Your resistance has helped show media organizations that caving to government pressure to silence dissent and intimidate the press has consequences, and ABC has re-instated Jimmy Kimmel’s show.
BUT
There is still more to be done. Keep the pressure on. You know your voice has power if they’re trying to silence you. Read on for calls to action to protect our free speech rights.
This is bigger than one late-night show.
It’s about whether our voices, our free press, and our democracy can withstand an administration willing to threaten and silence dissent.
We need to use our collective power — our voices, our dollars, and our presence in the streets — to show that giving in to authoritarian demands comes at a cost.
Disney/ABC may have brought Jimmy Kimmel back. The last few days prove your pressure works: media companies are learning that caving to government intimidation has consequences, but Trump’s war on free speech is far from over. The campaign to punish dissent isn’t...
UPDATE SEPTEMBER 22: ABC has reinstated Jimmy Kimmel. Your resistance has helped show media organizations that caving to government pressure to silence dissent and intimidate the press has consequences. BUT Now we need to keep the pressure on. Trump’s war on free...
UPDATE SEPTEMBER 22: ABC has reinstated Jimmy Kimmel. Your resistance has helped show media organizations that caving to government pressure to silence dissent and intimidate the press has consequences. BUT Now we need to keep the pressure on. Trump’s war on free...
The Trump regime’s campaign of authoritarian repression took a major step forward with the indefinite suspension of Jimmy Kimmel.
Like a third-rate mob boss, Trump’s Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Chair issued a public threat to “take action” against stations airing Jimmy Kimmel for a joke that offended the regime. His actual words: “We can do this the easy way, or the hard way.”
Within hours, ABC/Disney execs (specifically, CEO Bob Iger) chose what they thought was the easy way. They silenced Kimmel because they believe caving to authoritarian censorship is best for their bottom line.
Let’s dig a little deeper into the greed, corruption, and cowardice at play here — and then let’s get to work protecting our First Amendment rights. That means boycotts, protests, and demands of our representatives.
More on that below.
UPDATE: WE WON. Thanks to your pressure, Disney announced they’re bringing Kimmel back starting September 23rd. Our grassroots victory demonstrates that even the largest corporations can be held accountable when the collective refuses to sit back and remain silent. To be clear, we are continuing to closely monitor Disney. They’ve already shown a willingness to bend the knee to Trump, and that means our vigilance is more important than ever. And the Trump stooges responsible for this still must be held accountable, however. Please see more below!
Every day under this administration makes it clearer: nobody is safe from creeping fascism, not even late-night TV. Trump and his cronies are moving at breakneck speed to consolidate power, weaponizing the full force of the federal government to crush dissent, while bending media companies, business leaders, universities, and other institutions to his will.
ABC/Disney caves to a frivolous defamation lawsuit by Trump, paying $15 million to his presidential library rather than going to court to defend the freedom of the press.
Trump takes to Truth Social to post that “Jimmy Kimmel is next.”
Charlie Kirk is murdered. Trump administration officials and other Republican leaders begin calling for a massive crackdown on the left.
In an interview on a far-right podcast, FCC Chair Brendan Carr openly threatens to revoke the broadcast license of any stations airing Kimmel’s show.
ABC/Disney announce that they are pulling Kimmel’s show off the air entirely.
CBS announces that it will cancel the late-night show of Trump critic Stephen Colbert. The move comes as CBS’ parent company, Paramount, awaits FCC approval of an $8 billion merger.
The FCC approves Paramount’s merger just one week after Colbert’s cancellation.
In his show’s opening monologue, Kimmel notes that Trump and his allies are “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.”
Within hours of Carr’s threat, Nexstar Media Group — a TV conglomerate that (like Paramount) wants FCC approval of a merger — says its local ABC affiliates will not air Kimmel’s show. Another TV conglomerate with FCC business pending, Sinclair Media Group, rapidly follows suit.
Thousands of us across the country canceled our Disney+, Hulu, and ESPN+ accounts. We took to the streets at ABC corporate offices and Disney locations. And we were joined by influential celebrities, elected leaders, and even typically non-political content creators and fans who came together to generate backlash.
ABC/Disney caves to a frivolous defamation lawsuit by Trump, paying $15 million to his presidential library rather than going to court to defend the freedom of the press.
CBS announces that it will cancel the late-night show of Trump critic Stephen Colbert. The move comes as CBS’ parent company, Paramount, awaits FCC approval of an $8 billion merger.
Trump takes to Truth Social to post that “Jimmy Kimmel is next.”
The FCC approves Paramount’s merger just one week after Colbert’s cancellation.
Charlie Kirk is murdered. Trump administration officials and other Republican leaders begin calling for a massive crackdown on the left.
In his show’s opening monologue, Kimmel notes that Trump and his allies are “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 an interview on a far-right podcast, FCC Chair Brendan Carr openly threatens to revoke the broadcast license of any stations airing Kimmel’s show.
Within hours of Carr’s threat, Nexstar Media Group — a TV conglomerate that (like Paramount) wants FCC approval of a merger — says its local ABC affiliates will not air Kimmel’s show. Another TV conglomerate with FCC business pending, Sinclair Media Group, rapidly follows suit.
ABC/Disney announce that they are pulling Kimmel’s show off the air entirely.
Thousands of us across the country canceled our Disney+, Hulu, and ESPN+ accounts. We took to the streets at ABC corporate offices and Disney locations. And we were joined by influential celebrities, elected leaders, and even typically non-political content creators and fans who came together to generate backlash.
The attempt to silence Jimmy Kimmel is just one example of how our institutions, driven by shortsighted self-interest, are caving to authoritarian pressure instead of standing up to it. And although the show has been reinstated, we know it won’t end here.
This was a powerful lesson for corporate elites as well as the regime. We must keep up the momentum. We will continue to raise our voices and make it clear: we will not cooperate with ANY attempt at an authoritarian power grab.
Our pressure on ABC/Disney to reverse their capitulation, reinstate Jimmy Kimmel, worked but it doesn’t end here. Nexstar and Sinclair need to commit to broadcasting the program. And FCC Chair Brendan Carr, Nexstar, and Sinclair still need to be held accountable.
Affiliates that bowed to pressure should face relentless protest until they also reverse course, and affiliates still standing should be supported in resisting Carr’s intimidation. Sinclair and Nexstar need to continue hearing from us. Their comment forms, customer service lines, and press inboxes should be flooded.
We must make clear that this is about drawing the line against authoritarian power grabs that, if left unchecked, will expand to comedy, commentary, news, and beyond. The Trump administration has made their intent to do further crackdowns clear including on academics, students, universities, activists, and non-profits. It has proven that it will stop at nothing to maintain power and silence dissent. But we have also proven that we will not back down—and that defiance is not only an option, but the strategic choice. Every action we take should invite more people to join in, making this defiance not just powerful but unstoppable.
Contact your Representative by phone and email to demand an investigation into government censorship. Carr’s threats may violate the First Amendment and other federal laws, but Republicans blocked an attempt to subpoena Carr in the House. Turn the heat up and demand that Carr AND affiliates Nexstar and Sinclair are hauled before Congress to testify under oath.
Until Sinclair and Nexstar also commit to standing up for our First Amendment and reinstating Jimmy Kimmel Live!, we need to continue applying pressure.