Jimmy Kimmel’s canned show will be replaced by a Charlie Kirk tribute – and the star won’t be allowed back on air unless he makes a donation to Turning Point USA.
Sinclair Inc., whose local stations pay to run ABC’s Jimmy Kimmel Live!, said on Wednesday night that it will refrain from broadcasting Kimmel’s show indefinitely following insensitive comments the host made about Kirk’s assassination.
The broadcaster said in a statement that the Kirk remembrance show will fill Kimmel’s usual showtime on Friday night, which will then air across all Sinclair stations over the weekend.
It did not detail which stations would air the tribute, but the firm’s portfolio includes as many as 185 TV stations across 85 markets throughout the US, affiliated with networks including ABC, CBS, Fox, and NBC.
Sinclair said it will refuse to lift the suspension of Kimmel’s show on its stations ‘until formal discussions are held with ABC regarding the network’s commitment to professionalism and accountability.’
The broadcaster also called on Kimmel to issue a ‘direct apology to the Kirk family’ and to make a ‘meaningful personal donation to the Kirk Family and Turning Point USA.’ TPUSA is a conservative college campus group founded by Kirk, with Kimmel a well-known liberal.
‘Mr. Kimmel’s remarks were inappropriate and deeply insensitive at a critical moment for our country,’ Sinclair Vice Chairman Jason Smith said in the announcement.
‘We believe broadcasters have a responsibility to educate and elevate respectful, constructive dialogue in our communities.’
Meanwhile, an unnamed insider told The Wall Street Journal that Kimmel’s show could be back within days.
But Sinclair’s hardball demands – and Kimmel’s rumored fury over his suspension – have raised the possibility that he’ll refuse to return to ABC even if offered.
The news of Kimmel’s show being axed came just hours before he was reportedly preparing to address the Kirk controversy on his show Wednesday night, leaving the comedian ‘livid.’
Kimmel’s comments about Kirk that sparked backlash came during his Monday night monologue, where he claimed that alleged assassin Tyler Robinson was a MAGA supporter.
Investigators say Robinson held far-left ideologies and was dating his transgender roommate.
‘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,’ the host said.
Kirk, 31, had been shot and killed at Utah Valley University on September 10 – in front of an audience of 3,000 horrified spectators.
Shortly after the shooting, Kimmel wrote on social media: ‘Instead of the angry finger-pointing, can we just for one day agree that it is horrible and monstrous to shoot another human?’ Kimmel wrote.
‘On behalf of my family, we send love to the Kirks and to all the children, parents and innocents who fall victim to senseless gun violence.’
The remarks in Kimmel’s monologue quickly came under scrutiny from Federal Communications Commission Chair Brendan Carr.
Carr told conservative podcaster Benny Johnson earlier on Wednesday that he was considering an investigation into Kimmel and his network ABC for his claims.
‘When you look at the conduct that has taken place by Jimmy Kimmel, it appears to be some of the sickest conduct possible,’ Carr told Johnson.
Carr’s remarks are believed to have spooked ABC bosses, who were recently forced to pay $16 million to the Donald Trump after Good Morning America host George Stephanopoulos said on-air that the president had been found civilly liable for the rape of writer E. Jean Carroll.
Trump was actually found liable for the sexual abuse of Carroll.
A slew of left-wing lawmakers and celebrities reacted angrily to Kimmel being canned and accused the Trump administration of riding roughshod over the star’s First Amendment right to freedom of speech and expression.
Following the news of Kimmel’s cancelation, Carr told Fox News’ Sean Hannity that he was simply ‘suffering the consequences’ of his actions.
‘I’m very glad to see that America’s broadcasters are standing up to serve the interest of their community,’ Carr said, after arguing that late night hosts are ‘enforcing a very narrow political ideology.’
Sinclair VP Jason Smith thanked Carr in his statement regarding taking Kimmel off the air, saying the broadcaster ‘appreciates FCC Chairman Carr’s remarks today.’
‘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,’ Smith added.
The decision to pull the show came shortly after ABC’s affiliate group, Nexstar, also announced it would stop airing it effective immediately.
‘Nexstar strongly objects to recent comments made by Mr. Kimmel concerning the killing of Charlie Kirk and will replace the show with other programming in its ABC-affiliated markets,’ the company wrote on Wednesday.
After Kimmel’s show was pulled from the air that day, the host’s sidekick Guillermo Rodriguez was seen dodging questions as he left Kimmel’s Los Angeles studio while staff packed up their gear.
Nexstar’s broadcasting division President Andrew Alford blasted Kimmel’s comments as ‘offensive and insensitive.’
In reaction to Nextstar’s move to axe Kimmel, both Johnson and Carr posted celebratory sentiments on X.
‘Great job @NXSTMediaGroup. Thank you for standing up for Charlie,’ Johnson wrote.
The largest station group in the country has a major merger proposal before the Trump administration – its proposed acquisition of Tegna – which must be approved by Carr.
If the merger were to go through, Nexstar would have 265 stations in 44 states and the District of Columbia, representing 80 percent of US television households, according to Deadline.
Another major merger between Paramount and Skydance had been criticized by fellow late night television host Stephen Colbert just days before CBS announced it was canceling his money-losing show earlier this year.
‘The President’s FCC is forcing their perceived critics off the airwaves,’ the Democratic Party said following the news of Kimmel’s cancelation on Wednesday.
‘This is a chilling attack on the freedom of speech our founders enshrined in the Constitution. This should alarm all Americans—regardless of political party.’
But others found the cancelation to be justified, with former Fox News host Bill O’Reilly saying he found Kimmel’s remarks ‘inexplicable.’
‘He had to know on Monday in his dialogue how raw the country was over this assassination,’ O’Reilly told News Nation’s Chris Cuomo, asking how no producers flagged the monologue.
‘This isn’t about censorship,’ he continued. ‘This is about responsibility and as you pointed out, correctly, every corporation has a responsibility to make sure the product it’s selling is an honest product.’
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis also said Kimmel’s ouster is a ‘rare example of accountability in legacy media.’
‘That ABC actually did something about Kimmel’s lies is surprising,’ he posted on X.
President Donald Trump called the late night show’s cancelation ‘great news for America’ as he called for the firing of Seth Meyers and Jimmy Fallon as well.
‘Congratulations to ABC for finally having the courage to do what had to be done,’ he wrote on his Truth Social platform. ‘Kimmel has ZERO talent and worse ratings than even Colbert, if that’s possible.’
‘That leaves Jimmy [Fallon] and Seth [Meyers], two total losers on Fake News NBC,’ the president continued.
‘Their ratings are also horrible,’ he said.
