In a monologue on 15 September 2025, Jimmy Kimmel commented on the killing of Turning Point USA co-founder Charlie Kirk and on the response of Trump supporters to it, including a remark about how the president was publicly mourning Kirk.
Preemption and suspension
On 17 September, FCC Chairman Brendan Carr discussed the monologue on a podcast hosted by Benny Johnson, saying: “We can do this the easy way or the hard way. These companies can find ways to change conduct and take action, frankly, on Kimmel, or there’s going to be additional work for the FCC ahead.” The same day, Nexstar Media Group and Sinclair Broadcast Group each announced that their ABC affiliates would preempt the show, and ABC announced an indefinite suspension. Disney said the remarks were “ill-timed and thus insensitive.”
The Commission itself took no formal action against ABC or Disney over the monologue; Carr had spoken on his own rather than through a Commission proceeding. Carr said afterwards that Kimmel had not been suspended because of government action.
Return
Disney announced on 22 September that the show would return, and it aired on 23 September to the largest regular-episode audience in its history. Nexstar and Sinclair stations resumed carriage on 26 September. In December 2025 ABC announced a contract extension running through the 2026-27 season; the show remained on the air through 2026.
Reactions and follow-on
Trump welcomed the suspension and suggested other networks cancel their late-night programs. Writers’ and performers’ unions objected to it as pressure on editorial content. Eleven senators wrote to Carr on 18 September; Senate and House committees held hearings on the episode in December 2025 and January 2026. Republican senators including Ted Cruz and Rand Paul also criticized Carr’s remarks.
The episode is frequently cited as an illustration of how broadcast licensees, unlike digital platforms, sit within a federal regulatory relationship. The sequence of events is documented; the extent to which the FCC chairman’s comments caused Disney’s decision is contested, and Disney did not attribute the suspension to them.