By Jennifer Saba
‘Disney may yet re-instate Kimmel. It may not get back lost viewers.’
NEW YORK – Among the stable of Walt Disney characters, boss Bob Iger has gone from Captain America to Bashful. Once locked in a fight with the state of Florida over a law banning school discussion of LGBTQ issues, the Magic Kingdom has now caved to pressure from a US regulator. The melodrama entangles a $6 billion broadcast deal and a late-night comedian. As traditional media turns to more tie-ups for survival, folding on dubious grounds only makes the industry weaker.
Disney-owned network ABC abruptly suspended talk show “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” indefinitely on Wednesday. The move followed a series of extraordinary events: in a podcast interview that aired the same day, Federal Communications Commission Chair Brendan Carr, who oversees the agency regulating TV licenses, condemned Kimmel’s comments on the assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk. He even suggested that local station affiliates, which syndicate content from major networks, stop airing the program. His language for Disney was stark, saying that the situation can be handled “the easy way, or the hard way.”
Local media group Nexstar NXST.O, which has 32 TV stations associated with ABC, announced it would pre-empt Kimmel’s slot. Rival Sinclair did likewise. Nexstar is waiting for the FCC to approve its $6 billion acquisition of rival Tegna TGNA.N.
Iger has yielded to the administration before. In December 2024, ABC paid $15 million to settle a defamation lawsuit brought by the president. It stands in contrast to his defense of Disney from Republican Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, who also sued the Magic Kingdom.
Others have been down this road. Paramount canned host Stephen Colbert — an acerbic critic of Trump and his parent company’s effort to combine with Skydance Media — before Carr approved its $8 billion merger with David Ellison’s production house.
Meanwhile, traditional TV is in a world of hurt. Operating profit for Disney’s domestic linear networks dropped 14% year-over-year in the quarter ending June on lower viewership, and declines in affiliate payments and advertising. Yet Kimmel was a rare bright spot, gaining ground with the all-important demographic of adults aged 18 to 49. Advertisers prize this group; the host’s show saw ratings rise 24% in the second quarter from the prior year, according to Nielsen.
Disney may yet re-instate Kimmel. It may not get back lost viewers. Worse, conservatives like Tucker Carlson, booted from right-leaning Fox, have proven that hosts can strike out on their own. That option might now look tempting to others. After all, with traditional media struggling, more deals – like Ellison’s mulled bid for Warner Bros Discovery – are on deck, all vulnerable to regulators’ whims. Submitting under pressure tends to invite more pressure.
Nexstar Media Group said on September 17 that the company’s local stations affiliated with national broadcaster ABC would not air late-night talk show “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” because of the host’s comments regarding the assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk.
Walt Disney, the owner of ABC, said it would pre-empt the program indefinitely.
Federal Communications Commission Chair Brendan Carr criticized Kimmel on a podcast September 17 and said the agency was looking into taking action against TV stations. Nexstar is waiting for FCC approval for its proposed $6.2 billion purchase of rival TV group Tegna. — Reuters
