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    Barack Obama slams Jimmy Kimmel’s cancellation in new statement as more celebrities speak out — see reactions

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    By Beatriz Colon

    Copyright hellomagazine

    Barack Obama slams Jimmy Kimmel's cancellation in new statement as more celebrities speak out — see reactions

    Both backlash against ABC and Disney and public support of Jimmy Kimmel has been swift in the wake of the network yanking the veteran TV host off of the air abruptly on Wednesday night. Following apparent pressure from FCC chairman Brendan Carr, who is meant to be an independent, non-partisan regulator, and later media conglomerates Nexstar and Sinclair’s decision to pull Jimmy Kimmel Live! from their affiliate stations over his comments on the aftermath of Charlie Kirk’s death, ABC halted production of the late night talk show indefinitely.

    His exact comments were: “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 … And 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.” He then cut to a video of Donald Trump deflecting a question about his longtime ally’s death, and changing the subject to construction of his new $200 million ballroom he’s building at the White House. “It’s going to be a beauty,” the president quipped.

    Trump has since celebrated news of Jimmy’s axing, as has the FCC chair he appointed, who speaking with right-wing podcaster Benny Johnson on Wednesday prior to the axing, called Jimmy’s comments about Charlie’s death “the sickest conduct possible,” and threatened: “We can do this the easy way or the hard way,” noting: “These companies can find ways to change conduct and take actions on Kimmel, or there’s going to be additional work for the FCC ahead.”

    The move was quick to spark concern among lawyers and media experts alike for its apparent affront to the First Amendment, with many others calling out the irony of it being supported by a party who have advertised themselves as supposed champions of free speech and against cancel culture. Scroll below for statements from politicians and celebrities alike denouncing the decision.

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