Sensing an opportunity for exploitation Thursday night, the liberal broadcast networks went full bore with lying to their audiences about why late night “comedian” Jimmy Kimmel was put in timeout by Disney/ABC, choosing to instead claim the suspension was orchestrated by the Trump administration. CBS Evening News, NBC Nightly News, and even ABC’s World News Tonight dismissed, downplayed, or twisted the fact that the pressure to suspend Kimmel came from inside the media’s house.
ABC News was in the best position out of the three to actually know what was happening in their camp with the pressure rising from their local affiliates to act, but World News Tonight anchor David Muir chose to blame ABC’s political opposition. “We move on now, to the fierce reaction tonight with Disney/ABC suspending late night host Jimmy Kimmel, quote, ‘indefinitely,’ after pressure from the Trump administration,” he lied.
Correspondent Elizabeth Schulze tonight echoed Muir’s false premise for the suspension. “Disney/ABC puling the late night show off the air last night, after pressure from the Trump administration,” she said.
Much like CBS and NBC, Schulze suggested the push back from local ABC affiliates were only spurred on by FCC Chairman Brendon Carr and by purported craven motives of one network affiliate owner (Click “expand”)
SCHULZE: FCC Chairman Brendan Carr, who was appointed by President Trump, blasting Kimmel’s comments on a conservative podcast Wednesday, accusing Kimmel of misrepresenting the ideology of Kirk’s killer. And saying local broadcasters should stop airing Kimmel’s show.
BRENDON CARR (chairman, FCC): We can do this the easy way or the hard way. These companies can find ways to change conduct and take action, frankly, on Kimmel, or, you know, there’s going to be additional work for the FCC ahead.
SCHULZE: Hours later, Nexstar and Sinclair, two of the biggest owners of network TV affiliates, said they would not air Kimmel’s show. Nexstar is in merger talks in merger talks with another media company in a deal that would require Brendon Carr’s approval at the FCC. Disney/ABC then pausing Kimmel’s show indefinitely, drawing outrage from some who say this is caving to political pressure. And that this is about protecting freedom of speech.
Schulze made it clear that she was trying to cook up a false narrative of federal censorship by trying to draw a through line between Kimmel and CBS’s pending release of late night host Stephen Colbert, despite all the evidence that pointed to financial overruns which debunked that lie weeks ago:
Kimmel’s suspension comes just months after CBS announced it was canceling the Stephen Colbert show. CBS saying it was purely a financial definition. But Colbert, like Kimmel, was a vocal critic of President Trump. And overnight, the President suggesting NBC go after its late night hosts Jimmy Fallon and Seth Meyers. Posting “Do it NBC.”
Over on NBC Nightly News, they highlighted their former late night host, David Letterman baselessly suggesting that ABC was capitulating to the Trump White House: “You can’t go around firing somebody because you’re fearful or trying to suck up to an authoritarian criminal administration in the Oval Office. That’s just not how this works.”
NBC correspondent Liz Kreutz downplayed Kimmel’s lie to the masses that a MAGA supporter killed conservative activist Charlie Kirk as just “criticism from conservatives.” She also drew imaginary lines between Carr, the suspension, and Nexstar (Click “expand”):
KREUTZ: After criticism from conservatives, Brendan Carr, the chairman of the FCC, threatened action against the network.
BRENDON CARR (chairman, FCC): Disney needs to see some change here.
KREUTZ: Hours later, Nexstar, which owns more than 200 local TV stations nationwide and is currently seeking FCC approval for a merger, announced it would stop airing Kimmel on all of its ABC affiliates. Soon after, ABC said it was suspending the show. Now Sinclair, another major television group, saying they won’t air Kimmel’s show again unless he offers a “direct apology” to Kirk’s family and donates to Turning Point USA.
Kreutz also tried to rope in CBS/Colbert to form a larger conspiracy and leaned heavily on the overwrought reaction from Democrats. She touted former President Obama speaking out, despite the fact that he tried to jail multiple journalists for their reporting and falsely blamed a film for the Benghazi attack, for which he wrongly jailed the maker. She also shared the hysterical reaction from the only Democrat commissioner of the FCC.
For CBS’s part, they conspicuously avoiding the Colbert situation as Evening News anchors Maurice Dubois and John Dickerson pompously bloviated about the First Amendment (Click “expand”):
DUBOIS: The First Amendment, adopted in 1791, says Congress shall make no law abridging the freedom of speech or of the press.
DICKERSON: But President Trump is suggesting that a law Congress made in 1934, the Communications Act, may be used the crackdown on media outlets exercising those freedoms.
DUBOIS: That act created the Federal Communications Commission, which issues licenses for TV stations. Today, the President suggested, networks that criticize him should have the licenses for their stations taken away.
Far-left Dickerson led into the segment by falsely blaming Carr: “The FCC is chaired by Trump appointee Brendan Carr, who pressured Disney/ABC to take Jimmy Kimmel’s late-night TV show off the air after Kimmel made controversial remarks about Trump ally Charlie Kirk.” He also lied about Kimmel’s comments being “about” Kirk, when they were about MAGA supporters.
CBS correspondent Jonathan Vigliotti painted a false depiction of Kimmel as some equal opportunity offender with his comedy, supposedly hitting all sides. “John, for more than 20 years, Jimmy Kimmel has used this theater behind me for a late-night satire spanning four administrations” and “built a career taking the White House to task in Hollywood,” he falsely stated.
As a NewsBusters study recently found, for the last few years, conservatives found themselves the target of 92 percent of his jokes while liberals made up 97 percent of his guests.
Of course, Vigliotti too blamed the supposed craven motives of Nexstar for part of the pressure. He offered no mention of Sinclair. But he too gave a plat form to Gomez and bitter liberal protesting Disney.
The transcripts are below. Click “expand” to read:
ABC’s World News Tonight
September 18, 2025
6:35:47 p.m. EasternDAVID MUIR: We move on now, to the fierce reaction tonight with Disney/ABC suspending late night host Jimmy Kimmel, quote, “indefinitely,” after pressure from the Trump administration. FCC chairman Brendan Carr, appointed by President Trump, and his threat after Kimmel’s comments after Charlie Kirk’s death. Calling on stations not to carry Kimmel.
Well, tonight, outrage from some, saying this is caving to political pressure, and an assault on free speech. Here’s ABC’s Elizabeth Schulze tonight.
[Cuts to video]
ELIZABETH SCHULZE: Tonight, the decision to indefinitely suspend Jimmy Kimmel Live, a show that’s been running for more than 20 years, is sparking a fierce debate. Disney/ABC puling the late night show off the air last night, after pressure from the Trump administration, following Kimmel’s comments during his opening monologue Monday about the killing of conservative activist Charlie Kirk.
JIMMY KIMMEL: We hit some new lows over the weekend with the MAGA gang desperately trying to characterize this kid who murdered Charlie Kirk as anything other than one of them. And doing everything they can to score political points from it.
SCHULZE: FCC Chairman Brendan Carr, who was appointed by President Trump, blasting Kimmel’s comments on a conservative podcast Wednesday, accusing Kimmel of misrepresenting the ideology of Kirk’s killer. And saying local broadcasters should stop airing Kimmel’s show.
BRENDON CARR (chairman, FCC): We can do this the easy way or the hard way. These companies can find ways to change conduct and take action, frankly, on Kimmel, or, you know, there’s going to be additional work for the FCC ahead.
SCHULZE: Hours later, Nexstar and Sinclair, two of the biggest owners of network TV affiliates, said they would not air Kimmel’s show. Nexstar is in merger talks in merger talks with another media company in a deal that would require Brendon Carr’s approval at the FCC. Disney/ABC then pausing Kimmel’s show indefinitely, drawing outrage from some who say this is caving to political pressure. And that this is about protecting freedom of speech.
This was not the first time Kimmel addressed Kirk’s murder. Posting on Instagram just hours after Kirk was shot, “can we just for one day agree that it is horrible and monstrous to shoot another human? On behalf of my family, we send love to the Kirks and to all the children parents and innocents who fall victim to senseless gun violence.”
Tonight, President Trump on his return from the state visit in the U.K. now suggesting the FCC should take licenses away from broadcasters that are repeatedly critical of him.
PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP: They give me only bad publicity, or press. I mean — they’re getting a license, I would think — maybe their license should be taken away. It would be up to Brendan Carr.
SCHULZE: A move that would be at odds with an executive order the President signed on day one in office, pledging to protect free speech.
TRUMP: And I’ve stopped all government censorship and brought back free speech in America. It’s back.
SCHULZE: Kimmel’s suspension comes just months after CBS announced it was canceling the Stephen Colbert show. CBS saying it was purely a financial definition. But Colbert, like Kimmel, was a vocal critic of President Trump. And overnight, the President suggesting NBC go after its late night hosts Jimmy Fallon and Seth Meyers. Posting “Do it NBC.”
[Cuts back to live]
David, no word tonight from our parent company Disney/ABC about Jimmy Kimmel being off the air indefinitely, and if, and when, he’ll return.
Meantime, up on Capitol Hill today, some Democrats are calling for FCC Chairman Carr to resign and some want him to testify about freedom of speech. The Republican House speaker who has defended free speech, said today that it’s up to companies to decide what to do with their own programs. David?
MUIR: Elizabeth Schulze in Washington tonight. Elizabeth, thank you.
CBS Evening News
September 18, 2025
6:30:53 p.m. EasternMAURICE DUBOIS: The First Amendment, adopted in 1791, says Congress shall make no law abridging the freedom of speech or of the press.
JOHN DICKERSON: But President Trump is suggesting that a law Congress made in 1934, the Communications Act, may be used the crackdown on media outlets exercising those freedoms.
DUBOIS: That act created the Federal Communications Commission, which issues licenses for TV stations. Today, the President suggested, networks that criticize him should have the licenses for their stations taken away.
DICKERSON: The FCC is chaired by Trump appointee Brendan Carr, who pressured Disney/ABC to take Jimmy Kimmel’s late-night TV show off the air after Kimmel made controversial remarks about Trump ally Charlie Kirk. Jonathan Vigliotti has more about that from Hollywood. Jonathan?
JONATHAN VIGLIOTTI: John, for more than 20 years, Jimmy Kimmel has used this theater behind me for a late-night satire spanning four administrations. The chairman of the FCC said this week he crossed tine, in-line critics say has been redrawn to suppress opposition.
[Cuts to video]
Jimmy Kimmel built a career taking the White House to task in Hollywood.
JIMMY KIMMEL: And yes, Joe Biden did say he wasn’t going to pardon Hunter, but to be fair, there’s a very good chance he doesn’t remember saying that.
VIGLIOTTI: Yesterday, his stage lights were cut over this commentary on Mondays show, following the assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk.
KIMMEL: We hit some new lows over the weekend, with the speech MAGA getting desperate the track to characterize this kid who murdered Charlie Kirk as anything other than one of them. And doing everything they can to score political points from it.
VIGLIOTTI: Today, President Trump on his way back from London suggested that TV networks should lose their licenses.
PRESIDENT TRUMP: They give me only bad publicity or press. I mean, they’re getting a license. I would think maybe their license should be taken away. It would be up to Brendan Carr.
VIGLIOTTI: FCC Chairman Brendan Carr told Fox News…
BRENDON CARR (chairman, FCC): President Trump has fundamentally changed the direction of this country. And one of the ways he has done that is he has run directly at these legacy, mainstream broadcasters and he’s smashed the facade that they get to control what we get to say and what we get to think.
VIGLIOTTI: This comes as Nexstar, the country’s largest local broadcaster and owner of multiple ABC affiliates, undergoes a federally reviewed media merger. On Wednesday, it preempted Jimmy Kimmel Live for the foreseeable future. Then came ABCs announcement that it was pulling the program indefinitely.
But Kimmel’s indefinite suspension was panned by Hollywood writers. Today, they protested outside of Disney’s Burbank headquarters. Anna Gomez, a Democratic-appointed FCC commissioner, accused the white house abusing the agency to censor content.
ANNA GOMEZ (Democratic commissioner, FCC): It is not the FCC’s job to judge what is and what is not funny. It is not the FCC’s job to determine what content should be. It’s not even the FCC’s job to determine if there is bias in a particular broadcaster.
VIGLIOTTI: This wasn’t the first time Kimmel commented about the Charlie Kirk murder. On the day of the shooting he posted, “Instead of the angry finger-pointing, can we just for one they agreed that it is horrible and monstrous to shoot another human?”
[Cuts back to live]
And it’s unclear at this hour if Jimmy Kimmel Live will return. We’ve reached out. We have not heard back. We did just hear back from Nexstar. In a statement they said they had no communication with the FCC or any government agency prior to pulling the program.
DUBOIS: Jonathan Vigliotti in Hollywood, thank you.
NBC Nightly News
September 18, 2025
7:01:45 p.m. EasternTOM LLAMAS: And good evening. It was an announcement that sent shockwaves across politics and media. ABC indefinitely pulling Jimmy Kimmel off the air. The long time late-night host suspended after comments he made in the wake of the death of Charlie Kirk. President Trump praising the move and suggesting broadcasters who regularly criticize him should have their licenses pulled. Trump-appointed FCC Chairman Brendan Carr today said the country’s media landscape is shifting and that, quote, “we’re not done yet with seeing the consequences of that.”
But the condemnations have been equally swift. Former president Obama blasting the move, saying Trump administration has taken cancel culture “to a new and dangerous level.” And across Hollywood an outpouring of support for Kimmel from actors and comedians. Kimmel has long been a staple of late-night TV, but after more than 20 years on the air, tonight his future is uncertain. Liz Kreutz starts us off outside of Kimmel’s L.A. studio.
[Cuts to video]
LIZ KREUTZ: Tonight, protests outside Disney headquarters as fallout grows from the company’s abrupt decision to indefinitely pull the show off the air. Condemnation swift from Democrats in Washington to Hollywood heavyweights.
DAVID LETTERMAN: You can’t go around firing somebody because you’re fearful or trying to suck up to an authoritarian criminal administration in the Oval Office. That’s just not how this works.
KREUTZ: But President Trump and many of his supporters praising the decision by ABC and its parent company Disney.
PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP: Jimmy Kimmel is not a talented person. He had very bad ratings and they should have fired him a long time ago. So, you could call that free speech or not. He was fired for lack of talent.
KREUTZ: The President later suggesting broadcast licenses could be taken away by the FCC. This all began Monday after Kimmel said this during his opening monologue.
JIMMY KIMMEL: The MAGA gang desperately trying to characterize this kid who murdered Charlie Kirk as anything other than one them. And doing everything they can to score political points from it.
KREUTZ: After criticism from conservatives, Brendan Carr, the chairman of the FCC, threatened action against the network.
BRENDON CARR (chairman, FCC): Disney needs to see some change here.
KREUTZ: Hours later, Nexstar, which owns more than 200 local TV stations nationwide and is currently seeking FCC approval for a merger, announced it would stop airing Kimmel on all of its ABC affiliates. Soon after, ABC said it was suspending the show. Now Sinclair, another major television group, saying they won’t air Kimmel’s show again unless he offers a “direct apology” to Kirk’s family and donates to Turning Point USA.
CARR: The issue that arose here where lots of people were upset was not a joke, it was not making fun for pillaring me or the administration or the President. It was appearing to directly mislead the American public about a significant fact.
KREUTZ: But Anna Gomez, lone Democrat on the FCC panel, says the government is expressing free speech.
ANNA GOMEZ (Democratic commissioner, FCC): This administration has weaponized the licensing power of the FCC in order to pressure broadcasters. They want only to have coverage in the way that they want to have it and this is a clear violation of the First Amendment.
KREUTZ: The move by ABC two months after CBS announced it’s canceling The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, another Trump critic, and amid multiple lawsuits President Trump has filed against news organizations.
In a statement, former President Obama slamming the White House, writing, “After years of complaining about cancel culture, the current administration has taken it to a new and dangerous level by routinely threatening regulatory action against media companies unless they muzzle for fire reporters and commentators it doesn’t like.”
[Cuts back to live]
LLAMAS: Liz joins us now outside Jimmy Kimmel’s studio. And Liz, I guess the big question tonight is have we heard from Kimmel himself?
KREUTZ: Tom. No. Kimmel has not yet commented publicly, but his friend Nevada Senator Jackie Rosen says she did speak to him and said he is worried about his staff right now and also his ability to continue doing his political commentary. ABC has also remained silent today. They have not said if or when the show will be back on the air. Tom.
LLAMA: Okay. Liz Kreutz, leading us off tonight. Liz thank you.
