What happened behind the scenes that led to Kimmel suspension

The decision to yank Jimmy Kimmel’s show off the air wasn’t quite as rash as one might think. The issue had been brewing all week throughout the executive ranks at Disney and ABC — ever since Kimmel made comments during his Monday night monologue about Charlie Kirk’s suspected killer and, as he called Trump’s supporters, the “MAGA gang.”

Kimmel’s remarks Monday attracted ire from the critics on the right, which put it on Disney’s radar. On Tuesday’s show, Kimmel doubled down, saying, “Many in MAGA-land are working very hard to capitalize on the murder of Charlie Kirk.”

But it wasn’t until Wednesday afternoon, after FCC chair Brendan Carr went onto a conservative podcast and threatened to pull ABC affiliate broadcast licenses, that the matter really escalated. Then Nexstar — the station group which airs “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” in approximately two dozen markets — announced they would not air the show.