By Dawn Chmielewski
(Reuters) – Democratic lawmakers and Hollywood writers and actors condemned what they called an attack on free speech led by U.S. President Donald Trump after talk-show host Jimmy Kimmel was pulled off the air for comments about the murdered right-wing activist Charlie Kirk.
ABC, the broadcaster owned by Walt Disney, said on Wednesday it was yanking “Jimmy Kimmel Live” indefinitely. At least one local TV station affiliate had said it would replace the show on its airwaves, and the nation’s top communications regulator threatened to investigate Kimmel’s commentary about Kirk, a prominent Trump ally.
The late-night host, a frequent Trump critic, said on his show on Monday that Kirk’s allies were using his assassination to “score political points”. Kirk, 31, was shot onstage as he debated students at a university in Utah on Sept. 10.
Leaders of the Democratic minority in the U.S. House of Representatives said Trump and his Republican Party were mounting an assault on free speech rights guaranteed in the U.S. Constitution’s First Amendment.
In the Democrats’ joint statement, they accused TV networks of cowardice and Brendan Carr, the chairman of the Federal Communications Commission appointed by Trump, of a “corrupt abuse of power.”
“He has disgraced the office he holds by bullying ABC, the employer of Jimmy Kimmel, and forcing the company to bend the knee to the Trump administration,” their statement said.
In the week since Kirk’s murder, Kimmel is the most famous American to face professional blowback for making comments seen by conservatives as speaking ill of Kirk, alongside media figures, academic workers, teachers and corporate employees.
Writers’ and actors’ labor unions said the move amounted to an attack on constitutionally protected free-speech rights, saying ABC should not have caved in the face of U.S. government pressure.
“What we have signed on to – painful as it may be at times – is the freeing agreement to disagree,” the Writers Guild of America West and Writers Guild of America East said in a joint statement. “Shame on those in government who forget this founding truth. As for our employers, our words have made you rich. Silencing us impoverishes the whole world.”
A 22-year-old suspect has been charged with Kirk’s murder, and his precise motive remains unclear. Kirk’s death spurred an outpouring of grief among fans while also galvanizing some prominent right-wing supporters to target people who were critical of Kirk’s views or joked about his killing.
SAG-AFTRA, the union representing actors, condemned the scrapping of the show, saying “the decision to suspend airing Jimmy Kimmel Live! is the type of suppression and retaliation that endangers everyone’s freedoms.” Actor Ben Stiller wrote “this isn’t right” in a social media post.
Trump has repeatedly threatened to pull licenses from television stations and has pressured broadcasters to stop airing content he finds objectionable. He has also trained his ire on print media with the filing of a $15 billion defamation lawsuit against the New York Times.
Earlier on Wednesday, Carr had urged local broadcasters to stop airing the show. Kimmel, who has frequently targeted Trump on his late-night comedy show, did not respond to a request for comment.
ABC pulled the show after Nexstar Media Group, which owns 32 ABC affiliates, said it would stop airing the show following Kimmel’s September 10 comments, when he suggested that “the MAGA gang” was “doing everything they can to score political points” off of Kirk’s assassination. He also criticized Trump’s mourning, comparing it to “how a four-year-old mourns a goldfish.”
Shares of Disney traded down nearly 1% after the market opened on Thursday, suggesting investors did not think the Kimmel news would damage the company’s financial prospects too much.
Carr, in Wednesday remarks to conservative podcaster Benny Johnson, said “we can do this the easy way or the hard way,” suggesting the regulator could open investigations and broadcasters could face fines. He praised Nexstar, saying that “it is important for broadcasters to push back on Disney programming that they determine falls short of community values.”
The American Federation of Musicians said that “Trump’s FCC identified speech it did not like and threatened ABC with extreme reprisals. This is state censorship.”
(Reporting by Dawn Chmielewski in Los Angeles; additional reporting by Dave Shepardson and Trevor Hunnicutt in Washington and Lisa Richwine in Los Angeles; writing by David Gaffen; Editing by Lincoln Feast and Alistair Bell)
Disclaimer: This report is auto generated from the Reuters news service. ThePrint holds no responsibility for its content.