ABC has indefinitely pulled Jimmy Kimmel Live! from its lineup following comments made by the host about the recent shooting of Charlie Kirk. The decision comes after Nexstar, which owns 32 ABC affiliates, also decided to preempt the show. An ABC spokesperson confirmed the move, stating that the show will be replaced with other programming in ABC-affiliated markets.
Kimmel’s comments were made during his opening monologue on September 15, where he criticized the political response to the fatal shooting of Kirk at Utah Valley University on September 10. Kimmel remarked, “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.” These remarks followed an earlier Instagram post by Kimmel, where he expressed condolences to the Kirk family and called for unity against gun violence.
ABC’s decision to pull Kimmel’s show comes amid heightened political tensions and follows a $15 million settlement the network reached with Donald Trump‘s presidential foundation in a defamation case.
FCC Chairman Brendan Carr criticized Kimmel’s comments, labeling them as “some of the sickest conduct possible” and hinted at potential action by the FCC. The controversy has led to other media responses, including Comedy Central pulling a South Park episode featuring Kirk and MSNBC dismissing contributor Matthew Dowd for his comments on Kirk’s death.
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