Gutless ABC Caves To Trump. Again

I can’t say I’ve been a regular watcher of late night TV since I was growing up and Dick Cavett had a late night talk show. Still, like countless others I have watched at times, and checked out clips that got talked about the next day. Over time politics has been part of it and leaders, including and especially Presidents have been skewered. Some have laughed it off, some have grumbled both privately and publicly about it. Then there’s Trump who’s ego is so fragile he’s set out to used the power of the Presidency to go after those who criticize, or (in his diseased mind) worse make fun of him. ABC has been on his radar and Trump has lashed out, using the murder of Charlie Kirk to censor Jimmy Kimmel Live.

ABC lest we forget has already capitulated to Trump. It shelled out $15 million for what Trump alleged was defamation.  This was in December 2024 when Trump was still President Elect. It’s like they knew he was going to be far worse once back in the Oval Office and tried some pre-emptive butt-kissing. Well, history teaches us appeasement doesn’t work with authoritarians. It only encourages them.  Late night TV shows and their hosts were sure to be targeted by Trump and of course that’s exactly what we’ve seen play out.

I woke up to read this Yahoo News story telling me that after a clear threat from FCC Commissioner Brendan Carr ABC has pulled Jimmy Kimmel Live “indefinitely.” Wow. First Stephen Colbert got the axe.  Yes, the show was losing a ton of money and as I learned about it (especially the cost of using the iconic Ed Sullivan theater) I was stunned at how much. But at least CBS could hide behind the fig leaf of Colbert losing tens of millions a year (despite the show’s popularity helping other CBS shows) as a fig leaf. However we knew the real reason. CBS needed the Trump administration to approve the deal with Paramount. Dumping Colbert was the price so CBS caved.

Trump has made no secret about wanting to force the cancellation of the late night talk shows on ABC and NBC as well. He was clear in his statements after the announcement Colbert’s show wouldn’t be renewed. Enter Brendan Carr. I saw a bit of Morning Joe which put up a number of tweets from Carr that championed free speech and supportive of holding leaders to account. Including via humor. That was then. Carr now works for Trump and yesterday he sang a different tune, criticizing Kimmel’s comments about the Charlie Kirk murder and (saying out loud to ABC) “We can do this the easy way or the hard way.”

Wow. This is blatant, flat-out censorship. The government of the United States telling a network in effect ‘dump this guy and his show or we’ll pull your broadcast license!’  So much for the First Amendment. In Trump’s America broadcasters are going to find it’s either surgically attach their lips to Trump’s fat orange ass or go dark.  Even Fox is probably gulping and wondering how to ease out the handful of sometimes legitimate news folks/hosts who sometimes don’t sing Trumpty’s praises. Or worse say something critical!

If like me you don’t (or didn’t) watch Kimmel’s show you’re probably asking ‘What did he say about the Kirk shooting/murder that was SOOOOOOO offensive? Good question. Here’s the answer:

The controversy started Monday when Kimmel questioned the ideological leanings ascribed to Kirk’s accused killer, Tyler Robinson, and said the “MAGA gang” — i.e., supporters of President Trump and his “Make America great again” slogan — was trying to “score political points” by calling Robinson a left-wing radical.

“The MAGA Gang [is] 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. “In between the finger-pointing, there was grieving.”

The linked article goes into what some have said about Tyler Robinson who has been charged with Kirk’s murder. However this is about Trump forcing Kimmel off the air, and using Kirk’s murder as an excuse.  Look again at what Kimmel said starting at the two minute mark of his monologue Monday night (the opening about Trump’s NFL kickoffs is worth watching too):

So we have a late night comedian noting there was political discourse, finger pointing over the weekend and highlighting the MAGA part and yes, skewering Trump’s not seeming to care all that much about Kirk’s murder. Kimmel I must note pointed out that amidst all this people are grieving. What is so offensive about what Kimmel said?

Frankly I can’t help but wonder if Trump skipping from Kirk’s murder to his freaking ballroom is the fact HE wasn’t the center of attention last week.  Kirk was getting all the attention and Trumpty can’t stand not having the spotlight focused on him and only him. However, somewhere in what functioning brain cells Trump has left he figured he had an excuse to silence a regular tormentor.  Brendan Carr will deny it forever but you know damn well he got a phone call saying THIS was an excuse to get Kimmel off the air.

So, as I’ve noted all Carr’s past sentiments regarding free speech and how important it is to challenge or even do so by making fun of our leaders to hold them in check went out the window. Nexstar, a large company that owns numerous ABC affiliates is in the midst of a merger that will require FCC approval. And Sinclair which also owns a big chunk of affiliates is always ready and waiting to do Trump’s bidding was also paying attention when Carr made his ‘easy way or hard way’ threat.

Sure, pulling ABC’s license would have been fought in court and not even Robert’s SCOTUS in the end would have allowed it. However financial fortunes were at stake and executives at ABC and it’s parent company want their goddammed blood money.  It’s not just a sad day, but one that should chill you to the bone. Trump is far from done. He loves to dish it out but he can’t take it. And he sure as hell can’t take being made fun of. It makes him flash back to being a little boy being an asshole at family dinner. His big brother dumped a bowl of mashed potatoes over his head and the whole family laughed at Trumpty. Because he had it coming.

Trump is still that same spoiled kid who got taught a humiliating lesson. And he’s President with power greater than any other person in the world at his disposal. He’s increasingly out of control, and he’s not giving up his power  until he’s carried out of the White House ‘feet first’ because Mother Nature finally did her job, as she will eventually to us all.  Kimmel could sue, but at the moment I worry that could make things even worse. He’s rich, but has a son who’s had serious heart problems and he might decide to circle his own wagons and collect what ABC owes him.  In the meantime two other late night talk shows are still on the air. It will be interesting to see how they (especially Colbert ) will address this.

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