Sinclair Broadcast Group will resume airing “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” on its ABC-affiliated stations Friday evening, ending a contentious, politically charged blackout of the late-night program. The decision means the show will return to major markets like Washington, D.C., and Seattle, along with dozens of others across the country.
However, Nexstar Media Group, the other major station owner that pulled the show, has not yet announced whether it will follow suit. Together, Sinclair and Nexstar own roughly 20% of ABC’s affiliate stations nationwide.
The controversy began after Kimmel’s September 15 monologue concerning the suspected killer of conservative activist Charlie Kirk. The segment drew conservative backlash, which intensified after FCC Commissioner Brendan Carr condemned Kimmel and threatened to review the broadcast licenses of local stations that aired the program.
Following Carr’s statements, both Sinclair and Nexstar pulled the show from their schedules, prompting ABC to preempt it nationwide. Although ABC reinstated the program nationally earlier this week, the two station groups continued their local blackouts, leading to accusations they were attempting to curry favor with the Trump administration.
In a statement Friday, Sinclair denied any political motivation, claiming its “decision to preempt this program was independent of any government interaction or influence.” The company had previously called for Kimmel to apologize and for ABC to hold “formal discussions” on accountability. Sinclair said Friday it had proposed new measures to ABC, such as a “network-wide independent ombudsman,” but the network did not accept them.
On Thursday, Kimmel addressed the blackout in his monologue, highlighting an unintended consequence. “Even though we are still being preempted in 60 American cities, on Tuesday, we had our second-highest rated show in almost 23 years on the air,” he said. “Our monologue from Tuesday night has more than 21 million views just on YouTube alone. And I want to say, we couldn’t have done it without you, Mr. President. Thank you very much. We got the Trump bump, and we appreciate it.”
Source link
