FCC chair signals Kimmel won’t be last casualty in Trump’s war on media
During a large CNBC interview Thursday, president of the Federal Communications Commission Brendan Carr Having to be heard that Jimmy Kimmel’s show may not be the last victim of the war during President Donald Trump against the media and the first amendment.
Animator Carl Quintanilla asked Carr if the actions of the FCC Trump’s desire So that NBC only withdraws Jimmy Fallon and Air Seth Meyers. While Carr said he was not talking about the president, he suggested that more media upheavals could be on the horizon.
“Our objective and our obligation is to ensure that the diffusers serve the public interest,” he said. “We are in the midst of a massive change in dynamics in the media ecosystem for many reasons, including the authorization structure that the election of President Trump has provided. I would simply say that we have not yet finished seeing the consequences of this change.”
The co-host David Faber then supported him on what “we have not yet finished” means.
“Will you only be delighted when none of these actors will have a broadcast television program?” He asked.
“This is not a special program or a particular person,” replied Carr. “We are currently in the middle of a very disruptive moment.
The media landscape has indeed changed spectacularly. Once dominated by Trump’s criticism, he is now increasingly shaped – or under pressure – by forces aligned on the White House. The points of sale that managed the coverage deemed “unfair” by Trump and his allies were heard,, investigationOr otherwise targeted.
A living example came Wednesday when Disney, the parent company of ABC, suspended Kimmel’s show indefinitely after a monologue in which he criticized the response from the right to Conservative activist The murder of Charlie Kirk.
“We hit new stockings over the weekend with the Gang Maga trying to characterize this kid who killed Charlie Kirk as something other than one of them and do everything they can to score political points,” said Kimmel.
The backlash was immediate. Carr made the show of Youtuber Benny Johnson on the right and threatened to remove the ABC broadcasting license on Kimmel’s comments. A few hours later, the owners of certain ABC stations – including large broadcasters like Nexstar Media Group and Sinclair – passed the network they abandoned the show.
Suddenly, “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” was out of the air, with Andrew Alford, president of the NEXSTAR radio division, call Kimmel’s monologue “offensive and insensitive to a critical moment in our national political discourse”.
Of course, observers quickly noted that Nexstar is in the middle of a merger of $ 6.2 billion with a Tegna rival, which requires the approval of the FCC. This left some criticisms wondering if the cancellation concerned the show or on the appeasement of regulators.
But that didn’t stop there for Kimmel. Sincelair required That he apologizes and makes a “personal gift” to the Kirk family and his organization, Turning Point USA – something Carr said he approved.
“I think Sinclair has the right to ask for this,” he told CNBC.
Carr’s comments should trigger alarm ringtones. Although he supervises these actions as a broadcaster defending local values, it is a clear turn of what he said. After all, only three years ago, he was Rent a political satire To “challenge people in power” and attract people to conversation.
What is happening with Kimmel is part of a more important problem: the magazine of the maga of the Maga in the idle of the media, which occurs thanks to acquisitions which put the allies Trump in charge and the quieter changes which make the coverage once the coverage is soft.
After the 2024 elections, some of the country’s most powerful media managers got into four to relax in Trump. At Washington Post, owner Jeff Bezos repositioned Opinion arises of “personal freedoms and free markets” and according to The New York TimesOwner of Los Angeles Times Patrick Soon-Shiong canceled A critical column of the ED which targeted the choices of Trump’s office.
Those who do not lean on the cookiel are faced with consequences. CBS announced the end From “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert” in July, citing financial reasons. But the decision came in the midst of a paramount-skid merger requiring the approval of the FCC and a few days after Colbert criticized a $ 16 million regulations Trump received a “60 -minute” dispute.
Other points of sale also face pressure. Asset laid A defamation pursuit of $ 15 billion against the New York Times, calling him a “full spokesperson for the Democratic Party” and accused ABC and NBC of partisanary. Likewise, funding reduces the company for public broadcasting – which Trump has long claimed to be liberal –forced its closureAlso.
As for Kimmel, his future at the end of the evening remains uncertain. Disney would have planned to bring the show back, but Trump did not wait To celebrate its suspension on social truth.
“Congratulations to ABC for having finally had the courage to do what should be done. Kimmel has no talents and notes worse than even Colbert, if possible,” he wrote. “This leaves Jimmy and Seth, two total losers, on the false news NBC. Their grades are also horrible. Do it it nbc !!!”
The war against the media continues. Under the Trump administration, broadcasting is increasingly treated as a political battlefield rather than a platform for entertainment or public speech.
The message is clear: dissent includes risks and the challenges of independent journalism have never been higher.
