Nexstar Media Group, Inc., announced on Tuesday that it will continue to preempt “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” despite Disney allowing the show to return to ABC.
“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. 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,” the company said in a statement.
“In the meantime, we note that ‘Jimmy Kimmel Live!’ will be available nationwide on multiple Disney-owned streaming products, while our stations will focus on continuing to produce local news and other programming relevant to their respective markets,” Nexstar added.
Nexstar owns 32 ABC affiliate stations.
Sinclair Broadcast Group, which operates 30 ABC affiliates, also announced Monday it would continue to preempt the show.
“Beginning Tuesday night, Sinclair will be preempting ‘Jimmy Kimmel Live!’ across our ABC affiliate stations and replacing it with news programming. Discussions with ABC are ongoing as we evaluate the show’s potential return,” the company’s statement read.
Kimmel’s late-night show was initially pulled off the air last Wednesday after Kimmel’s remarks about the alleged assassin of Charlie Kirk sparked outrage and a veiled threat from the Federal Communications Commission (FCC). Disney decided to suspend the show after Nextar and Sinclair pulled airings of Kimmel from their stations, and Kimmel reportedly had told executives he would not apologize for his comments.
The situation caused outrage among liberals, who said Kimmel was being punished for exercising freedom of speech. Conservatives countered that Kimmel’s comments suggesting Kirk’s suspected killer was a MAGA member were outrageous and offensive.
Disney announced Kimmel’s return on Monday. He is expected to address the controversy on the show Tuesday night.
The saga began last Monday when Kimmel accused conservatives of reaching “new lows” in trying to pin a left-wing ideology on 22-year-old suspected Kirk assassin Tyler Robinson.
“We hit some new lows over the weekend with the MAGA gang 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.
On Wednesday, FCC Chairman Brendan Carr called Kimmel’s comments “some of the sickest conduct” and suggested there were potential “avenues” the FCC could pursue. Nexstar Media Group is the largest local television broadcasting group in the U.S., with more than 200 owned or partner stations that serve 220 million people in 116 U.S. markets.
Last month, Nexstar announced a deal to acquire broadcast media company Tegna for $6.2 billion, which Nexstar said will help ensure the viability of local news and programming.
Nexstar noted that its station footprint overlaps with Tegna in 35 of Tegna’s 51 market areas, while also boosting its affiliate network in key election markets like Phoenix, Atlanta, Toledo, Ohio, and Portland, Maine, to increase political advertising revenue.
Nexstar’s acquisition of Tegna requires the approval of the FCC.
By Fox News
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