By Editorial Board

Copyright washingtontimes

Several ABC affiliates said they were going to air a tribute to Charlie Kirk on Friday instead of “Jimmy Kimmel Live.” That would have been a smart move, pulling in far higher ratings than the “comedy” talk show whose viewership dwindled as it became less and less funny and more and more woke.

Sinclair Broadcasting, the largest owner of local stations that carry ABC programming, backed out at the last minute and placed the hourlong documentary about Turning Point USA’s fallen leader on its YouTube channel. On Monday, Disney’s ABC said Mr. Kimmel’s “indefinite suspension” would end on Tuesday, and it was reported that the late-night host would address his offensive remarks on Charlie Kirk’s assassin during the taping.

If you believe liberal propagandists, late-night talk show host Jimmy Kimmel was taken off the air at the behest of Federal Communications Commission Chairman Brendan Carr. Liberal pundits insist the regulator bullied the megacorporations into dumping Mr. Kimmel, a critic of Donald Trump.

Rather than bend to Mr. Carr’s will, it’s far more likely that network executives indefinitely suspended “Jimmy Kimmel Live” to avoid being embarrassed by the rebellion of affiliate stations refusing to air the show.

Advertisers were calling Nexstar Media Group and Sinclair, collective owners of 66 stations, to express concern about the blowback from having their products pitched alongside Mr. Kimmel’s lies. The low-rated host had the temerity to blame Republicans for Charlie Kirk’s assassination on a college campus earlier this month.

“We hit some new lows over the weekend with the MAGA gang desperately trying to characterize this kid who murdered Charlie Kirk as anything but one of them and doing everything they can to score political points from it,” Mr. Kimmel said.

Investigators released text messages from the accused shooter that outlined his motivation for attacking Kirk: “I had enough of his hatred. Some hate can’t be negotiated out.” The messages describe a full week of preparation that went into executing the evil act.

It’s hard to construe such words as an endorsement of Mr. Trump and his Make America Great Again agenda. Early on, an abundance of evidence pointed to the killer being a lefty, but the truth never matters to Mr. Kimmel.

The talk show host declined to apologize for getting it wrong, which was the final straw for the bigwigs at ABC’s corporate overlord, Disney. It wasn’t worth the headache to keep Mr. Kimmel’s moribund program on the air.

Lest there be any doubt about who is behind the ouster, Nexstar and Sinclair each issued clarifying press releases. “Sinclair will not lift the suspension of ‘Jimmy Kimmel Live’ on our stations until formal discussions are held with ABC regarding the network’s commitment to professionalism and accountability,” the company explained.

The public notices the slipping standard of conduct. In the 1970s, 70% of Americans trusted ABC, NBC and CBS when they held a monopoly on television news. In Gallup’s survey last year, only 31% said they had at least a “fair amount” of confidence in big media’s reporting, which means faith in their objectivity is at a 50-year low.

The number would have been much worse but for the credulous Democrats who require external validation of their delusions from corporate media conglomerates. Thanks to the rise of independent media alternatives, the rest of the public, including independents and Republicans, has caught on to the brazen lies and omissions.

Americans can continue encouraging public-spirited behavior in Hollywood and Manhattan by voting with their wallets. Liberalism no longer sells, which is why firing Mr. Kimmel is the right business move. We’ll see how Mr. Kimmel addresses the matter during his show on Tuesday.