‘Great news for America’: Trump cheers ABC suspending Jimmy Kimmel's show over Charlie Kirk remarks
WASHINGTON, DC: President Donald Trump is celebrating ABC’s decision to indefinitely suspend 'Jimmy Kimmel Live!' after controversial remarks made by the late-night host about the killing of conservative activist Charlie Kirk.
Trump also used the moment to criticize other late-night personalities.
Trump calls show’s cancellation ‘Great News for America’
“Great News for America: The ratings-challenged Jimmy Kimmel Show is CANCELLED,” Trump posted on Truth Social.
“Congratulations to ABC for finally having the courage to do what had to be done. Kimmel has ZERO talent, and worse ratings than even Colbert, if that’s possible.”
“That leaves Jimmy and Seth, two total losers, on Fake News NBC. Their ratings are also horrible. Do it NBC!!!” he added, referencing Jimmy Fallon and Seth Meyers.
ABC and Nexstar respond to Jimmy Kimmel’s remarks
A spokesperson for Disney-owned ABC confirmed on September 17 that Jimmy Kimmel’s show was being pulled “indefinitely,” two days after his September 15 monologue in which he addressed Trump, his supporters, and the fallout from Kirk’s killing.
During the broadcast, Kimmel accused Trump’s “MAGA gang” of exploiting the tragedy for political purposes before turning his criticism toward the president’s public mourning.
On his September 15 broadcast, he said, “The MAGA Gang is 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. In between the finger-pointing, there was grieving.” He joked that Trump was “on the fourth stage of grief.”
“This is not how an adult grieves the murder of someone he called a friend,” said Kimmel. “This is how a four-year-old mourns a goldfish. And it didn't just happen once.”
Jimmy Kimmel claims "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" and "This is not how an adult… pic.twitter.com/KMhnskaYWD
— Alex Christy (@alexchristy17) September 16, 2025
The comments sparked swift backlash. Nexstar Media Group, the largest local broadcast and digital media company in the US, announced it would preempt the program across its ABC-affiliated stations.
“Mr Kimmel’s comments about the death of Mr Kirk are offensive and insensitive at a critical time in our national political discourse,” Andrew Alford, Nexstar’s president of broadcasting, said in a statement. “Continuing to give Mr Kimmel a broadcast platform in the communities we serve is simply not in the public interest at the current time, and we have made the difficult decision to preempt his show in an effort to let cooler heads prevail as we move toward the resumption of respectful, constructive dialogue.”
Charlie Kirk shot dead at Utah College event
Charlie Kirk, 31, was shot and killed on September 10 while speaking at Utah Valley University. The suspected gunman, 22-year-old Tyler Robinson, was arrested days later.
Kirk was in the middle of one of his trademark “Prove Me Wrong” events, part of his American Comeback Tour, when shots rang out. Footage shared online captured him addressing the crowd under a white canopy just before he was hit in the head or neck.
In the wake of Kirk’s death, Trump announced that he would posthumously award the activist the Presidential Medal of Freedom, alongside the Congressional Gold Medal. “No one understood or had the Heart of the Youth in the United States of America better than Charlie,” Trump wrote. “He was loved and admired by ALL, especially me, and now, he is no longer with us.”
Trump offered condolences to Kirk’s family, stating that he and Melania sent their sympathies to Kirk’s wife, Erika, and loved ones, adding, “Charlie, we love you.”
