Late night comedian Jimmy Kimmel’s show was indefinitely suspended by ABC Wednesday. The action came after Federal Communications Commission Chair Brendan Carr threatened reprisals against ABC, Disney, and local stations over comments made by Kimmel regarding the reaction of right-wing activists to the murder of activist Charlie Kirk. ABC’s announcement came after Nexstar Media said it would not air the show on the 32 ABC affiliates it owns.
In July, Trump and Carr celebrated CBS’s cancellation of “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert,” and Trump declared, “Next up will be an even less talented Jimmy Kimmel.”
People For the American Way President Svante Myrick released the following statement:
President Trump has a dangerous habit of harassing, threatening, and punishing news outlets for coverage he doesn’t like. Corporate executives who collaborate with the Trump regime’s attacks on freedom of speech are betraying their viewers. Every time a media company gives in to Trump’s authoritarian demands, Americans are a bit less free. Americans, including comedians, have a right to say things that anger the people in power. If our First Amendment freedoms are to survive this presidency, we need more courage and less complicity from our leaders.
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About Us
People For the American Way is a national progressive advocacy organization that inspires and mobilizes Americans to defend freedom, justice, and democracy from those who threaten to take them away. For more than four decades, we have been dedicated to making the promise of America real for everyone and have worked toward a vision of a vibrant America where basic rights and freedoms are upheld for all, not just the wealthy and the powerful. Learn more: http://www.peoplefor.org
