Sinclair Confirms it Won’t Air Jimmy Kimmel’s Show as It Returns Tomorrow
Sinclair Broadcast Group is standing firm on its decision not to air Jimmy Kimmel Live! even as the late-night show returns to ABC on Tuesday night.
On Monday, Sinclair posted on X that it would not show the program on its ABC affiliate stations.
“Beginning Tuesday night, Sinclair will be preempting ‘Jimmy Kimmel Live!’ across our ABC affiliate stations and replacing it with news programming,” the company said. It added, “Discussions with ABC are ongoing as we evaluate the show’s potential return.”
The move comes after Jimmy Kimmel’s recent suspension over comments he made about the death of conservative activist Charlie Kirk. During his show last week, 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 and with everything they can to score political points from it.”
The backlash was swift. FCC chairman Brendan Carr called the remarks “some of the sickest conduct possible” and warned ABC to “find ways to change conduct, to take action, frankly, on Kimmel, or there’s going to be additional work for the FCC ahead.” Carr later said he was not threatening to pull ABC’s broadcast licenses.
Nexstar, another large station group, also stopped showing the late-night program. Sinclair went further, demanding that Kimmel offer a “direct apology” to Kirk’s family and make a donation to Turning Point USA, the conservative nonprofit co-founded by Kirk. Sinclair Vice Chairman Jason Smith said at the time, “Mr. Kimmel’s remarks were inappropriate and deeply insensitive at a critical moment for our country.”
After pressure from multiple sides, Disney suspended Kimmel’s show last week. The company explained its decision in a statement: “Last Wednesday, we made the decision to suspend production on the show to avoid further inflaming a tense situation at an emotional moment for our country.”
“It is a decision we made because we felt some of the comments were ill-timed and thus insensitive. We have spent the last days having thoughtful conversations with Jimmy, and after those conversations, we reached the decision to return the show on Tuesday.”
According to The Post, Kimmel’s return was negotiated directly with Disney CEO Bob Iger and Disney Entertainment Co-Chair Dana Walden. Sources told the outlet that Kimmel, who earns around $15 million per year, will talk about his comments in his opening monologue on Tuesday but is not expected to apologize.
The suspension stirred intense debate in the entertainment world and beyond. Celebrities like Tom Hanks and Meryl Streep accused the government of threatening free speech, while Tatiana Maslany and Rosie O’Donnell encouraged viewers to cancel Disney subscriptions. Kimmel’s peers, including Stephen Colbert, Jimmy Fallon, Seth Meyers and John Oliver, voiced their support, as did former late-night stars David Letterman, Conan O’Brien and Jay Leno.
Even some conservatives came to Kimmel’s defense. Senator Ted Cruz warned that allowing government officials to silence entertainers sets a dangerous precedent that could later be used against right-wing voices.
Despite Disney’s decision to put the show back on air, Sinclair says it will continue to block Jimmy Kimmel Live! on its stations until it decides otherwise.
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