ABC is pulling Jimmy Kimmel off the air indefinitely after the liberal late-night host used his show to push the conspiracy theory that Charlie Kirk's alleged killer was a MAGA supporter.
The news, which was first reported by the Wall Street Journal, came shortly after media company Nexstar announced it would not air Kimmel's show "for the foreseeable future beginning with tonight's show" as it "strongly objects to recent comments made by Mr. Kimmel concerning the killing of Charlie Kirk." It also came after Federal Communications Commission chairman Brendan Carr threatened ABC over Kimmel's Kirk segment.
"What appears to be an action by Jimmy Kimmel to play into that narrative that this was somehow a MAGA or Republican motivated person, if that's what happened here with his conduct, that is really, really sick," Carr said during a Wednesday interview with conservative commentator Benny Johnson, adding that ABC would need to take action against Kimmel or face federal "remedies."
Kimmel pushed the baseless theory that Kirk's alleged killer, Tyler Robinson, was a MAGA supporter during his Monday episode of ABC's Jimmy Kimmel Live! There was already evidence at that point suggesting the opposite: A bullet found in the alleged murder weapon was engraved with text that read, "hey fascist! Catch!"
"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," Kimmel said.
On Tuesday, Utah County district attorney Jeffrey Gray released additional evidence supporting that Robinson opposed Kirk for his MAGA viewpoints. He revealed text messages the alleged killer sent to his lover, who identifies as a transgender woman, saying he "had enough of [Kirk's] hatred. Some hate can't be negotiated out."
Instead of correcting his lie, Kimmel continued to accuse Republicans of using Kirk's murder to attack the left.
"Many in MAGA land are working very hard to capitalize on the murder of Charlie Kirk," Kimmel said Tuesday. "The president and his henchmen are doing their best to fan the flames so they can, I guess, attack people on the dangerous left."
Kimmel has long supported Democrats and their causes. He lobbed friendly questions to then-president Joe Biden while hosting a June 2024 Democratic fundraiser—the same fundraiser where the former president did not recognize George Clooney.
It's been a tough week for ABC. Matt Gutman, the chief national correspondent for the Disney-owned company's news arm, apologized for gushing over Robinson's texts to his lover.
"It was very touching in a way that I think many of us didn't expect. A very intimate portrait into this relationship between the suspect's roommate and the suspect himself, with him repeatedly calling his roommate, who is transitioning, calling him 'my love' and 'I want to protect you, my love,'" Gutman said Tuesday.
On Wednesday, he explained that he was trying "to underscore the jarring contrast between this cold blooded assassination of Charlie Kirk—a man who dedicated his life to public dialogue—and the personal, disturbing texts read aloud by the Utah County Attorney at the press conference."
"I deeply regret that my words did not make that clear," Gutman added.
