Hey kids, it’s Throwback Thursday time, and does MAZE have a doozy for us! Remember when Fox News took Tucker Carlson off the air over a content dispute, and everyone on the Left rushed to his defense and accused Fox of violating the First Amendment?
Er … neither do I. However, I do recall a lot of celebrating over Carlson’s abrupt departure on the Left. Among the most, ahem, colorful of these was in fact Jimmy Kimmel. MAZE gives us the flavor of that live-studio monologue, in which Kimmel channeled Noel Coward by claiming that Carlson had emerged from “Satan’s b***hole.”
2023. Jimmy Kimmel celebrates Tucker Carlson getting fired from Fox. pic.twitter.com/KkvVRc4At6
— MAZE (@mazemoore) September 18, 2025
How charming! What a delightfully classy moment for Disney.
As it turns out, though, the two cancellations — assuming Kimmel’s off permanently at ABC — have something else in common. Carlson reportedly got taken off the air when Fox execs got wind of what he planned to say on the air in his next show, where (again, reportedly) he was going to double down on the Ray Epps theory of January 6. Epps was making moves to take legal action against those who made those accusations at the time, and Fox already had its hands full with Dominion and Smartmatic. When Fox execs (reportedly!) ordered him to drop it, he refused, and they “indefinitely suspended” him.
This also turns out to be a Throwback Thursday situation with Kimmel. According to the Hollywood Reporter, Kimmel planned to put his claims that the assassin of Charlie Kirk was MAGA “into context” rather than retract and apologize:
A source tells The Hollywood Reporter Kimmel was prepared to address the backlash on Wednesday night’s show. He planned to explain what he said and demonstrate how it was taken out of context.
When asked by THR, the source said that Kimmel was not planning on apologizing. He felt that what he said did not require an apology.
Just for “context,” here’s the actual quote from Kimmel that raised outrage:
In his Monday night broadcast, Kimmel—a critic of President Trump—said, “the Maga Gang [is] 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. “In between the finger-pointing, there was grieving,” he said.
Kimmel also said Vice President JD Vance and others in “MAGA-land” were trying to capitalize on Kirk’s death.
Fox News took action on its own without official government pressure, although the State Department’s Global Engagement Center and its allies were constantly going after Fox’s shows and their advertisers, sotto voce. That’s because Fox News Channel does not broadcast its signal and therefore the FCC has no jurisdiction over it, as I explained earlier, but it doesn’t mean that government pressure didn’t touch Fox News or many other conservative commentators and platforms.
Carr may have goosed Disney and its affiliates yesterday into taking action, and I agree with Matt Taibbi that it will muddy the waters on what should have been a more free-market response. However, the affiliates clearly had concerns about the show’s continuation before Carr spoke up, and Sinclair — which owns 24 ABC affiliates and is the largest affiliate group in their umbrella — made it clear that FCC action is not their primary interest in getting Kimmel off the air. After ABC announced Kimmel’s “indefinite suspension,” Sinclair put out a statement that it would not be enough to satisfy them:
“Mr. Kimmel’s remarks were inappropriate and deeply insensitive at a critical moment for our country,” said Vice Chairman Jason Smith. “We believe broadcasters have a responsibility to educate and elevate respectful, constructive dialogue in our communities. We appreciate FCC Chairman Carr’s remarks today, and this incident highlights the critical need for the FCC to take immediate regulatory action to address control held over local broadcasters by the big national networks.”
Sinclair’s ABC stations will air a special in remembrance of Charlie Kirk this Friday, during the Jimmy Kimmel Live! timeslot. The special will also air across all Sinclair stations this weekend. In addition, Sinclair is offering the special to all ABC affiliates across the country.
Sinclair will not lift the suspension of Jimmy Kimmel Live! on our stations until formal discussions are held with ABC regarding the network’s commitment to professionalism and accountability.
Sinclair also call upon Mr. Kimmel to issue a direct apology to the Kirk family. Furthermore, Sinclair asks Mr. Kimmel to make a meaningful personal donation to the Kirk Family and Turning Point USA.
Regardless of ABC’s plans for the future of the program, Sinclair intends not to return Jimmy Kimmel Live! to our air until we are confident that appropriate steps have been taken to uphold the standards expected of a national broadcast platform.
Does anyone expect Kimmel to apologize with any sincerity and make a “meaningful personal donation” to either the Kirks or TPUSA? Of course not. Sinclair set those terms to ensure that Disney understands that Kimmel is basically dead to them in the future, and that Celebrity Family Feud looks comparatively lucrative in that slot. Disney would likely have to make those “meaningful” donations in his name to satisfy Sinclair, and Kimmel just isn’t worth it. In the meantime, the Charlie Kirk tribute show will air on ABC’s banner in places like Washington DC, which is a hardly-subtle signal to Disney about the content it receives from ABC in normal circumstances.
Carr may have muddied the waters a bit, but this is affiliate power being flexed. It’s also karma coming back on someone who clearly deserved its embrace.
Update: This also points to a free-market response being the strongest part of this move.
ABC lucked out as CBS did. The world is moving past expensive late-night linear TV and they get to cut one of the cinderblocks sinking them without having to admit failure to their shareholders. https://t.co/OKDxQcKmK1
— Townhall Media JG (@JonGarthwaite) September 18, 2025
Kimmel was always likely to be next. The only question is how long NBC and its new ownership wants to keep the Tonight Show brand before conceding to reality.
Editor’s Note: Every single day, here at Hot Air, we will stand up and FIGHT, FIGHT, FIGHT against the radical left and deliver the conservative reporting our readers deserve. Sometimes, however, we just point and laugh, and let the radical Left embarrass itself. This is one of those times.
Help us continue to point, laugh, and expose the idiocy of progressive elites. Join Hot Air VIP and use promo code FIGHT to get 60% off your membership!
