When Jimmy Kimmel's show was pulled, apparently under pressure from the FCC chairman, the result was a deluge of outrage. Secrets has the details.
But when his show was pulled in September 2025, apparently under pressure from the FCC chairman, the result was a deluge of outrage.Trump team urged to get out of its right-wing media echo chamber to reach 2026 votersIt shows how complaints about the comedian and his remarks quickly gave way to accusations that regulators were acting like Nazis, had been “bribed” by President Donald Trump, were acting in an “un-American” way, or had forgotten the First Amendment in a rush to be a “lapdog for the president.
” “YOU SIR ARE NOTHING BUT A TRUMP BOOTLICKER And Traitor To Our Nation In The First Degree,” reads a complaint that came from a viewer in Columbus, Ohio.The complaints about censorship outnumbered the complaints about Kimmel by about 100 to 1. Less than a week after Kirk was shot dead during a speaking event in Utah, Kimmel took the stage to deliver his monologue on Sept. 15. “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 and doing everything they can to score political points from it,” he said. Kimmel went on to mistakenly claim that Vice President JD Vance was blaming the Left for the killing.The complaint file shows several concerns about the segment were logged, with a handful of viewers accusing Kimmel of misrepresenting what happened. “Jimmy Kimmel On His Show Make A Comment About Charlie Kirk That Was Offensive And Spreading False Narratives That It Was The Republican Cause The Murder Of Charlie Kirk,” reads one from Mohnton, Pennsylvania.“We can do this the easy way or the hard way,” he told podcaster Benny Johnson. “These companies can find ways to change conduct to take action on Kimmel or, you know, there’s going to be additional work for the FCC ahead.”And the complaints log shows that America is a nation of First Amendment supporters. “You Are Weak And Embarrassing,” said a viewer in Buda, Texas, on the day ABC made its announcement. “Put Jimmy Kimmel Back On The Air. Protect Free Speech!!” A slew of complaints compared Kimmel’s words with what Brian Kilmeade had said a day earlier on Fox News a day earlier.“It is hypocritical of Brendan Carr influencing the suspension of Jimmy Kimmel in light of doing nothing regarding Brian Kilmeade at Fox who talked about involuntary lethal injection for the homeless. This is an outrageous double standard.”“Eff off you losers – saw you on Benny Hill or whatever that was,” said one, referring to an old British slapstick comedy show.And a complaint from Portland, Oregon, reads, “I Think Your Chairman Is A Lapdog For The President.” They easily outnumbered the ones complaining about Kimmel himself and accusing him of misrepresenting the shooting. Yet conservatives were also worried about how the controversy was handled. Sen. Ted Cruz , for example, accused the head of the regulator of acting like a “mafioso.” Kimmel returned to the air about a week after being suspended. He said it was never his “intention to make light of the murder of a young man.” “This show is not important,” he said. “What’s important is that we live in a country that allows us to have a show like this.”You are reading a bonus installment of Washington Secrets, a guide to power and politics in D.C. and beyond. It is written by Rob Crilly, whom you can reach at secrets@washingtonexaminer DOT COM with your comments, story tips, and suggestions. If a friend sent you this and you’d like to sign up,
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