Donald Trump has offered further applause for ABC’s shock decision to take “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” off air indefinitely over comments about the killing of conservative activist Charlie Kirk that were deemed “insensitive.”
Speaking at a press conference in London alongside U.K. prime minister Keir Starmer, Trump was asked if free speech was “better protected” in the U.S. or U.K. and why he backed the removal of Kimmel’s show if he supported free speech.
Kimmel was “fired because of bad ratings more than anyone else,” Trump said.
The U.S. president continued, “Jimmy Kimmel is not a talented person. He had very bad ratings, and they should have fired him a long time ago. So, you know, you can call that free speech or not. He was fired for lack of talent.”
Trump did also note that Kimmel had said “a horrible thing about a gentlemen called Charlie Kirk.”
On Wednesday, shortly after the news broke, Trump wrote “Great News for America: The ratings challenged Jimmy Kimmel Show is CANCELLED,” 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!!! President DJT”
Disney’s ABC decided to take its flagship late-night program off the schedule after Nexstar Media, one of the biggest owners of TV stations in the U.S., vowed to pre-empt airings of the program after “strongly objecting” to Kimmel’s comments on Kirk.
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Kimmel had been attacked by conservative commentators over his monologue on Monday’s broadcast, in which he made comments on Kirk’s suspected shooter, 22-year-old Tyler Robinson from Utah, and said that that the “MAGA gang” was “trying to characterize this kid who killed Charlie Kirk as anything other than one of them.”
From Variety US