# Jimmy Kimmel **Jimmy Kimmel** (b. 1967) has hosted ABC's *Jimmy Kimmel Live!* since 2003 and is one of television's most persistent Trump critics. He matters to this KB because his show has twice been the pretext for the second Trump administration using broadcast licensing against speech it disliked. Each time the pressure landed on ABC's corporate parent, [[The Walt Disney Company]], and on the affiliate stations, not on him. ## Round one: the suspension (September 2025) - **Sept. 15, 2025.** In his monologue, Kimmel said the MAGA movement was trying to cast [[Charlie Kirk]]'s killer as anything other than one of their own. - **Sept. 17.** [[FCC]] Chairman [[Brendan Carr]] said on a conservative podcast: "We can do this the easy way or the hard way. These companies can find ways to change conduct." That same day **Nexstar**, whose merger with Tegna needed FCC approval, said it would preempt the show on its ABC stations. **Sinclair** followed, and ABC pulled the show "indefinitely." - **Sept. 18.** Democrats called for Carr's resignation, and the backlash against Disney included prominent conservatives who warned about the precedent. - **Sept. 23.** The show returned. Nexstar and Sinclair kept it off their stations until **Sept. 26**. ## Round two: the licenses (2026) On April 22, 2026, in a mock White House Correspondents' Dinner sketch, Kimmel told the First Lady she had "a glow like an expectant widow." Trump demanded on Truth Social that he be fired. On **April 28** the FCC ordered ABC to file **early license renewals for eight owned stations** within 30 days. Those licenses were not due until 2028 at the earliest. Disney and eight affiliate licensees sued on **Aug. 18, 2026**, alleging unconstitutional retaliation. See [[ABC and Disney v. FCC]]. ## Status In December 2025 Kimmel signed a one-year extension that runs through **May 2027**. On Sept. 8, 2026, Page Six reported the deal would not be renewed. ABC called the report "inaccurate" and said any reports about the show's future were "purely speculative." ## Why it matters Kimmel is the clearest demonstration of the **licensing pressure point**. The government never has to win a license proceeding. Starting one, or signalling that one could start, gives station groups with deals pending at the FCC a reason to pull programming themselves. In 2025 Nexstar's preemption came within hours of Carr's comments. The 2026 early-renewal order made the threat formal. ## See also - [[ABC and Disney v. FCC]] · [[Brendan Carr]] · [[FCC]] · [[ABC News]] - [[The Walt Disney Company]] · [[Bob Iger]] · [[Disney Timeline]] · [[Media Company Timelines Hub]]