothering outlets that he feels portray him in a bad light, however truthful it may be.
Last week, he sued The New York Times, claiming that their reporting was defamatory. The case was procedurally dismissed because the complaint read as a praiseful advertisement rather than a “short, plain, direct statement of allegations of fact,” according to Judge Steven Merryday of the U.S. District Court for Florida.
Jimmy Kimmel has not issued a public statement since the suspension, but is reportedly working with Disney to return his late-night show to the air. In addition to airing at 11:35 p.m. on ABC stations, the show has a large audience on-demand through Disney’s streaming networks and clips on social media. Kimmel had the highest viewership of late-night shows with young adults, according to Nielsen, a media ratings tabulation company.