ABC has suspended Jimmy Kimmel Live! indefinitely after comments the host made about Charlie Kirk's killing led a group of ABC-affiliated stations to refuse to air the show. The decision has sparked widespread alarm among politicians, media figures and free speech organisations, who warn that critics of Donald Trump are being systematically silenced.
The FCC chair, Brendan Carr, a Trump appointee, defended the move on Fox News, calling it 'unprecedented' and accusing late-night hosts like Kimmel of becoming 'court clerics enforcing a very narrow political ideology'. Sinclair, one of the affiliate station owners that dropped the show, indicated Kimmel could return if he issued a 'direct apology to the Kirk family' and made a 'meaningful personal donation' to Turning Point USA.
Anna Gomez, the only Democratic FCC member, criticised Carr's remarks, stating: 'An inexcusable act of political violence by one disturbed individual must never be exploited as justification for broader censorship or control.' The Writers Guild of America condemned the suspension as a violation of constitutional free speech rights, while the Producers Guild of America said: 'Free speech is fundamental to our democracy.'
Former president Barack Obama called the move a 'dangerous' escalation of 'cancel culture' by the Trump administration, warning that 'government coercion' violates the First Amendment. California Governor Gavin Newsom described the firing of commentators and cancellation of shows as 'coordinated' and 'dangerous', adding: 'They are censoring you in real time.'
Illinois Governor JB Pritzker said 'what is at stake here is free speech', and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer urged 'everybody across the political spectrum' to speak out. Senator Chris Murphy called it a campaign to 'use the murder of Charlie Kirk as a pretext to wipe out Trump's critics', while actor Ben Stiller said the suspension 'isn't right'.
