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By Peter Aitken
Politics Weekend Editor
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Broadcast media groups Nexstar and Sinclair have both announced they will no long pre-empt Jimmy Kimmel Live! just days after the show returned to the airwaves following a brief suspension by parent company ABC.
Newsweek reached out to The Walt Disney Company for comment by email on Friday afternoon.
Why It Matters
The national broadcaster had initially suspended the show after Nexstar Media Group and Sinclair Broadcast Group, which together own or operate 70 ABC affiliate stations covering nearly a quarter of U.S. households, refused to air the program due to comments Kimmel made following the assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk.
Jimmy Kimmel show returning to ABC's Nexstar, Sinclair stations on News
The collective decision by Nexstar and Sinclair, and subsequently ABC, to stop airing Jimmy Kimmel Live! sparked a weeklong controversy and concerns about censorship, editorial independence, and political influence.
The reversal may signal a broader reckoning over how local stations balance community values with national programming mandates.
What To Know
Nexstar on Friday released a statement explaining its decision to start broadcasting Kimmel again, saying, in part, that they remain "committed to protecting the First Amendment while producing and airing local and national news that is fact-based and unbiased and, above al, broadcasting content that is in the best interest of the communities we serve."
Sinclair earlier on Friday announced it would start airing "Kimmel" again, also highlighting in a statement its commitment to community standards and national programming obligations, while denying any government pressure behind the initial decision to pull the late-night talk show.
Nexstar in its statement said: "We have had discussions with executives at The Walt Disney Company and appreciate their constructive approach to addressing our concerns. As a local broadcaster, Nexstar remains committed to protecting the First Amendment while producing and airing local and national news that is fact-based and unbiased and, above all, broadcasting content that is in the best interest of the communities we serve. We stand apart from cable television, monolithic streaming services, and national networks in our commitment – and obligation – to be stewards of the public airwaves and to protect and reflect the specific sensibilities of our communities. To be clear, our commitment to those principles has guided our decisions throughout this process, independent of any external influence from government agencies or individuals."
ABC returned Kimmel to the air with much fanfare, drawing the program's biggest ratings in years with 6.26 million viewers—far surpassing the usual late-night ratings. For comparison, The Late Show with Stephen Colbert topped the late-night chart with an average of 2.42 million viewers in Q2 of 2025.
Nexstar and Sinclair missed out on that massive audience surge, with their blackout affecting markets in Seattle, Nashville, Salt Lake City, and Washington, D.C.
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What did Jimmy Kimmel Say That Led to The Show Suspension?
During the opening monologue of an episode last week, Kimmel said: "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.
"In between the finger pointing there was grieving. On Friday, the White House flew the flags at half-staff, which got some criticism, but on a human level you can see how hard the President is taking this."
The late-night host then played a clip of President Donald Trump being asked how he has been holding up since the killing, to which Trump responds, "I think very good," and begins to discuss plans for the new White House ballroom.
The show then cuts back to Kimmel, who continues: "Yes, he's at the fourth stage of grief: construction. Demolition...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, OK. And it didn't just happen once."
What did Jimmy Kimmel Say in His Returning Monologue?
During his return monologue, Kimmel confronted the backlash head-on, telling viewers he never intended to trivialize the killing of a young man. His voice cracked as he defended the role of satire and criticized what he described as intimidation from the Trump administration.
He also took a jab at Disney’s corporate interests, mockingly reciting promotional lines about reactivating Disney+ and Hulu subscriptions.
What People Are Saying
Representative Doris Matsui of California, a Democrat, wrote on X: "Nexstar and Sinclair have folded under the pressure of OUR voices. Jimmy Kimmel will be on the air across the nation, as it should have always been. This proves that the most effective way to defend our rights is to exercise them. Now we must pass my Broadcast Freedom and Independence Act so this never happens again."
Representative Maria Cantwell of Washington, a Democrat, wrote on X: "I’m glad Sinclair and Nexstar listened to the communities they serve and returned Jimmy Kimmel to the air, including to KOMO-TV in Seattle. Local broadcasters have a duty to air programming that serves their communities of license."
Sinclair in its statement on Friday, in part: ""In our ongoing and constructive discussions with ABC, Sinclair proposed measures to strengthen accountability, viewer feedback, and community dialogue, including a network-wide independent ombudsman. These proposals were suggested as collaborative efforts between the ABC affiliates and the ABC network. While ABC and Disney have not yet adopted these measures, and Sinclair respects their right to make those decisions under our network affiliate agreements, we believe such measures could strengthen trust and accountability.
"Our decision to preempt this program was independent of any government interaction or influence. Free speech provides broadcasters with the right to exercise judgment as to the content on their local stations. While we understand that not everyone will agree with our decisions about programming, it is simply inconsistent to champion free speech while demanding that broadcasters air specific content," the media company added.
Update 9/26/25, 6:45 p.m. ET: This article has been updated with additional information.
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