President Donald Trump celebrated the news of late-night host Jimmy Kimmel’s suspension off the air on Wednesday night.
ABC announced Wednesday that it will suspend “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” indefinitely after comments the host made about Charlie Kirk’s death prompted some ABC-affiliated stations to say they would not air the show.
Trump lauded the decision to take Kimmel off the air in a Truth Social post.
“Great News for America: The ratings challenged Jimmy Kimmel Show is CANCELLED. Congratulations to ABC for finally having the courage to do what had to be done. Kimmel has ZERO talent, and worse ratings than even Colbert, if that’s possible,” he said, referring to CBS’s Stephen Colbert of “The Late Show.”
Trump has feuded with Kimmel and a number of late-night hosts for years, urging the networks to part ways with the popular comics who frequently criticize the president. After Paramount announced earlier this year that it would be canceling “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert,” Trump took a similar victory lap.
Now, he is urging NBC to ax “Tonight Show” host Jimmy Fallon and “Late Night” host Seth Meyers from the network. He has repeatedly taken aim at both Fallon and Meyers, critiquing their shows for low ratings.
“That leaves Jimmy and Seth, two total losers, on Fake News NBC. Their ratings are also horrible. Do it NBC!!!” Trump added on Truth Social.
The suspension also comes after FCC Chairman Brendan Carr threatened to take action against the network over Kimmel’s comments. On Monday’s show, Kimmel suggested that Kirk’s alleged killer, 22-year-old Tyler Robinson, could have been a MAGA Republican.
“The MAGA Gang (is) 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,” Kimmel said. “In between the finger-pointing, there was grieving.”
ABC’s decision to suspend Kimmel’s show comes after Nexstar Communications Group said it would preempt the show indefinitely starting on Wednesday. Andrew Alford, president of Nexstar’s broadcasting division, called Kimmel’s comments “offensive and insensitive” in a statement.
Both Disney and Nexstar have FCC business ahead of them. Disney is seeking regulatory approval for ESPN’s acquisition of the NFL Network and Nexstar needs the Trump administration go-ahead to complete its $6.2 billion purchase of broadcast rival Tegna.
For both companies, reinstating Kimmel after a suspension would risk the ire of Trump, who has already claimed that the show has been canceled.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.