United States (US) President Donald Trump congratulated the ABC Network for cancelling Jimmy Kimmel Live!
Taking to his Truth Social platform, Trump praised the network for having the courage to “do what had to be done.”
The Nexstar Media Group, which owns ABC, said it strongly condemned Kimmel’s comments about the fatal shooting of right-wing activist and Trump ally Charlie Kirk.
‘MAGA GANG’ REACHED NEW LOWS
On Tuesday, 16 September, Kimmel said the US had hit new lows when the “MAGA gang” attempted to portray Kirk’s alleged shooter, Tyler Robinson, as “anything other than one of them.” He also suggested that Trump was using Kirk’s murder to “score political points.”
Kimmel’s show was pulled from the air on Wednesday, 17 September – a move Trump welcomed, calling it “great for America.” He added that Kimmel had “zero talent” and urged what he called “fake news NBC” to follow suit by firing Seth Meyers and Jimmy Fallon.
‘OFFENSIVE AND INSENSITIVE’ COMMENTS
In a statement, Nexstar described Kimmel’s comments as “offensive and insensitive,” stressing that they did not reflect the opinions, views, or values of the local communities it serves. President of Nexstar’s broadcasting division, Andrew Alford, said it was not in the public interest to continue giving Kimmel a broadcast platform.
“We have made the difficult decision to pre-empt his show in an effort to let cooler heads prevail as we move toward the resumption of respectful, constructive dialogue,” Alford said.
Kimmel’s removal comes after Stephen Colbert was taken off-air in July. CBS announced the show’s cancellation, citing financial challenges.
Colbert, who recently won an Emmy award for his talk show, used the opportunity to poke fun at the US president. He commented on Trump’s visit to the United Kingdom, saying that the US president is on a break from “going after anyone who dares criticise him about anything.”
