Jimmy Kimmel Makes a Controversial Statement
On September 15, ABC late-night talk show host Jimmy Kimmel said:
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.
By "kid" Kimmel was referring to alleged Charlie Kirk assassin Tyler Robinson.
ABC Affiliate Owners for Nexstar Media Group and Sinclair Broadcast Group Respond
Both Nextstar and Sinclair said they would stop airing Kimmel's show on their ABC-affiliated stations.
Andrew Alford, president of Nexstar's broadcasting division, called Kimmel's comments "offensive and insensitive at a critical time in our national political discourse."
Sinclair Broadcast Group posted a statement on social media citing "problematic comments regarding the murder of Charlie Kirk."
Source:
Grantham-Philips, Wyatte . (September 18, 2014). "4 things to know about ABC's suspension of Jimmy Kimmel's late-night show". PBS. Retrieved 2025-09-19.
Nexstar operates 28 ABC affiliates, owns or partners with more than 200 stations in 116 U.S. markets, owns broadcast networks The CW, NewsNation, and The Hill, and nearly a third of the Food Network.
Sinclair operates 38 local ABC affiliates, owns, operates, or provides services to 178 TV stations in 81 markets affiliated with all major broadcast networks, and it owns Tennis Channel.
Read more about Sinclair here.
Source:
Anderson, Mae; Sedensky, Matt. (September 18, 2014). "What are Nexstar and Sinclair, the ABC affiliate owners who issued statements against Jimmy Kimmel". Associated Press. Retrieved 2025-09-19.
On September 21, after news that ABC would reinstate Kimmel's show, Sinclair said it would not air Kimmel's September 22 show and air news programming instead. Sinclair said "Discussions with ABC are ongoing as we evaluate the show's potential return." No immediate comment was issued by Nexstar regarding Kimmel's possible return.
ABC Suspends Kimmel's Show
On September 17, without explanation, ABC suspended Kimmel's show indefinitely.
On September 21, ABC announced the network will reinstate Jimmy Kimmel's late night show.
FCC Responds
On September 17, the U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) chairman Brendan Carr responded to the situation, calling Kimmel's statement "truly sick."
Speaking with Sean Hannity on Fox News Carr said that broadcasters with FCC licenses have "a unique obligation to operate in the public interest. And over the years, the FCC walked away from enforcing that public interest obligation. I don't think we're better off as a country for it." Carr also said that "Broadcasters are different than any other form of communication," referencing groups like Nexstar and Sinclair. He also said that by suspending Kimmel's show, local stations acted appropriately, that they were "standing up to serve the interests of their community."
Speaking on the Benny Johnson podcast, Carr said "This is a very, very serious issue right now for Disney [Disney owns ABC]. We can do this the easy way or the hard way. These companies can find ways to take action on Kimmel or there is going to be additional work for the FCC ahead."
Read more about Brendan Carr here.
Source:
(September 19, 2014). "What to know about Brendan Carr, the head of the Federal Communications Commission". Associated Press. Retrieved 2025-09-19.
Baehr, Jasmine. (September 17, 2014). "FCC Chair Brendan Carr defends ABC affiliates pulling Jimmy Kimmel show after monologue about Charlie Kirk". Fox News. Retrieved 2025-09-19.
On September 18, speaking on the CNBC program "Squawk on the Street," Carr said:
The issue that arose here, where lots and lots of people were upset, was not a joke. It was not making fun. It was appearing to directly mislead the American public about a significant fact that probably one of the most significant political events we've had in a long time, for the most significant political assassination we've seen in a long time.
I do think that again, we are in the midst of a massive shift in dynamics in the media ecosystem for lots of reasons, again, including the permission structure that President Trump's election has provided. And I would simply say we're not done yet with seeing the consequences of that.
Donald Trump Responds
On September 17, Trump posted the following on Truth Social:
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. Kimmel has ZERO talent, and worse ratings than even [Stephen] Colbert, if that's possible. That leaves Jimmy and Seth, two total losers, on Fake News NBC. Their ratings are also horrible. Do it NBC!!!
Tucker Carlson Responds
On September 15, two days before Brendan Carr responded, speaking with JD Vance on a special edition of "The Charlie Kirk Show" show, conservative commentator Tucker Carlson said:
I don't think it's helpful for people to jump in, particularly foreign heads of state, to say, 'This is what he lived for, my cause,' or whatever. That's disgusting. Actually, don't do that. That turns everybody off. You don't help your own cause by doing that. And it's also literally untrue.
I think now is exactly the wrong time to appropriate the memory of someone and the emotion that comes with that. The really intense emotion that all of us feel about his murder and use it for your own parochial ends.
On September 16, speaking on the "Tucker Carlson LIVE" podcast, conservative commentator Tucker Carlson said:
You hope Charlie Kirk's death won't be used by a group we now call bad actors to create a society that was the opposite of the one he worked to build.
You hope that a year from now, the turmoil we're seeing in the aftermath of this murder won't be leverage to bring hate speech laws to this country. And trust me, if it is — if that does happen — there is never a more justified moment for civil disobedience than that, ever. And there never will be.
Because if they can tell you what to say, and they're telling you what to think, there is nothing they can't do to you, because they don't consider you human.
Ted Cruz Responds
On September 16, speaking at a Politico AI & Tech Summit, conservative senator Ted Cruz (Republican-Texas) said:
The First Amendment absolutely protects speech. It absolutely protects hate speech. It protects vile speech. It protects horrible speech. What does that mean? It means you cannot be prosecuted for speech, even if it is evil and bigoted and wrong.
On September 19, speaking on his podcast "Verdict with Ted Cruz," Cruz said:
I hate what Jimmy Kimmel said. I am thrilled that he was fired. But let me tell you: If the government gets in the business of saying, 'We don't like what you, the media, have said. We're going to ban you from the airwaves if you don't say what we like,' that will end up bad for conservatives.
Look, look, I like Brendan Carr. He's a good guy. He's the chairman of the FCC. I work closely with him. But what he said there is dangerous as hell.
He [Brendan Carr] says, 'We can do this the easy way, or we can do this the hard way.' And I got to say, that's right out of 'Goodfellas. That's right out of a mafioso coming into a bar going, 'nice bar you have here. It'd be a shame if something happened to it.'
What has Charlie Kirk Said about Hate Speech?
In a post on X last year, Charlie Kirk said:
Hate speech does not exist legally in America. There's ugly speech. There's gross speech. There's evil speech. And ALL of it is protected by the First Amendment. Keep America free.
Progressive Commentators Respond
Read what Brian Tyler Cohen said about this here.
Read what Glenn Kirschner said about this here.
Read what Brooks and Capehart said about this here.
Commentary
The conservative outrage and backlash from Kimmel's comment has been enormous. But, before jumping to conclusions as so many have, let's take a close look at what Kimmel actually said:
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.
Two points.
First...
I don't think Kimmel was saying that the alleged assassin was a MAGA Trump supporter. Yes, if you read the words literally, I can see how someone with an anti-liberal mindset could quickly come to the conclusion that Kimmel was blaming Kirk's death on "one of them."
What he was saying, in my opinion, is that the "kid" (alleged assassin Tyler Robinson) is just like MAGA in the sense that he most likely feels a great deal of hate and rage, and that what he did fuels division. We know from everything that's transpired over the past 10 years that a significant number of MAGA and Trump supporters also feel a great deal of hate and rage, and that they also fuel division. As a glaring example, look no further than the storming of the U.S Capitol on January 6, 2021. And, of course, just listen to the incessant divisive, vilification of liberals that continues to be spewed by Trump. At the Charlie Kirk Memorial in Arizona on September 21 he literally said "I hate my opponents."
In our hyper-polarized political environment, both conservatives and liberals are way too eager to point fingers and interpret what's said in a way that supports not only their beliefs, but which justifies their hate and outrage as well. Unfortunately, this type of behavior only solidifies the division and hate.
Second...
Regarding Kimmel's "score political points" comment, in my opinion Kimmel is spot on. As we've painfully witnessed in tghe aftermath of Kimmel's fateful statement, the right-wing media has gone off the deep end deriding and vilifying Kimmel for what he said. Of course conservatives have been trying to score political points! If you can't see or are unwilling to admit that, please tell me what world you are living in!
The online Merriam-Webster dictionary defines the word "authoritarian" as follows:
- of, relating to, or favoring blind submission to authority
- of, relating to, or favoring a concentration of power in a leader or an elite not constitutionally responsible to the people
Wikipedia defines the word "authoritarianism" as follows:
Authoritarianism is a political system characterized by the rejection of political plurality, the use of strong central power to preserve the political status quo, and reductions in democracy, separation of powers, civil liberties, and the rule of law.
The online Merriam-Webster dictionary defines the word "censor" as follows:
- a person who supervises conduct and morals: such as a) an official who examines materials (such as publications or films) for objectionable matter, b) an official (as in time of war) who reads communications (such as letters) and deletes material considered sensitive or harmful
- to examine in order to suppress (to keep from public knowledge, such as a) to keep secret, or b) to stop or prohibit the publication or revelation of) or delete anything considered objectionable
Based on this definition of "censor," it's clear that what Nexstar and Sinclair did is censorship. Nexstar and Sinclair are privately owned entities, not government entities. You can argue that private entities have the right to make their own decisions regarding content disseminated by their subsidiaries, but when it comes to a government, in this case the U.S. government, there is no viable argument.
By "jumping on the bandwagon" and agreeing with the Nexstar and Sinclair decisions, the U.S. government is now also guilty of censorship. Not only did FCC chairman Brendan Carr take a stand, but the current U.S. President Donald Trump did as well.
Censorship is a characteristic of authoritarianism.
An article on the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum website entitled "Nazi Propaganda and Censorship" states the following about the Nazis use of censorship and propaganda:
Examples of censorship under the Nazis included:
- Closing down or taking over anti-Nazi newspapers
- Controlling what news appeared in newspapers, on the radio, and in newsreels
- Banning and burning books that the Nazis categorized as un-German
Examples of propaganda under the Nazis included:
- Spreading negative images and ideas about Jews in magazines, films, cartoons, and other media
Based on the definitions of "authoritarian" and "authoritarianism" that I posted above, what Carr and Trump are saying and doing is blatant authoritarianism. It's a violation of the First Amendment free speech rights enshrined in the U.S Constitution.
Carr justified his stand by saying that broadcasters with FCC licenses and the FCC itself have an "obligation" to "operate in the public interest." The "public" includes all Americans, not just those that voted for Trump. I think it's safe to say that Jimmy Kimmel (like most other late-night talk show hosts) is someone who appeals more to liberal audiences than conservatives. By inserting himself into the argument, Carr is selectively targeting someone who he feels is objectionable to conservatives.
Carr also talked about media "standing up to serve the interests of their community." Again, whose interests are we referring to? What about all of the people who didn't take offense to what Kimmel said, or to all of those who thought it was objectionable to some degree, but still consider it free speech? Again, Carr is seeing this issue strictly through a conservative lens.
Carr's September 18 statements on CNBC are also particularly troubling. He spoke about a "massive shift in dynamics in the media ecosystem for lots of reasons," he said the the election of Trump in 2024 provided a "permission structure," and he said that "we're not done yet with seeing the consequences of that." A "permission structure" to do what, make rules and laws that violate the First Amendment?
Rather than censoring and moving our democracy one step closer to authoritarianism, how about we just let people make up their own minds about what they want to watch and what they don't? If what Kimmel said is so egregious, then how about we just let viewers, program sponsors, ratings, and network TV stations make the decisions about whether or not people like Kimmel should go, without pressure "from above?"
You can argue "until the cows come home" about how this incident with Kimmel is different, that it's morally objectionable, or "truly sick," or whatever reasoning you want to apply, but at the end of the day the issue here is free speech. Period. End of story.
For Trump's part in this, the example of Nazi propaganda fits perfectly. Trump has been spewing out negative, misleading, and false statements about liberals for the past decade, non-stop, ad nauseam. Trump's divisiveness, and his ongoing demeaning and vilification of liberals is, whether you want to admit it or not, a page right out of the Nazi playbook. It has done irreparable damage to American democracy as we know it.
In an article entitled "In Dark Times, Americans Need Leadership That Unites" Micheal Bloomberg said:
And using law enforcement to crack down on "hate speech," as the administration has threatened to do, would run afoul of the First Amendment, as Kirk himself said. It's a sad irony that some of his supporters are using his death to undermine the core constitutional principle that he defended in life.
Bloomberg's statement reflects, yet again, on the utter hypocrisy of many conservatives.
In an article entitled "Canceling Kimmel. Canceling Speech. Canceling Comedy." author Harold Meyerson said [bold added for emphasis]:
Like Stephen Colbert, however, Jimmy Kimmel is nobody's radical. They are mainstream liberals with mass followings. Trump's second term, however, is defined by his all-out war on any of his critics, heedless of their actual politics, not to mention of the First Amendment. Republicans, of course, have a long history of deliberately conflating liberals with radicals with traitors—McCarthy did that routinely, as did Nixon, whose vice president, Spiro Agnew, coined the phrase "radical-liberal" to describe garden-variety Democrats. But neither McCarthy nor Nixon believed they could unilaterally and publicly wield the government's power to compel every institution to bend to their will, preferably inflicting palpable suffering on their targets.
The online Merriam-Webster dictionary cancel culture as follows:
the practice or tendency of engaging in mass canceling as a way of expressing disapproval and exerting social pressure
Learn more about "cancel culture" here.
Watch conservative podcaster Benny Johnson argue that what happened to Jimmy Kimmel is not cancel culture here.
I didn't watch Benny Johnson's video. Based on the overall response from conservatives and it's definition, it sure smells like cancel culture to me.
If you step back and take a "bird's eye" view of how this event fits into the "big picture," it's clear that what Trump and conservatives are trying to do is create a "liberal-free" Christian-based society (a lot of which is spelled out in Project 2025), similar to what Hitler and the Nazi's did preceding World War II.
Think about everything that's happened since Trump took office as president for his second term. I venture to say that the vast majority of what's he's done by executive order is targeting liberals and liberal values. You might say, well, yeah, that's what all presidents do, right? To some degree, yes, but no one in the history of our country has done it with such malice, vengeance, impunity, and Supreme Court backing than Trump. He's doing it not only because he literally "hates" liberals, but because it feeds his massive, out of control ego.
We continue down the path toward authoritarian rule. Trump even alluded to it with his "A lot of people are saying, 'Maybe we like a dictator.'" comment he made in the Oval Office on August 25. That same day Trump also claimed he doesn't like dictators, and that he isn't a dictator. Trump's words and his actions since taking office for the second time don't square with what he said.
September 24, 2025 Update
Late yesterday, Donald Trump posted the following on Truth Social:
I can't believe ABC Fake News gave Jimmy Kimmel his job back. The White House was told by ABC that his Show was cancelled! Something happened between then and now because his audience is GONE, and his "talent" was never there. Why would they want someone back who does so poorly, who's not funny, and who puts the Network in jeopardy by playing 99% positive Democrat GARBAGE. He is yet another arm of the DNC and, to the best of my knowledge, that would be a major Illegal Campaign Contribution. I think we're going to test ABC out on this. Let's see how we do. Last time I went after them, they gave me $16 Million Dollars. This one sounds even more lucrative. A true bunch of losers! Let Jimmy Kimmel rot in his bad Ratings.
A "major illegal campaign contribution?" Don't think so.
But what's most revealing about Trump's post is that he is so invested in Kimmel and his show. Of course he's making a big deal out of it to score perceived political points, but just like he's done with other entities (law firms, media companies, etc.), now he says he's going to extort money from ABC, and this time it will be "even more lucrative."
On September 17 Trump posted about the decision to suspend Kimmel, and yesterday, he posted again. Obviously, Trump is fully involved with the Kimmel situation, which is interesting because conservatives have been claiming that Kimmel's suspension was purely a "business decision," and that it has nothing to do with the First Amendment rights of free speech. If it was just a "business decision," then why would Trump be involved?
On September 22, Kimmel posted a photo of himself with now deceased Norman Lear who was a "longtime champion of progressive causes."
Watch what Kimmel said when his show was back on the air on September 22 here.
Today, speaking on his podcast "The Joe Rogan Experience," Rogan said:
I definitely don't think that the government should be involved ever in dictating what a comedian can and cannot say in a monologue. That's f*****g crazy.
You're crazy for supporting this because this will be used on you. You don't think that that the f*****g globalist lizard people who run the world are sitting here going: 'Great. What do we got? Three years. We'll wait this out. We'll wait this out. Yeah, let 'em say the government should be involved in censoring people's speech.
Illinois Governor JB Pritzker shared a 2023 X post where Brendan Carr said:
Free speech is the counterweight - it is the check on government control. That is why censorship is the authoritarian's dream.