On Thursday, the “Big Three” of ABC, CBS, and NBC had full stories on their flagship morning news shows mourning the indefinite suspension of ABC late-night partisan tool Jimmy Kimmel, bemoaning an alleged conspiracy between the Trump administration and local TV conglomerates to censor a “Trump critic.”
ABC’s Good Morning America was predictably the worst. Co-host and former Clinton official George Stephanopoulos screeched in the tease “response from leading Democrats” to the network “suspend[ing] late-night talk show host Jimmy Kimmel after a threat from the head of the FCC appointed by President Trump kept calling for a Kimmel suspension over comments about Charlie Kirk’s death.”
Trump “appointed.” Consider how often or little the liberal media do this with judges and officials chosen by Democrat presidents.
Stephanopoulos tossed to correspondent Elizabeth Schulze by whining “[t]he move has drawn a sharply polarized response.”
All three networks made no attempt to consider Kimmel’s comments were offensive. Schulze said Kimmel was off the hear “after a threat from the head of the Federal Communications Commission” and claimed FCC Commissioner Brendan Carr “called for Kimmel suspension.”
Schulze falsely claimed Carr himself suspended Kimmel:
A California Governor Gavin Newsom (D-CA) quote later, Stephanopoulos provided his two cents: “Yeah, and this threat from the FCC the latest in a series of moves against the independent media from President Trump and his appointees.”
While ABC showed the worst instances of bias and disgust over the Kimmel suspension, CBS and NBC led with Kimmel, illustrating how much the left views this singular, multimillionaire host’s suspension as a national crisis and tragedy.
Earth to the networks: Kimmel is still very much alive and able to go elsewhere, unlike Charlie Kirk.
On NBC’s Today, co-host Savannah Guthrie teased news on the “major shake-up in Hollywood” and was followed by this from co-host Craig Melvin:
Late night drama. Jimmy Kimmel live being suspended indefinitely following backlash over the host’s comments on Charlie Kirk, his killer, and conservatives…Republicans praising the move. Democrats blasting it as censorship. So, where does it all go from here? We’ll have the very latest from Hollywood to Washington.
Later in setting up Los Angeles-based correspondent Liz Kreutz, Guthrie conceded the partisan nature of network comedy shows:
This comes after comments he made on the show about the Charlie Kirk assassination. It marks another major shake-up in late night. Two months after CBS announced it is canceling The Late Show with Stephen Colbert. Colbert, of course, another fierce critic of President Trump. The network called that move a financial decision.
Kreutz said this decision was made by ABC “after pressure from the head of FCC and while conservatives including the President are praising the move” versus “Democrats and many free speech advocates are condemning it as censorship.”
She phrased Kirk’s offending comments as “accusing Republicans of reaching new lows in response to the 22-year-old alleged killer who authorities say had a leftist ideology.”
She too played the conspiracy game about the FCC and Nexstar (click “expand”):
KREUTZ: Soon after Nextstar, one of the largest companies in the country and currently seeking FCC approval for a merger announced it would stop airing Kimmel on all of its ABC affiliated stations. Within hours, ABC suspended Kimmel’s show. Carr praising the move later in the evening.
CARR [on FNC’s Hannity, 09/17/25]: I’m glad to see that America’s broadcasters are standing up to the interests of their community.
KREUTZ: On Truth Social, President Trump congratulating ABC for finally having the courage to did what had to be done. Anna Gomez, the lone Democrat on the panel accusing the Trump administration of setting a dangerous precedent.
FCC COMMISSIONER ANNA GOMEZ: We must be careful not to allow the government to punish critics simply because of content.
Like Guthrie (and, as we’ll see, like CBS), Kreutz conceded Kimmel is a “Trump critic” like Colbert, adding “[o]ver the last week a growing number of people have been fired or suspended for their public comments about Charlie Kirk, something the Vice President encouraged.”
But the most ridiculous part was the inclusion of this unhinged liberal partisan (who actually supports real censorship):
CBS Mornings also led with the Kimmel suspension. Co-host and Democrat donor Gayle King teased a story on “the fallout” and said Kimmel was “pull[ed]…after complaints over his response to the killing of conservative activist Charlie Kirk.”
“But let’s get to the news breaking overnight. By now you have heard from Hollywood that ABC has suspended Jimmy Kimmel’s long-running late-night show indefinitely after an angry response to comments he made about conservative activist Charlie Kirk. This morning, we are hearing reaction from the entertainment world and the President,” she added in tossing to correspondent Jonathan Vigliotti.
Vigliotti asserted the suspension was “raising new questions over the ways the Trump administration is pressuring private companies” and, after playing only a small portion of the show in question, he shifted to the implication of a conspiracy with the sound of Carr “appear[ing] to threaten broadcasters on Wednesday while speaking on a conservative podcast.”
He continued with the tick-tock, although he had CBS News legal analyst Jessica Levinson point out direct decisions made by private employers muddies any chances of a free speech violation (click “expand”):
VIGLIOTTI: Hours later, Nextstar, the country’s largest local broadcasting group, announced it “would pre-empt Jimmy Kimmel Live! for the foreseeable future” on its stations, calling his monologue, “offensive and insensitive at a critical time in our national political discourse.” And shortly after, ABC said it would pull its late-night host off the air indefinitely. CBS News legal contributor Jessica Levinson
JESSICA LEVINSON: When a private employer takes action against a private employee for speech, that’s not a First Amendment issue. That, generally speaking, is an employment-based issue.
VIGLIOTTI: Celebrities like Ben Stiller and Jean Smart were quick to defend Kimmel. Comedian Wanda Sykes, who was scheduled to appear as Kimmel’s guest Wednesday, accused the Trump administration of ending free speech.
WANDA SYKES: Hey, for those of you who pray, now is the time to do it. Love you, Jimmy.
VIGLIOTTI: Reacting to the news Wednesday night, President Trump called it “Great News for America.”
Before sound from Gomez on CNN and concluding with a wink and nod about Nexstar seeking FCC approval for its Tegna merger, Vigliotti joined NBC in giving away the game about the partisan tilt of late-night shows:
Kimmel has routinely taken aim at the President in his late-night monologues, and he’s subsequently been a target of Trump’s ire, including after CBS announced it was canceling its Late Show franchise with Stephen Colbert, citing financial concerns.
To see the relevant transcripts from September 18, click here (for ABC), here (for CBS), and here (for NBC).
