Two of ABC’s largest broadcasting groups — Nexstar Media Group and Sinclair Broadcast Group — will not air Jimmy Kimmel’s late-night show on their ABC affiliate channels, the two groups announced separately, following Disney’s reinstatement of the host to his original timeslot.
Sinclair and Nexstar together account for one quarter of ABC’s affiliate channels, covering largely populated areas such as the D.C. metro area, Nashville, and Seattle, for example. Sinclair operates 38 ABC affiliate channels, while Nexstar operates 28 channels — ABC has 240 stations nationwide.
“We made a decision last week to preempt ‘Jimmy Kimmel Live!’ following what ABC referred to as Mr. Kimmel’s ‘ill-timed and insensitive’ comments at a critical time in our national discourse,” Nexstar said in a statement. “We stand by that decision pending assurance that all parties are committed to fostering an environment of respectful, constructive dialogue in the markets we serve.”
Disney originally suspended the show after insensitive comments Kimmel made about Charlie Kirk’s assassination.
Kimmel’s $16 million contract with Disney expires in May 2026. Disney said that after having “thoughtful conversations” with Kimmel, they decided that it is appropriate for him to resume the show.
“Beginning Tuesday night, Sinclair will be preempting Jimmy Kimmel Live! across our ABC affiliate stations and replacing it with news programming,” the company said in a statement. “Discussions with ABC are ongoing as we evaluate the show’s potential return.”
Sinclair channels aired a memorial special in remembrance of Kirk last Friday in place of Kimmel’s late night show. The group doubled down by not reinstating the show, and called upon Kimmel to make a “meaningful personal donation to the Kirk Family and Turning Point USA.”
ABC’s decision to suspend Kimmel came after Federal Communications Commissions Chair Brendan Carr issued a thinly veiled threat against the network on a podcast.
“Look, we can do this the easy way or the hard way. These companies can find ways to change conduct, to take action, frankly, on Kimmel, or, you know, there’s going to be additional work for the FCC ahead,” Carr said at the time.
The comments prompted staunch bipartisan criticism from free speech advocates who believe Carr crossed the line by threatening to revoke ABC’s broadcast license if they didn’t take action to silence Kimmel.
Carr later backtracked, saying that the FCC would not involve itself in ABC’s programming decisions.
“What I spoke about last week was that when concerns are raised about news distortion, there’s a way — there’s an easy way — for parties to address that and work that out,” Carr said during a conference on Monday. “That takes place between local television stations that are licensed by the FCC and what we call national programmers, like Disney. They work that out. There doesn’t need to be any involvement of the FCC.”
Kimmel’s show is will still be available across Disney’s multiple streaming networks.