The union that represents writers on Jimmy Kimmel Live! is ripping ABC for pulling the show off air after the comedian made some viral remarks regarding the shooting of Charlie Kirk.
“The right to speak our minds and to disagree with each other — to disturb, even — is at the very heart of what it means to be a free people. It is not to be denied. Not by violence, not by the abuse of governmental power, nor by acts of corporate cowardice,” said the Writers Guild of America West and East on Wednesday night, not long after Disney-owned ABC said it was pulling the show “indefinitely.”
The union added, “As a Guild, we stand united in opposition to anyone who uses their power and influence to silence the voices of writers, or anyone who speaks in dissent. If free speech applied only to ideas we like, we needn’t have bothered to write it into the Constitution. What we have signed on to — painful as it may be at times — is the freeing agreement to disagree.”
The statement continued: “Shame on those in government who forget this founding truth. As for our employers, our words have made you rich. Silencing us impoverishes the whole world. The WGA stands with Jimmy Kimmel and his writers.”
Meanwhile, the American Federation of Musicians union, which represents musicians on Jimmy Kimmel Live!, produced a hard-hitting statement that characterized the move as “state censorship.” Said Tino Gagliardi, the AFM international president, “This is not complicated: Trump’s FCC identified speech it did not like and threatened ABC with extreme reprisals. This is state censorship. It is now happening in the United States of America, not some far-off country. It’s happening right here and right now.”
Gagliardi added, “This act by the Trump Administration represents a direct attack on free speech and artistic expression. These are fundamental rights that we must protect in a free society. The American Federation of Musicians strongly condemns the decision to take Jimmy Kimmel Live off the air. We stand in solidarity with all those who will be without work because of government overreach.”
The industry’s performers union, SAG-AFTRA, also released a statement in response to the news of the suspension. “Our society depends on freedom of expression. Suppression of free speech and retaliation for speaking out on significant issues of public concern run counter to the fundamental rights we all rely on,” the union stated.
It added, “Democracy thrives when diverse points of view are expressed. The decision to suspend airing Jimmy Kimmel Live! is the type of suppression and retaliation that endangers everyone’s freedoms. SAG-AFTRA stands with all media artists and defends their right to express their diverse points of view, and everyone’s right to hear them.”
ABC’s decision marked a significant escalation of an event that took place earlier in the day: Major local TV station owner Nexstar decided to pull the late night show from its stations in the wake of Kimmel’s comments Tuesday. Nexstar broadcasting division president Andrew Alford called Kimmel’s remarks “offensive and insensitive” in his explanation of the move, adding that giving Kimmel a platform was “not in the public interest at the current time.”
In the remarks that prompted the firestorm, Kimmel commented on the shooting of Kirk, a right-wing activist, at Utah Valley University on Sept. 10. “We hit some new lows over the weekend with the MAGA gang desperately trying to characterize this kid who murdered Charlie Kirk as anything other than one of them and doing everything they can to score political points from it,” Kimmel said.
Federal Communications Commission chair Brendan Carr came out swinging against Kimmel’s commentary in an interview with a YouTuber early Wednesday, bringing up the potential for certain ABC affiliates’ licenses to be revoked. He called for ABC affiliates to “push back” and tell the network, “Listen, we’re not going to run Kimmel anymore until you straighten this out because we’re running the possibility of license revocation from the FCC if we continue to run content that ends up being a pattern of news distortion.”
Kimmel had been prepared to address the backlash on his Wednesday show, a source told THR, but not to apologize.
9:07 a.m. Updated with AFM statement.
