A week after the late-night program was taken off the air, “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” and its titular long-time host returns to screens across the country tonight.
But not for TV-watchers in a handful of Michigan television markets.
The show, which airs on ABC, was pulled by the network’s parent company indefinitely last week after on-air comments related to the recent fatal shooting of conservative commentator Charlie Kirk.
In a Sept. 17 podcast interview, Brendan Carr, chairman of the Federal Communications Commission, remarked critically to comments Kimmel made live the previous night, referring to the reaction to Kirk’s killing among Donald Trump supports and the president himself. Carr advocated for pulling the show, saying Kimmel’s words were “some of the sickest conduct possible.”
Soon after, companies Nexstar Media Group and Sinclair Broadcast Group announced they’d pull Kimmel programming from their ABC affiliates, and Walt Disney Co., which owns ABC, followed suit.
While Walt Disney announced this week it was returning the weeknight talk show to the air at 10:35 p.m. ET Tuesday, Sept. 23, on ABC, Nexstar and Sinclair dug in their heels to continue preempting Kimmel’s show.
“We stand by that decision pending assurance that all parties are committed to fostering an environment of respectful, constructive dialogue in the markets we serve,” Nexstar said in a Tuesday statement.
Sinclair said discussions with ABC on Kimmel’s return are ongoing.
The following are the communities whose ABC affiliates are owned by Sinclair or Nexstar and won’t broadcast Kimmel:
Battle Creek – WOTV
Cheboygan – WGTQ
Lansing – WLAJ
Sault Ste. Marie – WGTQ
Traverse City – WTOM-TV
Read more: Michigan photojournalist recalls fatal Charlie Kirk shooting, ‘My hands were shaking’
When Disney suspended Kimmel’s show last week, other late-night hosts, celebrities and politicians stood by Kimmel or spoke out about free speech concerns, as while Trump praised the suspension.
Under other ownership, several ABC affiliates are expected to air Kimmel as announced.
The Battle Creek and Lansing affiliates are owned by Nexstar, while the Cheboygan, Sault Ste. Marie and Traverse City affiliates are owned by Sinclair.
Those include Alpena and Marquette stations WBKB-TV and WBUP, which are owned by Morgan Murphy Media, E. W. Scripps Company’s WXYZ Detroit, the Allen Group’s WJRT-TV in Flint and WZZM in Grand Rapids as owned by Tegna Inc.
“Jimmy Kimmel Live!” should also be available on streaming services along with other ABC content via Hulu, which Walt Disney Co. owns, as well as other providers including Sling TV or DirecTV.
