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John Oliver has voiced his concern for the suspension of Jimmy Kimmel’s show and his support of his fellow late-night TV host.
On his HBO show Last Week Tonight, the comedian started by speaking about the shooting of Charlie Kirk. “A person getting shot is tragic and a person getting shot for their ideas is horrifying, that is true no matter what their ideas are,” he said.
But Oliver quickly added: “I also recognise that for many, especially those who were the target of Kirk’s ideas, it has been hard to stay quiet.”
Kimmel’s remarks last week were focused on how the right was trying to use the death of Kirk to “score political points”. Oliver said that after the fallout, “it does seem like some are now willing to weaponise Kirk’s death to do things they’ve been wanting to do for years”.
He spoke of the “shamelessly flimsy pretext” used to suspend him and that “everyone knew the administration had it in for Kimmel”.
Despite mischaracterisation elsewhere, Oliver stressed that Kimmel’s comments “weren’t about Kirk” and “many struggled to pick the offensive line out of his monologue”.
He added that “Kimmel didn’t denigrate Charlie Kirk or make light of his killing” but just spoke about how the right were desperate to weaponise “an argument that has aged pretty well given everything that’s happened to Kimmel since”.
The comments “set off a firestorm” and enraged Brendan Carr, FCC chair, and Nexstar, one of the largest owners of TV stations which then triggered his suspension by ABC.
Nexstar owns 201 stations but was also trying to buy a company called Tegna to expand its reach, a deal which needed approval from the FCC. Another large company, Sinclair, announced it would not air Kimmel’s show and even cited Carr’s remarks in a statement.
Carr used the internet to brag about the news and when asked about it by a CNN reporter, he sent a meme from The Office in response. “Oh very cool just when I thought this factory setting white man couldn’t get any hotter,” Oliver joked.
Carr also went on TV to suggest it was a spontaneous grassroots movement from local broadcasters but Oliver reminded viewers that it was the result of sweeping decisions from two giant companies.
He said the “sequence of events here could not be clearer” and last week even saw Trump make the connection: “Probably not something you should say out loud.”
But while Ted Cruz, a Republican Texas senator, said he was “thrilled”, he also added that it was a worrying assault on free speech.
Oliver reminded viewers that “Kimmel is by no means the first casualty in Trump’s attack on free speech” but “this Kimmel situation does feel like a turning point and not because comedians are important but because we are not”.
He said the “first amendment is absolutely critical in this country” and there are “chilling precedents all over the world” with countries like Hungary and Russia showing what happens when dictators target comedians on TV.
While the “easier path for them is to keep him off the air and keep the administration off their back”, he stressed that if this ends up in court, Disney would probably win against the administration.
Oliver said that Disney needs to “stand by Kimmel and his staff” and those at home should exert pressure by cancelling Disney+ and Hulu.
He said that Disney CEO Bob Iger will be remembered as one of the “cowards who definitely knew better but still let things happen.”
He added: “Giving the bully your lunch money doesn’t make him go away, it just makes him come back hungrier each time.”
