As the week got underway, late-night host Jimmy Kimmel devoted part of his show’s monologue to the shooting death of conservative activist Charlie Kirk. “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,” the “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” host told viewers.
He soon after highlighted a video clip in which Donald Trump talked about the construction of a White House ballroom in response to a question about Kirk’s death.
The ensuing controversy led ABC to announce that Kimmel’s show will be taken off the air “indefinitely.”
In recent years, there have been plenty of examples of networks and media outlets punishing celebrities for having crossed lines of propriety; but in this case, there’s reason to believe that it was federal officials who steered the process, leading to unavoidable accusations of government censorship.
While Kimmel has been a Trump target for several years, the president’s campaign against the host intensified over the summer, even before Kirk’s slaying. In mid-July, for example, the Republican wrote online, “I absolutely love that Colbert’ got fired. His talent was even less than his ratings. I hear Jimmy Kimmel is next.” Four days later, Trump added, “The word is, and it’s a strong word at that, Jimmy Kimmel is NEXT to go in the untalented Late Night Sweepstakes and, shortly thereafter, Fallon will be gone. … It’s really good to see them go, and I hope I played a major part in it!” He published yet another related item in late July.
Then on Wednesday Federal Communications Commission Chair Brendan Carr appeared on a far-right podcast and referenced his agency’s role in granting broadcast licenses. Referring specifically to Kimmel’s monologue, Carr added, “When we see stuff like this, look, we can do this the easy way or the hard way.”
Around the same time, the Nexstar Media Group, one of the country’s largest TV station owners, announced that it would stop airing Kimmel’s show.
This is the same Nexstar Media Group that recently launched a multibillion-dollar merger effort that requires the approval of the FCC.
ABC pulled “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” soon after.
But every bit as interesting was what transpired in the hours that followed. As the decision became public, Carr appeared on Sean Hannity’s Fox News program — a symbolically significant choice, given Hannity’s alliance with the Trump White House — where the FCC chair added some additional context. The New York Times noted:
In an interview with Fox News’s Sean Hannity late Wednesday, F.C.C. Chairman Brendan Carr described the pulling of Jimmy Kimmel’s show as an ‘important turning point’ and suggested others could face similar pressure. … ‘There’s more work to go,’ Mr. Carr said. The message is hardly subtle: Kimmel is the latest target, but he’s not the last. FCC member Anna Gomez, a Biden appointee and the lone Democrat on the panel, responded online, “This administration is increasingly using the weight of government power to suppress lawful expression.” She had plenty of company. Democratic Gov. JB Pritzker of Illinois argued online, “A free and democratic society cannot silence comedians because the President doesn’t like what they say. This is an attack on free speech and cannot be allowed to stand. All elected officials need to speak up and push back on this undemocratic act.” Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer added, “America is meant to be a bastion of free speech. Everybody across the political spectrum should be speaking out to stop what’s happening to Jimmy Kimmel.” The New York Democrat concluded, “This is about protecting democracy. This must go to court.”
Steve Benen is a producer for "The Rachel Maddow Show," the editor of MaddowBlog and an MS NOW political contributor. He's also the bestselling author of "Ministry of Truth: Democracy, Reality, and the Republicans' War on the Recent Past."
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