ABC Suspends Jimmy Kimmel‘s Show Following On-Air Criticism of Charlie Kirk
NEW YORK – ABC has temporarily suspended Jimmy Kimmel’s late-night talk show following a segment featuring critical commentary on conservative commentator Charlie Kirk, sources confirmed today. The suspension, announced internally on February 15, 2025, comes amid escalating tensions between the Trump administration and several major media outlets.
The move follows a pattern of actions perceived by media watchdogs as retaliatory against news organizations critical of the President. the suspension of Jimmy Kimmel Live! raises concerns about network independence and the potential for political influence over entertainment programming. The incident underscores a broader struggle over press freedom and the boundaries of acceptable political discourse, particularly as the 2024 election cycle draws to a close-a cycle where Donald Trump’s contract with the network was to expire next year.
On February 15, 2025, the White House barred the Associated Press from access to Donald Trump’s office and aircraft, citing the agency’s refusal to adopt the administration’s preferred terminology, “Gulf of America,” for the Gulf of Mexico.
Further escalating the situation, Bill Owens, a producer and key figure at the investigative news program 60 minutes, resigned on April 22, 2025. Paramount, CBS‘s parent company, later paid $16 million to Donald Trump on July 2nd, reportedly to cease the program’s critical coverage of the president, which Trump claimed unfairly favored Kamala Harris during an electoral interview.
the administration’s actions extended to public broadcasting on May 2, 2025, when President Trump signed a decree to halt funding for PBS and NPR, accusing them of bias.Congress approved the abolition of $1.1 billion in promised subsidies to the networks on July 18th, over the next two years.
Simultaneously,legal battles intensified. On July 18, 2025, Donald Trump filed a defamation lawsuit against the Wall Street Journal seeking at least $10 billion in damages, stemming from an article referencing a letter addressed to Jeffrey Epstein. A similar suit, seeking $15 billion, was filed against the New York Times on September 16, 2025, with Trump alleging the newspaper had been allowed to ”lie, slander and defame” him for too long.
With information from CNN, Associated Press, Washington Post.
