Trump Criticizes Kimmel‘s Return as FCC Commissioner defends Agency’s Role
Following a brief suspension, Jimmy Kimmel’s return to his late-night show sparked criticism from former President Donald Trump, who expressed his displeasure on social media, stating, “Let Jimmy Kimmel rot in his bad Ratings.” The situation unfolded after Kimmel made comments regarding the alleged shooter of conservative commentator Kirk, prompting a response from FCC Commissioner Brendan Carr.
The controversy began when Kimmel addressed the shooting and cautioned against using the event to restrict free speech, stating, “What is important is that we get to live in a country that allows us to have a show like this.” Carr responded sharply, calling Kimmel’s remarks “some of the sickest conduct possible” on his podcast and suggesting potential repercussions, stating, “Frankly, when you see stuff like this, we can do this the easy way or the hard way. There are ways to change conduct, to take action, frankly, on Kimmel, or there’s going to be additional work for the FCC ahead.”
Carr later denied threatening to revoke television station licenses or influencing Kimmel’s suspension, asserting, “that didn’t happen in any way, shape or form.” He maintained that the FCC aims to empower local station owners to make independent programming decisions, allowing them to “push back on national programmers, even when they think there’s some content that they don’t think…makes sense for the local communities.” He claimed local stations chose not to air Kimmel’s show, leading Disney to temporarily halt its broadcast.
Following Disney’s decision to reinstate the show, both Sinclair Broadcast Group and Nexstar Media Group announced they would not be airing it on their ABC affiliates, signaling potential future conflicts.
Carr initiated his Project 2025 chapter on the FCC by stating the agency should “promote freedom of speech,” but has also previously aligned with Trump in criticizing broadcasters for alleged anti-conservative bias and indicated a willingness to use the FCC’s power to ensure broadcasters serve the “public interest.”
The political fallout drew bipartisan criticism. Bob Shrum, director of the USC dornsife Center for the Political future, noted the unusual coalition of disapproval, including Republicans like Senator Ted Cruz, which “at least begins to set a deterrent for the federal government going too far on this.” Shrum also observed that Trump’s concluding social media comment suggested limitations to his ability to completely remove Kimmel from the airwaves, stating it “wasn’t the kind of last line that says, ‘We’re coming after you.'”
meanwhile, podcaster Tucker Carlson expressed concern that the aftermath of Kirk’s killing would be used to justify “hate speech laws,” arguing that free speech is central to Kirk’s legacy.
