Jimmy Kimmel is back on his ABC late-night show, but it remains uncertain when viewers in key cities like Washington, Seattle, and St. Louis will be able to watch him.
Last week, Kimmel’s show was taken off the air by ABC stations owned by Nexstar and Sinclair corporations.
This occurred on the same day the network suspended him due to comments that upset supporters of the late conservative activist Charlie Kirk.
Even after ABC lifted the suspension on Tuesday, those stations continued to keep Kimmel off the air.
The situation has drawn the attention of U.S. senators, who are now seeking to investigate the affiliations between local stations and President Donald Trump’s administration.
Upon his return, Kimmel delivered an emotional monologue, barely containing his tears, and made it clear that he was not joking about the tragic event surrounding Kirk’s assassination.
He expressed his condolences to Kirk’s widow during this heartfelt moment.
Despite the broadcast blackouts in several cities, Kimmel managed to attract an audience of nearly 6.3 million viewers, according to ABC.
Furthermore, Kimmel’s opening remarks garnered significant online attention, with over 15 million views on YouTube by Wednesday evening alone.
ABC reported more than 26 million views across social media platforms for Kimmel’s return, marking a considerable increase from his typical television audience of around 1.8 million.
Interestingly, the figures provided by ABC don’t account for streaming service viewership.
A representative for Nexstar commented that Kimmel will remain preempted from their stations as the company reviews his show.
The combined Nexstar and Sinclair groups are responsible for about a quarter of ABC’s affiliates, particularly in smaller markets such as Nashville, Lubbock, and Topeka.
Nexstar stated, “We are engaged in productive discussions with executives at the Walt Disney Co., with a focus on ensuring the program reflects and respects the diverse interests of the communities we serve.”
This ongoing dispute has shone a spotlight on the dynamics between television networks and the local stations that air their content.
Historically, local stations may have hesitated to air particular network shows based on content boundaries, but this incident reflects a new reality where larger groups are collectively making content decisions based on political considerations.
Ted Harbert, a former top executive at ABC and CBS, noted, “This is how much the country’s political divisions have seeped their way into what has been, for decades, a relatively orderly business.”
Ownership of local stations is usually more conservative compared to the media and entertainment professionals at the station level.
Ken Basin, author of “The Business of Television,” pointed out that both Sinclair, known for its conservative content, and Nexstar have incentives to align with the Trump administration, partially due to Nexstar’s attempts to gain regulatory approval for purchasing a competitor.
Basin further expressed concern that this type of dispute might not be an isolated incident in the future.
Disney might adopt a tougher stance if negotiations regarding Kimmel’s return drag on, possibly considering withholding other ABC programming—including major events like football games—although the specific terms of affiliate agreements remain unclear.
However, senior equity analyst Matt Dolgin from Morningstar Research Service expressed skepticism that the conflict would escalate to that degree.
He explained that the station groups do not have as diverse a business portfolio compared to Disney, which makes the impending expiration of affiliate agreements next year critical.
“From a business perspective, the best course on this issue for Disney is to stay above the fray,” Dolgin advised.
He added that the financial stakes tied to Kimmel’s show are relatively minor.
As Kimmel’s viewership spikes on platforms like YouTube, traditional television broadcasting’s significance diminishes, impacting the leverage of the stations in negotiations.
For Nexstar and Sinclair, the primary goal should be to navigate their way out of this predicament while managing their public image.
Initially, Sinclair’s strong stance indicated that Kimmel would not return without a formal apology to Kirk’s widow and a monetary contribution to Kirk’s political organization.
However, the likelihood of this happening seems slim.
Last week, Kimmel appeared to be on the brink of losing his show entirely until a strong free speech advocate movement emerged, prompting many to cancel their Disney subscriptions.
Basin remarked, “The backlash was stronger than they expected, stronger than I expected.
There was a sense of despair within the industry that this was a ‘canary in a coal mine’ moment.”
In response to the growing concerns, four Democratic senators expressed their intention to investigate the situation with the station groups.
They stated, “If Nexstar or Sinclair traded the censorship of a critic of the administration for official acts by the Trump administration, your companies are not only complicit in an alarming trampling of free speech but also risk running afoul of anti-corruption law.”
Additionally, another group of senators, led by California Democrat Adam Schiff, announced plans to question FCC Chairman Brendan Carr regarding “implicit threats” made to Disney concerning Kimmel.
During his emotional monologue on Tuesday, Kimmel acknowledged the complexities of the current political climate.
He candidly stated, “I don’t think what I’m going to say is going to make much of a difference.
If you like me, you like me. If you don’t, you don’t. I have no illusions about changing anyone’s mind.”
image source from：patch
