Walt Disney-owned ABC network is taking Jimmy Kimmel’s late-night talk show off the air indefinitely amid controversy over the comedian’s remarks about the killing of conservative activist Charlie Kirk, which the company called “offensive and insensitive.”
“Jimmy Kimmel Live will be pre-empted indefinitely,” an ABC spokesperson said, without elaborating.
The network’s action came just after Nexstar, one of the biggest owners of local TV stations in the country said it will pre-empt the series for the immediate future.
KIMMEL’S MONOLOGUE STIRS CONTROVERSY
During his monologue on ‘Jimmy Kimmel Live!’, he criticised Republicans who allegedly sought to politicise the shooting. “We hit some new lows over the weekend with the Maga gang desperately trying to characterise this kid who murdered Charlie Kirk as anything other than one of them and doing everything they can to score political points from it,” he said.
Kimmel also criticised Trump’s mourning of Kirk, pointing to a video of Trump’s comments on the White House lawn. “This is how a 4-year-old mourns a goldfish,” Kimmel said.
“In between the finger-pointing, there was grieving,” he added.
Charlie Kirk, the founder of the conservative group Turning Point USA and a close ally of President Donald Trump, was shot dead last week at a university event in Utah. The suspect, 22-year-old Tyler Robinson, opened fire during Kirk’s appearance. He been charged with aggravated murder. Prosecutors are seeking the death penalty.
DECISION MADE IN PUBLIC INTEREST, SAYS NEXSTAR
In a statement, President of Nexstar’s broadcasting division, Andrew Alford said, “Kimmel’s comments about the death of 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,”
“Continuing to give Kimmel a broadcast platform in the communities we serve is simply not in the public interest at the current time, and we have made the difficult decision to preempt his show in an effort to let cooler heads prevail as we move toward the resumption of respectful, constructive dialogue,” Alford added.
Kimmel also had singled out US Vice President JD Vance, who hosted Kirk’s podcast and blamed the left for the murder. Responding to Vance, Kimmel said, “He means complete bull****.”
The host reminded viewers of past Justice Department data showing far-right groups as the leading source of extremist violence in the United States. “Here’s a question JD Vance might be able to answer: who wanted to hang the guy who was vice president before you? Was that the liberal left? Or the toothless army who stormed the Capitol on January 6.”
Kimmel further accused the Trump administration of inflaming partisan tensions. “The president and his henchmen are doing their best to fan the flames, so they can I guess attack people on the dangerous left,” he said.
Kimmel has consistently been critical of President Donald Trump and many of his policies on his ABC show. The abrupt removal of Jimmy Kimmel Live! comes after fellow late-night host Stephen Colbert’s programme was cancelled, which many claimed was a result of his criticism of Donald Trump.
The US President has repeatedly pressured broadcasters to stop airing content he has found objectionable and called on the FCC to pull licenses from stations.
– Ends
With inputs from agencies