JIMMY KIMMEL LIVE! “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” airs every weeknight at 11:35 p.m. ET and features a diverse lineup of guests that include celebrities, athletes, musical acts, comedians and human interest subjects, along with comedy bits and a house band.
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Nexstar Media Group said Wednesday it is continuing to evaluate whether it will bring “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” back to its ABC-affiliate stations, a day after the late night show returned to the Disney-owned network.
Nexstar’s broadcast TV stations affiliated with ABC did not air Kimmel’s return to late night on Tuesday.
“Nexstar is continuing to evaluate the status of ‘Jimmy Kimmel Live!’ on our ABC-affiliated local television stations, and the show will be preempted while we do so,” Nexstar said in a statement. “We are engaged in productive discussions with executives at The Walt Disney Company, with a focus on ensuring the program reflects and respects the diverse interests of the communities we serve.”
Nexstar, along with fellow station owner Sinclair, said it would preempt Kimmel when Disney returned the show to broadcast on Tuesday, leaving customers in many markets unable to watch the show on their local station.
A Sinclair representative on Wednesday referred CNBC to its statement on Monday, which said the company’s stations would be preempting the show and that “discussions with ABC are ongoing as we evaluate the show’s potential return.”
Two of the largest broadcast station owners, Nexstar and Sinclair together own about 70 ABC affiliate stations in the U.S.
The comedian addressed the situation during his monologue Tuesday.
“We are still on the air in most of the country, except, ironically, from Washington, D.C., where we have been preempted,” Kimmel said after a commercial break. “After almost 23 years on the air, we’re suddenly not being broadcast in 20% of the country, which is not a situation we relish.”
Last week, ABC parent Disney said it would temporarily suspend production on “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” following comments by host Kimmel that linked the alleged killer of conservative activist Charlie Kirk to President Donald Trump’s MAGA movement.
Kimmel’s suspension came shortly after an announcement from Nexstar that it would not air the program — as well as comments from Federal Communications Commission Chair Brendan Carr suggesting ABC affiliate stations could be at risk of losing broadcast licenses over Kimmel’s comments.
“It was never my intention to make light of the murder of a young man,” Kimmel said in Tuesday’s emotional monologue. “I don’t think there’s anything funny about it.”
