ABC Pulls Jimmy Kimmel Off The Air ‘Indefinitely’ Over Charlie Kirk

Disney’s ABC is taking Jimmy Kimmel’s late night talk show off the air “indefinitely” over his recent comments about Charlie Kirk’s suspected killer.

This comes after Nexstar Media (a major operator of ABC-affiliated stations) said it would pre-empt airings of the program following Kimmel’s remarks Monday night.

What Kimmel said:

“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 & doing everything they can to score political points.”

As I’ve posted here, over the week since the shooting death of Kirk, authorities had reported that the alleged suspect, Tyler Robinson, had grown up in a conservative household in suburban Utah with both parents being registered Republicans.

Republicans immediately started blaming “leftists” before they had any information about the killer or motive. People who knew Tyler Robinson in high school had described him as being a “die hard” Trump supporter who supported Trump in the 2020 election.

So, there had been mixed information about Robinson for days.

Here’s the clip below:

the first amendment being stripped away right before our eyes. he said nothing wrong pic.twitter.com/Op40E9B71f

— ً (@americanreqiuem) September 17, 2025

Folks, when the government starts silencing comedians for making jokes about topical issues, you’ve crossed straight into authoritarian territory.

From the New York Times:

Brendan Carr, the Federal Communications Commission chair, sharply criticized Mr. Kimmel’s comments on a podcast earlier on Wednesday.

Nexstar, an owner of many local stations throughout the United States, said shortly before ABC’s announcement that it was pre-empting episodes of “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” for the “foreseeable future.”

“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 said.

ABC yanks Jimmy Kimmel’s show “indefinitely” after remarks about Charlie Kirkhttps://t.co/HoVayDNeLY

— CNN (@CNN) September 17, 2025

More from CNN:

Speaking with CNN’s Erin Burnett after Kimmel’s show was taken off the air, Anna Gomez, the lone Democratic commissioner at the FCC, said “the First Amendment does not allow us, the FCC, to tell broadcasters what they can broadcast.”

“I saw the clip. He did not make any unfounded claims, but he did make a joke, one that others may even find crude, but that is neither illegal nor grounds for companies to capitulate to this administration in ways that violate the First Amendment,” Gomez told CNN.

“This sets a dangerous new precedent, and companies must stand firm against any efforts to trade away First Amendment freedom.”

An inexcusable act of political violence by one disturbed individual must never be exploited as justification for broader censorship and control.

This Administration is increasingly using the weight of government power to suppress lawful expression. https://t.co/sosGDaOJbO

— Anna M. Gomez (@AGomezFCC) September 17, 2025

As CNN notes, Kimmel has been a target of Trump in the past. After CBS cancelled Stephen Colbert’s talk show, Trump said, “Next up will be an even less talented Jimmy Kimmel.”

And in July, Brendan Carr told Fox News that “The View” was “now in the crosshairs of this administration” over co-host Joy Behar’s criticism of Trump.

Question: Why does Brian Kilmeade still have a job on Fox News after saying homeless people should be killed?

Brian Kilmeade endorses euthanizing homeless people: “Involuntary lethal injection, or something. Just kill them.” pic.twitter.com/on5NMereZQ

— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) September 13, 2025