‘Victim blaming, spreading lies’: What did Jimmy Kimmel say about Charlie Kirk that led ABC to suspend his show?
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What did Jimmy Kimmel say about Charlie Kirk that led ABC to suspend his show? Photograph: (Reuters)
ABC suspended Jimmy Kimmel Live! indefinitely after outrage over his remarks on Charlie Kirk’s assassination. Conservatives accused Kimmel of victim-blaming, prompting FCC threats, while Trump celebrated the decision and mocked the host’s ratings.
Jimmy Kimmel’s late-night programme has been suspended indefinitely after his comments about the assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk sparked outrage in MAGA circles. ABC announced that Jimmy Kimmel Live! would be “pre-empted indefinitely” just hours after conservative commentator Benny Johnson accused Kimmel of “victim blaming” and spreading “lies” in his Monday night monologue. “This is sick,” Johnson wrote on X. He claimed Kimmel was “explicitly stating that MAGA killed Charlie Kirk and is victim-blaming the assassination on Charlie’s movement.”
What exactly did Kimmel say?
During his show, Kimmel mocked Donald Trump’s response to the death of his ally. “We hit some new lows over the weekend with the MAGA gang desperately trying to characterise this kid who murdered Charlie Kirk as anything other than one of them,” he told his audience.
He went on to play a clip of Trump telling a reporter he was doing “very good” just days after Kirk’s killing, before pivoting to a discussion about building a new White House ballroom. “He’s at the fourth stage of grief: construction. This is not how an adult grieves the murder of someone he called a friend. This is how a 4-year-old mourns a goldfish,” Kimmel joked
How did conservatives respond?
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Johnson demanded Kimmel “be held accountable”, while FCC Chairman Brendan Carr, a Trump appointee, threatened action against ABC. “What appears to be an action by Jimmy Kimmel to play into that narrative that this was somehow a MAGA or Republican-motivated person… is really, really sick. This is a very, very serious issue right now for Disney,” Carr said on Johnson’s show.
Trump celebrated ABC’s move, posting on Truth Social, “Great News for America: The ratings-challenged Jimmy Kimmel Show is CANCELLED… Kimmel has ZERO talent, and worse ratings than even Colbert, if that’s possible.”
Who was Charlie Kirk?
Kirk, 31, was the founder of Turning Point USA and host of a popular right-wing podcast. He became one of Trump’s closest allies and a fixture in conservative politics. He was shot dead last week in Utah. Authorities identified the suspect as 22-year-old Tyler Robinson, who allegedly texted his partner that he had “had enough” of Kirk’s “hatred.”
