Since 2003, the Jimmy Kimmel Live! show has drawn many fans with its exciting lineups of guests, lighthearted humor and Kimmel’s charm. After making jokes about President Donald Trump and the Make America Great Again (MAGA) culture surrounding the assasination of activist Charlie Kirk, Kimmel’s show was suspended by the American Broadcasting Company (ABC) indefinitely, until its return six days later. Now the future of talk shows may shift as freedom of speech has different standards in the eyes of many.
According to AP News, a group of ABC-affiliated stations said they would not air the show after comments Kimmel made regarding the reaction of President Trump to Kirk’s death, and the expected profiling of the unidentified shooter that many thought would come from Republicans.
In the words of Andrew Alford, president of Nexstar’s broadcasting division, the jokes made by Kimmel “are offensive and insensitive at a critical time in our national political discourse.”
In the span of the suspension, Kimmel did not make any comments while his avid fans expressed their concerns. However, what really grew the tension was the debate over free speech, and how many argued this was government censorship.
According to the U.S. Press Secretary Caroline Leavitt, the decision was not made with pressure from the White House. Nevertheless, the statement from the Chairman of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Brendan Carr, saying Kimmel’s jokes were “truly sick”, and President Trump’s celebratory posts on X, many believed that the decision involved federal heat.
Upon his return, Kimmel thanked his supporters and even “the people who don’t support [his] show and what [he] believes, but that support [his] right to share those beliefs anyway.”
As around 6.3 million tuned in to watch his first show air after the near week of the show’s absence, about 23 percent of American households cannot access it due to Nexstar and Sinclair, two major TV stations, that are forestalling the show.
Nonetheless, Kimmel still used his opportunity in the spotlight to speak about free speech and how it is a great part of this country.
“This show, this show is not important. What is important is that we get to live in a country that allows us to have a show like this,” Kimmel said in his opening monologue, Sep. 23. “ Our freedom to speak is what [I] admire most about this country.”
Students at Buena who have seen Kimmel on their “for you pages” or on the TV screen every night have noticed his brief leave. Broadcast journalism student and junior Natalia Pichardo believes that Kimmel should not have been punished for his remarks.
“Since we have the freedom of speech, I don’t think it is something the president should care about,” Pichardo said. “[Kimmel] should continue to say what he wants because each of us have our own opinions, and they shouldn’t affect others.”
Talk shows have always been an outlet for news, comedy and getting an inside look into the life of favorite celebrities. With such rampant political discourse in recent months, many will take from the Kimmel suspension an anger to fight against censorship or a distaste for the commentary made on national stages.
