After one week off the air, Jimmy Kimmel Live! will be back on most ABC stations tomorrow night. Last Tuesday, FCC Chairman Brendan Carr threatened to revoke ABC's broadcast license because Kimmel said things concerning Charlie Kirk's assassination that he (and President Trump) didn't like.
Not all ABC stations will air the show, however. Sinclair Broadcasting which has ownership of 39 ABC affiliates will continue to preempt the show.
What strikes me the most about Disney's announcement is this passage:
We have spent the last days having thoughtful conversations with Jimmy, and after those conversations, we reached the decision to return the show on Tuesday.
And how will these thoughtful conversations affect the show going forward?
Will Kimmel issue an apology? If so, then to whom? Kirk's widow? The FCC Chair? President Trump? All of the above.
Will Kimmel be forced to announce that ABC is going to make donations to Turning Point USA or to the Trump Presidential Library?
Assuming Kimmel does this bit of groveling will it be enough to mollify Sinclair much less MAGA? I wouldn't count on it. If a significant chunk of ABC networks refuses to air Kimmel, then I cannot help but wonder if his return will prove to be short-lived.
I am also concerned that Kimmel has made himself a target and that some MAGA extremist will see fit to exact revenge for Kirk's death by either assassinating or attempting to assassinate Kimmel. In our age of anger and irrationality, I don't think we can discount the possibility. At the very minimum, I hope security for Kimmel's shows going forward is tighter than Fort Knox.
The best-case scenario in all of this is that freedom of speech in America is still alive despite the worst efforts of the Trump Administration. But this won't be the last time Trump and the FCC go after Kimmel or some other show which gets in their crosshairs and expresses impure thoughts.
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