Jimmy Kimmel’s ‘unprecedented’ rejection by broadcasters ‘turning point’ in media: FCC chair Brendan Carr

Federal Communications Commission Chairman Brendan Carr described the “unprecedented” rejection of late-night host Jimmy Kimmel by local broadcasters on Wednesday as a “turning point” for legacy media outlets — which he argued have been serving viewers “progressive foie gras.”

The comedian’s show, “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” was taken off the air indefinitely by ABC earlier Wednesday after local broadcasters Nexstar and Sinclair announced plans to pre-empt the program over the host’s controversial comments about the assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk.

“This action today by NexStar and Sinclair, frankly, it’s unprecedented,” Carr told Fox News host Sean Hannity. “I can’t imagine another time when we’ve had local broadcasters tell a national programmer like Disney that your content no longer meets the needs and the values of our community.”

Disney is the parent company of ABC, which airs Kimmel’s show on several independently owned affiliates.

NexStar and Sinclair, which have licenses with the FCC that require them to operate in the public interest, “stood up” to Disney and ABC, according to Carr.

“This is an important turning point,” he said of Kimmel’s show being taken off the air.

“There’s more work to go, but I’m very glad to see that American broadcasters are standing up to serve the interests of their community, and we don’t just have this progressive foie gras coming out from New York and Hollywood,” the chairman added.