After being suspended last Wednesday for making comments about Charlie Kirk’s death, Jimmy Kimmel returned to air Tuesday night.
According to The Denver Post, in his monologue last Monday, Kimmel joked that “many in MAGA land are working very hard to capitalize on the murder of Charlie Kirk,” as well as that they were trying to paint the kid who killed Kirk as being “anything other than one of them.”
This upset not only conservatives—who act like Kirk was some kind of saint—but also Kimmel’s network, ABC. President Donald Trump took to social media to call Kimmel’s suspension “great news for America.” Two of ABC’s affiliate owners, Nexstar and Sinclair, announced that Jimmy Kimmel Live! was to be “suspended indefinitely” the day after.
Following this announcement, many came to Kimmel’s defense, including some celebrities. According to AP News, David Letterman, Jean Smart, and Wanda Sykes are just a few of the people who spoke out.
Due to this outcry of left-wing support, the network announced, “We have spent the last days having thoughtful conversations with Jimmy, and after those conversations, we reached the decision to return the show on Tuesday.”
Returning to air Tuesday night, NPR reported that Kimmel addressed the suspension, claiming, “It was never my intention to make light of the murder of a young man.” However, he also warned about current threats to free speech, “This show isn’t important—What’s important is that we get to live in a country that allows us to have a show like this.”
Charlie Kirk’s death has been the hot topic this past few weeks. Sparking intense and, frankly, dramatic responses from conservatives who agreed with his bigoted, harmful takes.
This situation reminds us that to conservatives, free speech only applies when it agrees with them. So if you don’t have anything nice to say about the man who openly encouraged violence against trans people, LGBTQ+ people, and promoted white supremacist ideals, then don’t say anything at all!
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