[Jimmy Kimmel. Photo Credit to Wikipedia]

Jimmy Kimmel, host of Jimmy Kimmel Live!, one of the most popular late-night shows on American television, was suspended on Sept 17th together with his show by Disney after he made comments about conservative influencer Charlie Kirk’s death recently.

Kimmel stated that "many in MAGA-land are working very hard to capitalise on the murder of Charlie Kirk,” and that and that “the MAGA gang” was “desperately trying to characterize this kid who murdered Charlie Kirk as anything other than one of them,” according to AP News.

The suspension was met with acclaim from President Donald Trump, who commended ABC. 

“Congratulations to ABC for finally having the courage to do what had to be done,” he wrote on his Truth Social account.

Many Americans are not fully aware of the vast web of companies that deliver television to their homes.

Sinclair and Nexstar are America’s two largest television station operators, meaning these two companies own the largest numbers of broadcast channels in the country.

These broadcast channels are affiliated with networks such as ABC, NBC, or Fox.

In this case, Nexstar and Sinclair decided to preempt Jimmy Kimmel Live! from their ABC stations. 

Federal Communications Commission Chair Brendan Carr also expressed public support for this move. 

“Local broadcasters have an obligation to serve the public interest. While this may be an unprecedented decision, it is important for broadcasters to push back on Disney programming that they determine falls short of community values,” he wrote on X.

“Instead of the angry finger-pointing, can we just for one day agree that it is horrible and monstrous to shoot another human? On behalf of my family, we send love to the Kirks and to all the children, parents and innocents who fall victim to senseless gun violence,” Kimmel said on Instagram on the day of the shooting. 

On September 26, surprisingly, Sinclair and Nexstar announced the end of the preemption and the boycott. 

This follows a reversal by Disney to resume Jimmy Kimmel Live!, after a brief suspension that was met with widespread disapproval.

The American Civil Liberties Union wrote an open letter signed by over 400 artists, including Olivia Rodrigo, Tom Hanks, and Pedro Pascal, that spoke out against what they saw as a violation of First Amendment rights to free speech.

While Sinclair explained that its decision to preempt Jimmy Kimmel Live! was "independent of any government interaction or influence," its decision was made public hours after FCC Chair Brendan Carr's interview claiming that Kimmel should face consequences, leaving the validity of the statement in question.

Kimmel, on his first show after the preemption, praised Charlie Kirk's widow Erika Kirk, for forgiving the killer. 

He called it a "selfless act of grace...that touched me deeply."

While he expressed sympathy with Kirk’s family, he remained critical of the decisions made by networks and broadcasters: "That's not legal. That's not American. It's un-American,” he said later in the show.