September 17, 2025
ABC suspends Jimmy Kimmel Live after FCC chair Brendan Carr warns affiliates
Broadcasters self-censor as administration weaponizes licensing authority
🏛️Government📰Media Literacy
ABC and parent Walt Disney paused production of Jimmy Kimmel Live after FCC Chair Brendan Carr publicly criticized Jimmy Kimmel's monologue about the killing of Charlie Kirk and warned that broadcasters have 'an obligation to operate in the public interest.' Major ABC affiliates owned by Nexstar Media Group and Sinclair Broadcast Group preempted the program in many markets, and Disney suspended the show while talks with Kimmel and affiliate owners continued.
Senator Ted Cruz compared Carr's tone to Mafia-style intimidation. Several late-night hosts condemned the suspension; reports differ on the exact phrasing used by individual hosts.
ABC and Disney suspended production of Jimmy Kimmel Live on Sept 17, 2025; Disney announced the show's return for Sept 23, 2025.
FCC Chair 
Brendan Carr told a conservative podcast on Sept 17, 2025, that broadcasters 'have a license granted by us at the FCC, and that comes with it an obligation to operate in the public interest,' and he warned affiliates there could be 'additional work for the FCC ahead.'
Nexstar and Sinclair preempted Kimmel on many ABC affiliates; together they control about 70 ABC affiliates and roughly a quarter of ABC's national coverage.
The FCC licenses local broadcast stations, not television networks, and its content enforcement authority is limited to narrow categories such as obscenity and timed indecency rules.
🏛️Government📰Media Literacy
People, bills, and sources
Brendan Carr
Chair, Federal Communications Commission
Jimmy Kimmel
Host, Jimmy Kimmel Live!
Nexstar Media Group and Sinclair Broadcast Group
Major ABC affiliate owners
Senator Ted Cruz
U.S. Senator, oversight role over FCC
What You Can Do
1
understanding
Check the FCC's authority before assuming license revocation is plausible
The FCC licenses local stations, not networks, and can enforce narrow content rules; review 47 U.S.C. and FCC guidance before asserting license revocation threats.
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