By Dawn Chmielewski
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) -Hollywood blasted the White House for targeting free speech after ABC pulled Jimmy Kimmel’s talk on Wednesday under regulatory threats from Donald Trump’s administration, rallying behind the late-night comic after his comments about the assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk.
The Walt Disney-owned broadcaster said it was yanking “Jimmy Kimmel Live” indefinitely after at least one affiliate said it would replace the show on its airwaves and the nation’s top communications regulator threatened investigations due to Kimmel’s statements.
The late-night host, a frequent Trump critic, had suggested in his monologue on Monday that Kirk’s allies were using his death to “score political points”.
Unions representing writers and actors said the move amounted to an attack on constitutionally protected free-speech rights, saying ABC should not have caved in the face of U.S. government pressure.
The suspension of Kimmel’s show marked the latest action against media figures, academic workers, teachers and corporate employees over their remarks about Kirk following the 31-year-old’s assassination a week ago in Utah.
“What we have signed on to – painful as it may be at times – is the freeing agreement to disagree,” the Writers Guild of America West and Writers Guild of America East said in a joint statement. “Shame on those in government who forget this founding truth. As for our employers, our words have made you rich. Silencing us impoverishes the whole world.”
A 22-year-old suspect has been charged with Kirk’s murder, and his precise motive remains unclear. Kirk’s death spurred an outpouring of grief among fans while also galvanizing some prominent right-wing supporters to target people who were critical of Kirk’s views or joked about his killing.
SAG-AFTRA, the union representing actors, condemned the scrapping of the show, saying “the decision to suspend airing Jimmy Kimmel Live! is the type of suppression and retaliation that endangers everyone’s freedoms,” while actor Ben Stiller wrote “this isn’t right” on social media site X.
President Donald Trump has repeatedly threatened to pull licenses from television stations and has pressured broadcasters to stop airing content he finds objectionable. He has also trained his ire on print media with the filing of a $15 billion defamation lawsuit against the New York Times.
Earlier on Wednesday, Federal Communications Commission Chair Brendan Carr had urged local broadcasters to stop airing the show. Kimmel, who has frequently targeted Trump on his late-night comedy show, did not respond to a request for comment.
ABC pulled the show after Nexstar Media Group, which owns 32 ABC affiliates, said it would stop airing the show following Kimmel’s September 10 comments, when he suggested that “the MAGA gang” was “doing everything they can to score political points” off of Kirk’s assassination. He also criticized Trump’s mourning, comparing it to “how a four-year-old mourns a goldfish.”
Carr, in Wednesday remarks to conservative podcaster Benny Johnson, said “we can do this the easy way or the hard way,” suggesting the regulator could open investigations and broadcasters could face fines. He praised Nexstar, saying that “it is important for broadcasters to push back on Disney programming that they determine falls short of community values.”
The American Federation of Musicians said that “Trump’s FCC identified speech it did not like and threatened ABC with extreme reprisals. This is state censorship.”
(Reporting by Dawn Chmielewski; additional reporting by Dave Shepardson and Trevor Hunnicutt in Washington and Lisa Richwine in Los Angeles; writing by David Gaffen; Editing by Lincoln Feast.)
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