ABC has suspended Jimmy Kimmel Live! for the foreseeable future, Deadline reports. A spokesperson for the network confirmed the late-night show will be “preempted indefinitely.”
The decision follows Nexstar’s move to pull the program from its 200 stations nationwide. In a statement on Wednesday (Sept. 17), Nexstar said it “strongly objects to recent comments made by Mr. Kimmel concerning the killing of Charlie Kirk.”
Kirk, a conservative media personality, was fatally shot on Sept. 10 at Utah Valley University, igniting fierce political debate.
Though details about the suspected shooter, 22-year-old Tyler Robinson, remain unclear, commentators from both sides of the political spectrum have framed the killing as politically motivated.
Kimmel addressed the tragedy in his Monday monologue, saying, “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.”
ABC’s parent company Disney came under pressure from FCC Chair Brendan Carr following Kimmel’s remarks. After the network pulled Jimmy Kimmel Live!, Carr publicly thanked Nexstar on social media.
“Local broadcasters have an obligation to serve the public interest,” Carr wrote. “While this may be an unprecedented decision, it is important for broadcasters to push back on Disney programming that they determine falls short of community.”
California Governor Gavin Newsom blasted the move on X, calling it censorship by conservatives and an attack on free speech.
The controversy around Kimmel comes as part of a broader wave of backlash against people accused of downplaying Charlie Kirk’s death. Employees at NASDAQ, Office Depot, the Carolina Panthers, and MSNBC have all lost their jobs over remarks about the fatal shooting.
Among them was political analyst Matthew Dowd, who was dropped by MSNBC after describing Kirk as a “divisive” figure who promoted “hate speech” during a segment.
“Hateful thoughts lead to hateful words, which then lead to hateful actions,” Dowd said. “I think that is the environment we are in. You can’t stop with these sort of awful thoughts you have and then saying these awful words and not expect awful actions to take place. And that’s the unfortunate environment we are in.”
