Jimmy Kimmel’s comeback to late-night TV on Tuesday following a weeklong hiatus will be blacked out of dozens of markets after Sinclair Broadcast Group and Nexstar announced their ABC affiliates will not air “Jimmy Kimmel Live!”
Nexstar Media Group, which operates 32 ABC affiliates, said Tuesday it will keep “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” off its ABC stations following his false claim that Charlie Kirk was killed by a MAGA supporter.
The announcement came just a day after Sinclair Broadcast Group revealed it would preempt the late-night show despite Disney returning Kimmel to the air.
That means ABC’s two biggest station owners, overseeing dozens of local affiliates, will not show the late-night host’s return to the airwaves on Tuesday.
“Beginning Tuesday night, Sinclair will be preempting ‘Jimmy Kimmel Live!’ across our ABC affiliate stations and replacing it with news programming,” the company posted on X on Monday.
“Discussions with ABC are ongoing as we evaluate the show’s potential return.”
The decision affects dozens of ABC affiliates in key markets, including WJLA in Washington, DC, KOMO in Seattle, KDNL in St. Louis, KATU in Portland, Ore., and WHAM in Rochester, NY.
Other key affiliates affected include in WSYX in Columbus, Ohio, WBMA in Birmingham, Ala., and KATV in Little Rock-Pine Bluff, Ark.
Sinclair controls more than 180 stations nationwide — 41 of them affiliated with Disney-owned ABC, making it the largest owner of ABC affiliates.
On Tuesday, Nexstar followed suit.
“We made a decision last week to preempt ‘Jimmy Kimmel Live!’ following what ABC referred to as Mr. Kimmel’s ‘ill-timed and insensitive’ comments at a critical time in our national discourse,” Nexstar said in a statement.
That means Kimmel won’t be seen in key markets where Nexstar beams ABC content into homes, including Syracuse, Salt Lake City, Hartford and Albany.
Kimmel, who earns $15 million annually, was set to return after Disney suspended him last week over his remarks tying conservative activist Charlie Kirk’s accused killer to the “MAGA gang.”
His absence sparked protests outside ABC television stations as well as calls to boycott parent company Disney.
Disney said it pulled the host “to avoid further inflaming a tense situation at an emotional moment for our country,” calling his remarks “ill-timed and thus insensitive.”
Kimmel is expected to address the controversy in Tuesday’s monologue but stop short of an apology.
Sinclair previously demanded Kimmel issue a direct apology to the Kirk family and donate to Turning Point USA, the conservative group co-founded by Kirk.
Without that, the company said it would keep the show off-air.
Vice chairman Jason Smith said last week that Kimmel’s remarks were “inappropriate and deeply insensitive at a critical moment for our country.”
The standoff comes as Sinclair faces pressure from regulators and advertisers.
Former Disney CEO Michael Eisner blasted the suspension as yielding to “out-of-control intimidation” from FCC Chairman Brendan Carr, who warned Disney it could face regulatory consequences if it failed to act.
The Post has sought comment from Sinclair and Nexstar.
ABC affiliates owned by Sinclair and Nexstar:
- KTXS — Abilene–Sweetwater, Texas (ABC, CW)
- KVII — Amarillo, Texas (ABC, CW)
- KVIH — Amarillo, Texas (ABC, CW)
- WABM — Birmingham, Ala. (MyTV, ABC)
- WBMA — Birmingham, Ala. (ABC)
- WDBB — Birmingham, Ala. (CW, ABC)
- WICD — Champaign–Springfield–Decatur, Ill. (ABC)
- WICS — Champaign–Springfield–Decatur, Ill. (ABC)
- WCHS — Charleston–Huntington, WV (ABC, FOX)
- WCIV — Charleston, SC (MyTV, ABC)
- WTVC — Chattanooga, Tenn. (ABC, FOX)
- WSYX — Columbus, Ohio (ABC, MyTV, FOX)
- WKEF — Dayton, Ohio (ABC, FOX, MyTV)
- KAEF — Eureka, Calif. (ABC)
- WPDE — Florence–Myrtle Beach, SC (ABC, CW)
- WXLV — Greensboro–High Point–Winston-Salem, NC (ABC)
- WLOS — Greenville–Spartanburg, SC / Asheville, NC / Anderson, SC (ABC, MyTV)
- WCTI — Greenville–New Bern–Washington, NC (ABC)
- KHGI — Lincoln–Hastings–Kearney, Neb. (ABC, FOX)
- KHGI-CD — Lincoln–Hastings–Kearney, Neb. (ABC)
- KWNB — Lincoln–Hastings–Kearney, Neb. (ABC, FOX)
- KWNB-LD — Lincoln–Hastings–Kearney, Neb. (ABC, FOX)
- KATV — Little Rock–Pine Bluff, Ark. (ABC)
- WGXA — Macon, Ga. (FOX, ABC)
- WEAR — Mobile, Ala. / Pensacola, FL (ABC)
- KTVO — Ottumwa, Iowa / Kirksville, MO (ABC, CBS)
- KATU — Portland, Ore. (ABC)
- KHQA — Quincy, IL / Hannibal, Mo. / Keokuk, IA (CBS, ABC)
- WSET — Roanoke–Lynchburg, Va. (ABC)
- WHAM — Rochester, NY (ABC, CW)
- KTXE-LD — San Angelo, Texas (ABC)
- KOMO — Seattle–Tacoma, Wash. (ABC)
- KDNL — St. Louis, Mo. (ABC)
- WGTQ — Traverse City–Cadillac, Mich. (ABC, NBC)
- WGTU — Traverse City–Cadillac, Mich. (ABC, NBC)
- WPBN — Traverse City–Cadillac, Mich. (NBC, ABC)
- WTOM — Traverse City–Cadillac, Mich. (NBC, ABC)
- KTUL — Tulsa, Okla. (ABC)
- WJLA — Washington, DC (ABC)
- WKRN – Nashville, Tenn.
- KTVX – Salt Lake City, Utah
- WTNH – Hartford / New Haven, Conn.
- WHTM – Harrisburg, Penn.
- WOTV – Grand Rapids, Mich.
- WGNO – New Orleans, La.
- WRIC – Richmond, Va.
- WATE – Knoxville, Tenn.
- WTEN – Albany, NY
- WJBF – Augusta, Ga.
- WEHT – Evansville, In.
- WSYR – Syracuse, NY
- WLAJ – Lansing, Mich.
- WYTV – Youngstown, Ohio
- WTVO – Rockford, Ill.
- KAMC – Lubbock, Texas
- KTKA – Topeka, Kan.
- KMID – Midland / Odessa, Texas
- WMBB – Panama City, Fla.
- KCAU – Sioux City, Iowa
- KODE – Joplin, Mo.
- WJET – Erie, Penn.
- WAWV – Terre Haute, In.
- WIVT – Binghamton, NY
- WTRF (ABC subchannel) – Wheeling, WV / Steubenville, Ohio
- KSVI – Billings, Mt.
- WDHN – Dothan, Ala.
- WUTR – Utica, NY
- WBOY (ABC subchannel) – Clarksburg / Weston, WV
- WWTI – Watertown, NY
- WVNY – Burlington, Vt.
- WJHL (ABC subchannel) – Tri-Cities, Tenn.-Va.
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