Kimmel benching prompts celebration, caution from conservatives

ABC’s decision to pull “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” off the air this week prompted celebration from some conservatives while others expressed caution about free speech and government overreach. 

Disney on Wednesday sidelined Jimmy Kimmel “indefinitely” on the heels of controversial comments the late-night host made about the assassination of conservative icon Charlie Kirk. The move came as Disney faced mounting pressure from ABC affiliate stations around the country, as well as the Federal Communications Commission (FCC). 

Some have accused the network of caving to the Trump administration and waving the white flag in the battle over free speech. Others, however, believe Kimmel had it coming. 

“Cancel culture? No. Consequence culture,” OutKick’s Riley Gaines wrote on X.

DISNEY SAYS JIMMY KIMMEL’S SHOW WILL BE PREEMPTED INDEFINITELY FOLLOWING CHARLIE KIRK ASSASSINATION COMMENTS

Jimmy Kimmel’s late-night show was pulled off the air by Disney on Sept. 17, 2025. (Randy Holmes/Disney)

On Monday, Kimmel accused conservatives of reaching “new lows” in trying to pin a left-wing ideology on 22-year-old suspect Tyler Robinson, even though prosecutors reaffirmed those ties in Tuesday’s indictment.

“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,” Kimmel said.

Podcaster Stephen L. Miller believes that Kimmel “spread a false and verifiable lie and the network and Disney rightfully freaked out about it,” while The Free Press’ Eli Lake feels there are a pair of issues playing out.

Lake wrote, “Let’s separate two things. Jimmy Kimmel is an unfunny mediocrity and his take on Charlie Kirk was tasteless, stupid and factually vacant. At the same time the chairman of the FCC should not be programming late night television. That’s a violation of the First Amendment.”

Lake is among many who believe the government should stay away from such matters. 

“I think Jimmy Kimmel is an enormous jerk whom ABC should have yanked off the air of their own will. But Brendan Carr has made that impossible. This doesn’t end anywhere good,” National Review’s Jeffrey Blehar wrote.

FCC CHAIR LEVELS THREAT AGAINST ABC, DISNEY AFTER KIMMEL SUGGESTED CHARLIE KIRK ASSASSIN WAS ‘MAGA’

Late-night host Jimmy Kimmel’s show was preempted indefinitely following remarks he made about Charlie Kirk’s alleged assassin and subsequent ABC affiliate and government backlash.  (ABC/JimmyKimmelLive)

“What Jimmy Kimmel said was gross, irresponsible and false. A sane company should absolutely punish a host for abusing their platform in that way. The government should stay out of it and has no role in policing such speech,” popular X account AG Hamilton wrote. 

CNN’s S.E. Cupp, a fierce critic of President Donald Trump, wrote that the Trump administration “is systematically killing free speech, and these capitulating media companies are acting as willing accomplices,” but not everyone agrees with her view. 

Conservative pundit Michele Tafoya noted, “A legal mind reminded me that free speech means the govt can’t punish you for things you say, but an employer can hold you accountable. Kimmel isn’t going to prison.” 

Attorney and podcaster Eric Matheny wrote that “Kimmel getting fired is not the greatest attack on free speech we’ve ever seen” because “Kirk being murdered on national TV by a radicalized leftist who didn’t like the things Charlie said is the greatest attack on free speech we’ve ever seen.”

“About once or twice a year, I have to explain free speech like I’m talking to a kindergarten class. If Jimmy Kimmel got arrested and prosecuted for what he said on his show, that’s a free speech violation. If his employer decides to take him off the air? That’s not,” Matheny wrote. 

ABC REPORTER CALLS ALLEGED CHARLIE KIRK ASSASSIN’S TEXT MESSAGES TO TRANSGENDER PARTNER ‘VERY TOUCHING’

Kimmel’s comments came one day after both FBI officials and Utah Gov. Spencer Cox said that Robinson held a “leftist ideology” and was increasingly radicalized in recent years. It was also revealed that he had a romantic relationship with a transgender partner who was biologically male and transitioning to female.

Conservative podcaster Benny Johnson, who played a key role in the saga when FCC Chairman Brendan Carr threatened ABC on his program with possible intervention over Kimmel’s remarks, called Disney’s decision a “generational culture war victory.” 

“What Jimmy Kimmel said about Charlie Kirk is indefensible. It made us all angry. But how do we channel that righteous anger into something productive? We must focus, isolate the enemy and apply swift, immense tactical pressure. Mean tweets are great. But they can be ignored. What can’t be ignored are your paying customers organizing against you and FCC investigations. That is exactly what we did,” Johnson wrote. 

“First thing: ABC is not just another cable channel. ABC operates under a special Federal Broadcast License that lavishes them with taxpayer-funded privileges on the condition that their programming is ‘fair and equal’ and in the ‘public interest,’” Johnson continued. “Chairman Carr put Disney on notice that they were going to have to defend Kimmel’s sick lies about Charlie’s death before the FCC. We made them defend the indefensible. Make them eat it.”

COMPLETE COVERAGE OF CHARLIE KIRK 

Johnson said his team “contacted ABC, Disney and local station owners all day” leading up to the decision to sideline Kimmel. 

“There are hundreds of stations with moral, patriotic audiences who love Charlie Kirk and are sickened by Kimmel. We asked these broadcast affiliates why they would continue to carry such indefensible programming by ABC? To their great credit, Nexstar and Sinclair, two massive ABC affiliates that reach 37 million households told us they were pulling Kimmel out of respect for their viewers. A historic moment. Can’t think of another time that has been done,” Johnson said. “Charlie always knew how to Fight and Win. We are the majority. When Republicans organize and unite for a common cause we are unstoppable.”

Many on the left have accused conservatives of celebrating “cancel culture,” but Barstool Sports founder Dave Portnoy said Kimmel is simply facing consequences for his actions. 

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

“With Kimmel getting canned I’m seeing lots of people talking about the hypocrisy of cancel culture. To me cancel culture is when people go out of their way to dig up old tweets, videos etc., looking for dirt on somebody they don’t like in an effort to get them fired,” Portnoy wrote on social media. 

“But when a person says something that a ton of people find offensive, rude, dumb in real time, and then that person is punished for it, that’s not cancel culture,” Portnoy continued. “That is consequences for your actions.”

Fox News Digital’s Joseph A. Wulfsohn contributed to this report.