Tag: jimmy-kimmel

Disney folded in less than a week when it came to Jimmy Kimmel’s suspension. Part of it was the artist community openly expressing displeasure with censorship, but I believe an even bigger reason why Disney changed course was the mass-cancellation of Disney Plus, Hulu and ESPN subscriptions. When Jimmy Kimmel Live came back on air last Tuesday, he didn’t apologize but he reiterated what he said previously about Charlie Kirk’s murder, expressing his sympathy to Kirk’s family once again. Kimmel was on a tear all week about Donald Trump though, with sharp jabs and jokes about Trump’s escalator mishap and more. Kimmel is enjoying some of the best ratings in his show’s history, which is even more remarkable when you realize that Nexstar and Sinclair were not airing JKL all of last week. The two right-wing media companies own ABC affiliates across the country, and they both threw tantrums about Kimmel’s jokes and observations. Sinclair even demanded that Kimmel donate to Kirk’s right-wing political action group. Well, funny story. Sinclair and Nexstar capitulated… to Kimmel, not Trump.

The local TV station boycott of ABC‘s Jimmy Kimmel Live! appears to be ending. Sinclair and Nexstar each said that they would end preemption of the late night show Friday night. Sinclair said it made the decision after “thoughtful feedback from viewers, advertisers, and community leaders representing a wide range of perspectives.” That said, while Sinclair appears to have been seeking notable concessions (including an ombudsman at ABC), a source says that no editorial or content concessions were made by Disney.

“In our ongoing and constructive discussions with ABC, Sinclair proposed measures to strengthen accountability, viewer feedback, and community dialogue, including a network-wide independent ombudsman,” Sinclair said in a statement. “These proposals were suggested as collaborative efforts between the ABC affiliates and the ABC network. While ABC and Disney have not yet adopted these measures, and Sinclair respects their right to make those decisions under our network affiliate agreements, we believe such measures could strengthen trust and accountability.”

It was pressure from the station owners Nexstar and Sinclair that initially forced Disney to take Kimmel’s show off-air, with the two companies who collectively control nearly one quarter of all ABC stations saying they were going to preempt the show in the wake of comments he made on the program.

It is worth noting that Nexstar is in the midst of a $6.2 billion deal to acquire Tegna, a deal that if allowed to go through would make it by far the largest owner of local TV stations in the U.S. That deal requires FCC approval. Sinclair, meanwhile, has also said that it wants to engage in M&A, moves that would also require attention from the FCC. Sinclair says that the FCC did not play a role in its decision.

“Our decision to preempt this program was independent of any government interaction or influence,” the company said. “Free speech provides broadcasters with the right to exercise judgment as to the content on their local stations. While we understand that not everyone will agree with our decisions about programming, it is simply inconsistent to champion free speech while demanding that broadcasters air specific content.”

[From THR]

“…It is simply inconsistent to champion free speech while demanding that broadcasters air specific content.” The inconsistency was Sinclair and Nexstar freaking out over a perfectly accurate observation about Charlie Kirk’s alleged shooter and his politics. The inconsistency was Sinclair bizarrely demanding that a late-night talk show host apologize to Kirk’s family – apologize for what, exactly? – and donate to an ultra-right-wing political action group. Sinclair and Nexstar overplayed their hand and this is their acknowledgement of it. The FCC Chairman overplayed his hand as well, and he’s already walking back his juvenile threats too. Trump is the only one still throwing a tantrum about Kimmel, not because of anything Kimmel said about Kirk or Kirk’s shooter, but because of what Kimmel has said about Trump.

Photos and screengrabs courtesy of Avalon Red, ABC/Disney/JKL.

Jimmy Kimmel Live came back on air last night, just not for ABC affiliates owned by Sinclair or Nexstar. Luckily, YouTube still works so everyone can check out Kimmel’s show online. ABC announced on Monday that they were bringing back Kimmel after a six-day suspension. Disney/ABC suspended Kimmel because of a joke/observation he made about Charlie Kirk’s shooter and how Republicans were trying to lie about the shooter’s background. The FCC chairman openly threatened Disney, as did Donald Trump and MAGAland. In the end, the power of free speech won and, even moreso, the power of consumers won. People were mass-canceling their Disney, Hulu and ESPN subscriptions and canceling their Disney theme park vacations and cruises. Disney folded, and Kimmel won. His staff apparently gave him a standing ovation before they filmed Tuesday’s episode. Kimmel didn’t apologize, although he did clarify his stance on Charlie Kirk and Kirk’s murder.

A partial transcript of Kimmel’s opening:

“Anyway, as I was saying before I was interrupted. If you’re just joining us, we are preempting your regularly scheduled encore episode of Celebrity Family Feud to bring you this special report. I’m happy to be here tonight with you… I’m not sure who had a weirder 48 hours, me or the CEO of Tylenol. It’s been overwhelming. I’ve heard from a lot of people over the last six days. I’ve heard from all the people in the world over the last six days. Anyone I’ve ever met has reached out 10 or 11 times. Weird characters from my past, or the guy who fired me from my first radio job in Seattle, not airing tonight by the way. Sorry Seattle, his name is Larry.”

He then thanked everyone who checked on him, including his “fellow late-night talk show hosts, including Stephen Colbert, who “found himself in this predicament,” and “My friend Jon Stewart, Seth Meyers, Jimmy Fallon, John Oliver, Conan O’Brien, James Corden, Arsenio, Kathy, Wanda, Chelsea, and even Jay [Leno] reached out.” He also thanked those who “supported our show, cared enough to do something about it, to make your voices heard so that mine will be heard. I will never forget it.”

“And maybe weirdly, maybe maybe most of all, I want to thank the people who don’t support my show and what I believe, but support my right to share those beliefs anyway. People who I never would have imagined like Ben Shapiro, Clay Travis, Candace Owens, Mitch McConnell, Ryan Paul, even my old pal Ted Cruz, who believe it or not said something very beautiful on my behalf.”

“I’ve been hearing a lot about what I need to say and do tonight. And the truth is, I don’t think what I have to say is going to make much of a difference. If you like me, you like me. If you don’t, you don’t. I have no illusions about changing anyone’s mind…. I do wanna make something clear, because it’s important to me as a human, and that is, you understand that it was never my intention to make light of the murder of a young man,” referencing Kirk’s assassination. “I don’t, I don’t think there’s anything funny about it.”

“I posted a message on Instagram on the day he was killed, sending love to his family and asking for compassion, and I meant it and I still do. Nor was it my intention to blame any specific group for the actions of what it was obviously a deeply disturbed individual. That was really the opposite of the point I was trying to make. But I understand that to some that felt either ill-timed or unclear or maybe both. And for those who think I did point a finger. I get why you’re upset. If the situation was reversed, there’s a good chance I’d have felt the same way.”

“If we don’t have free speech, then we just don’t have a free country. It’s as simple as that….I know it’s not as interesting as muzzling a comedian but it’s so important to have a free press and it’s nuts that we aren’t paying more attention to it… Walter Cronkite must be spinning in his grave. He’s dead right? I never imagined I’d be in a situation like this — I barely paid attention in school. But one thing I did learn from Lenny Bruce and George Carlin and Howard Stern is a government threat to silence a comedian the president doesn’t like is anti-American.”

[From People]

We’re actually pretty far past the “it’s anti-American for the president to shut down a comedian,” but the backlash to Kimmel’s suspension has felt good. It feels like there are still people who understand the fundamentals of free speech. Now, do I think that Disney would have lifted Kimmel’s suspension if consumers hadn’t protested by yanking their Hulu subscriptions? No, I don’t. I also think Disney realized something over the course of the past week – that it can be good business to stand up to Trump and his cadre of fascist dumbf–ks. Like, there’s a market for it. As for Kimmel, I’m glad he’s back and I think he handled his opening monologue really well, he set the right tone and spoke about everything in the correct way. There’s more happening on the political side, and I’ll cover that separately.

Photos/screencaps courtesy of ABC/JKL.

Once again, I’d like to remind everyone of the comment/joke which got Jimmy Kimmel suspended last week. Kimmel said, in his opening segment: “We hit some new lows over the weekend with the MAGA gang trying to characterize this kid who killed Charlie Kirk as anything other than one of them.” THAT is what upset MAGAland, that is what caused Donald Trump’s FCC commissioner to openly threaten Disney/ABC, that is what caused ABC affiliates to demand Kimmel apologize and donate money to Charlie Kirk’s ultra-right-wing political action group. What happened after Kimmel said that: Disney suspended Kimmel indefinitely, and an organic boycott of all Disney-owned properties and subscription services followed. The ACLU got involved, Kimmel’s lawyers got involved, some of the unions got involved, and Disney-affiliated artists got involved. Well, it worked! Disney is bringing back Jimmy Kimmel Live today.

Jimmy Kimmel will have more to say on late-night TV. Disney and ABC will bring the comedian back to its schedule starting Tuesday night. “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,” the company said in a statement. “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.”

Disney’s decision to bench one of its signature personalities came after two major station owners, Nexstar Media and Sinclair, said they would pre-empt his program following a Kimmel monologue last Monday during which he offered remarks tied to the death of conservative activist Charlie Kirk. Those announcements came after Federal Communications Commission chair Brendan Carr appeared to suggest to broadcasters they ought to work to curb Kimmel and force ABC to remove him from its schedule.

And yet, after Kimmel was taken off the air, Disney faced protest from the creative community. On Monday, 400 celebrities — including people like Martin Short and Tom Hanks, who have created memorable characters for Disney in the recent past — signed a letter from the American Civil Liberties Union decrying the blow the maneuver delivered to free speech in America. First Amendment advocates from both sides of the political aisle have decried the situation in recent days.

The decision to bring Kimmel back was approved by Bob Iger, Disney’s CEO, and Dana Walden, co-chair of Disney Entertainment, according to a person familiar with the matter. The executives acted based on what was best for the company, this person said, and not on external factors. Indeed, it remains unclear if all ABC affiliates will air Kimmel’s program. Spokespersons for Nexstar and Sinclair could not be reached for immediate comment.

It is not clear if Kimmel will offer an apology for his remarks, but whatever he and Disney executives agreed to have him do will be seen Tuesday night. In the past, late-night hosts have had to tender apologies for remarks that offended, with David Letterman, Bill Maher and Samantha Bee among those who had to express regret for jokes or one-liners that caused more outrage than laughter.

[From Variety]

Since Kimmel’s suspension, the trade papers have consistently reported, via Kimmel-sources, that Kimmel refuses to apologize for his remarks or jokes. He felt strongly that he and Disney should not look like they’re capitulating to Trump and MAGA’s authoritarian idiots. This was the correct posture from Kimmel and it was fascinating to watch him maneuver through this moment. I strongly suspect that when all is said and done here, Kimmel will come out of this as a Hollywood hero, and a vanguard of free speech and comedic license. It will depend on what he says when he comes back though. If Disney is making him apologize, then… yeah, we’ll cross that bridge when we come to it. Watch this space.

Additionally, while ABC cut a deal to bring Kimmel back, no deal was made with Sinclair, one of the biggest ABC affiliates. Sinclair will not carry Jimmy Kimmel Live on their affiliate stations for now. This reads like Sinclair is waiting to see if there’s any pushback on them for being such unhinged right-wing lunatics.

Photos courtesy of ABC, Avalon Red.