Jimmy Kimmel’s late-night talk show will return to ABC affiliates belonging to Sinclair and Nexstar after the two major network operators took his programme off-air over his comments in the wake of Charlie Kirk’s assassination.
Kimmel was accused of being “offensive and insensitive” after using his programme, Jimmy Kimmel Live, to accuse Donald Trump and his allies of capitalising on the killing.
Disney-owned ABC suspended the show last week following threats of potential repercussions from the Trump-appointed head of the Federal Communications Commission.
Sinclair, which controls 38 ABC affiliates from Seattle to Washington DC, called on Kimmel to apologise to Mr Kirk’s family over the comments and asked him to “make a meaningful personal donation” to Turning Point USA, the nonprofit that the conservative activist founded.
On Tuesday, Disney announced the return of the programme after backlash to its suspension, but both Sinclair and Nexstar, which own more than 20% of ABC affiliates, initially said they would not resume airing the show.
Kimmel criticised the ABC affiliates who preempted his show during his TV return, saying: “That’s not legal. That’s not American. It’s un-American.”
Three days later, the two major network operators announced that Jimmy Kimmel Live would return to their TV stations after the week-long boycott.
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