Jimmy Kimmel is live no longer.
Disney’s ABC announced Wednesday that it is indefinitely pausing the late-night host’s eponymous show following remarks relating to Charlie Kirk’s assassination. The news came after the operators of some 50-plus local ABC affiliates told Disney they would be preempting the show due to the comedian’s “offensive and insensitive” comments.
On Thursday, Megyn guest hosted The Charlie Kirk Show and was joined by Walter Kirn to discuss Kimmel’s suspension and the debate over free speech.
The Comments
The controversy erupted this week after Kimmel made vitriolic comments during his opening monologue on Monday’s show about Kirk’s murder. “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,” he claimed.
As noted on Thursday’s AM Update, that characterization is simply not true. All of the evidence, much of which was readily available in the days before Kimmel made those comments, completely contradicts the assessment. The shooter etched the bullets with anti-fascist messages and references to furry culture, he was in a relationship with a trans partner, and his own family told authorities he had become very political in recent years.
According to the charging document, suspect Tyler Robinson’s mother explained that, over the last year or so, her son “had become more political and had started to lean more to the left – becoming more pro-gay and trans-rights oriented.” Family members also told police that Robinson accused Kirk of “spreading hate.”
Yet there was no apology or retraction from Kimmel. “Did he come out on the air on Tuesday night and try to correct his lie? No, because… it was an intentional misstatement of fact meant to mislead you. It was not a mistake, as some left-wing defenders are saying right,” Megyn said. “His plan on Wednesday was not to go out and apologize… His plan, according to The Hollywood Reporter, was to go out and claim that he was the victim because it was taken out of context.”
The Decision
The surprise move to sideline Kimmel came after Nexstar Media Group, which operates 28 ABC affiliates, announced it would preempt Jimmy Kimmel Live beginning with Wednesday’s show due to the comedian’s “offensive and insensitive” comments about Kirk’s death. Sinclair Broadcast Group, which is behind another 38 local stations, reportedly made a similar threat.
Disney’s decision also came in the wake of Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Chair Brendan Carr’s call for action. During an interview with Benny Johnson that dropped Wednesday, Carr said “you could certainly see a path forward for suspension” over the remarks because “a strong argument” could be made that it was “an intentional effort to mislead the American people about a very core fundamental fact, a very important matter.”
He specifically called on the affiliates to do something. “We can do this the easy way or the hard way,” Carr told Johnson. “These companies can find ways to change conduct, to take action, frankly, on Kimmel. Or, you know, there’s going to be additional work for the FCC ahead.”
The Controversy
That has led Kimmel’s supporters, including former President Barack Obama, to claim “government coercion” and “cancel culture” were to blame. Kirn took issue with the premise and believes Kimmel only has himself to blame.
“Jimmy, that’s showbiz,” he said. “You weren’t funny. You weren’t any good. You wished death on half of your audience in not so subtle ways… You made a false claim that this case had been cracked and the culprit was MAGA – in other words, half the U.S. public – and now you’re gone… legally and, I think, legitimately.”
The legitimacy, he said, stems from ABC’s position as a broadcast network. “ABC leases the public airwaves… and that lease comes with conditions… that it serves the public good… And it wasn’t serving the public good,” Kirn explained. “It was acting on behalf of the regime. It was acting on behalf of its pharmaceutical advertisers that keep it… supported. It was slanting, not just the news, but every joke.”
Anyone comparing Jimmy Kimmel Live to Fox News’ Gutfeld! has it all wrong, Kirn said. “Greg Gutfeld is not comparable. He’s on cable news. Those are private wires that are laid in the ground,” he added. “This is the public airwaves, a stage that we give people on the condition that they use it with decency, some sense of fairness and fair play, and in the interest of all of us who own that station. We merely lease it to ABC.”
Megyn agreed. “We are absolutely thrilled. We won’t miss him at all,” she said. “And frankly, all the liberal tear crying all over X is only making it better.” She cited commentator Steven L. Miller, who she believes summed it up best on X. “The national media being more upset at Jimmy Kimmel losing his show than they are Charlie Kirk losing his life is kind of proving the point,” he posted.
“I couldn’t say it any better than that. That’s exactly it,” Megyn concluded. “They are way more upset about… this talking head who has been such a buffoon for so many years… [but] most normal people don’t care.”
You can check out Megyn’s full interview with Kirn by tuning in to episode 1,152 on YouTube, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you like to listen. And don’t forget that you can catch The Megyn Kelly Show live on SiriusXM’s Triumph (channel 111) weekdays from 12pm to 2pm ET.