269 Comments
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Don Bryan's avatar

To be clear, this was a monetary decision by ABC - same as it was by CBS when they decided to end Colbert's contract. Kimmel is at least as expensive as Colbert, and he was losing at least as much money. He just happened to hand ABC a big fat excuse to cut their losses by opening his big fat mouth for the millionth offensive time.

boofreakinhoo, Jimmy.

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Suzanne-Marie English's avatar

Exactly! And loved your “boofreakinhoo, Jimmy.”🎯💥💪🏼

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Tomas Pajaros's avatar

ABC's primary customers, Sinclair and Nexstar, pulled Kimmel first. ABC caved to their market. As they should. "Mr. Kimmel's comments about the death of Mr. Kirk are offensive and insensitive at a critical time in our national political discourse, and we do not believe they reflect the spectrum of opinions, views, or values of the local communities in which we are located," said Andrew Alford, president of Nexstar's broadcasting division.

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Suzanne-Marie English's avatar

Thank you for this interesting — & essential to this subject — clarification.

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biff33's avatar

Did Sinclair and Nexstar pull Kimmel before or after FCC Chairman Brendan Carr said, "We can do this the hard way or the easy way?"

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Tomas Pajaros's avatar

they pulled him off their networks

ABC had a phone meeting with Kimmel in which he was argumentative and said he would double-down on his next show

ABC pulled the plug then

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biff33's avatar

Was that before or after Carr's threat?

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Not That “Karen”'s avatar

It doesn’t matter. There is really nothing Carr could have done, even as the FCC Chairman. In Miller v California the Supreme Court defined a very narrow window for FCC action and it revolves solely around sexual obscenity or profanity, so Carr has no tools in his toolbox to punish licensees for Kimmel’s words and ABC and/or Disney attorneys are certainly smart enough to know that. This was purely a business decision. The broadcasters (Nexstar and Sinclair) deny Carr’s comments had any bearing on their decision to preempt Kimmel’s programming, citing instead local advertisers and public concerns as well as common decency.

Kimmel was offered several opportunities to recant and/or apologize and he refused, choosing instead to double down resulting in his suspension. He made his own bed.

.

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biff33's avatar

"But the laws governing the Federal Communications Commission are broad enough that the agency can police almost any content in broadcast media in the 'public interest.' … [But ]the FCC can in theory use the same legal justification that undergirded the Fairness Doctrine to police any speech it wants. The Supreme Court ruled in 1969 that free speech by broadcasters can be limited, so long as those limits are in the public interest. What counts as the public interest is to a large extent up to the FCC to determine, subject to judicial review." -- National Review https://www.nationalreview.com/2025/09/abolish-the-fcc/?utm_source=recirc-desktop&utm_medium=homepage&utm_campaign=header&utm_content=popular&utm_term=second

I don't care about Jimmy Kimmel or who made his bed. I care about government policing of the airwaves.

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Juju's avatar

And I don’t believe anything Fire said. They can spin it that way to get the reaction they want. What if that’s not how it happened at all? What if the government didn’t pressure them, but the public pressured the stations? That’s free market, not censorship.

I’m tired of these made up stories where some convo took place with someone in the government and it’s twisted out of proportion or unfair assumptions are made, and reported on falsely just to get us all upset.

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Jennifer James's avatar

Thank goodness his “big fat mouth” is now silent!

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Michael Framson's avatar

Kimmel's disgusting mouth led me to want him tar and feathered. He went after parents who declined vaccines for their children by exercising the medical ethical principle of informed consent. They declined and that was too much for Jimmy "the monster" Kimmel.

Key events from 2015 include:

February 2015: In response to a measles outbreak, Kimmel dedicated a monologue to criticizing anti-vaccination parents, noting that in some schools in Los Angeles, "parents here are more afraid of gluten than they are of smallpox". He also mocked celebrities like Jenny McCarthy who spread misinformation about vaccines.

February 27, 2015: His show featured a segment in which real doctors recorded a profane public service announcement urging people to vaccinate their children.

March 2015: Kimmel responded to backlash from the anti-vaccination community by airing a satirical "child's right to choose" segment, in which he and his crew pretended to survey children on whether they wanted a vaccination shot.

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Griswold's avatar

“Kimmel wasn’t fired because he stated an opinion based on reasonable facts — the typical situation when conservatives were blacklisted for the past decade. He was fired for spreading a lie about current events that could be easily verified to be false in only a few seconds of research on line. And the lie was expressly designed to defame Kimmel’s political opponents in the most vile manner.”

Can you say Defamation Lawsuit, boys and girls? I thought you could. ABC could too

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Tricia's avatar

They didn’t just terminate Colbert. They terminated the actual program. It will not return after Colbert leaves in 2026.

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Mystic William's avatar

Let’s look at the reverse. Suppose Jimmy Kimmel was a big money maker. Suppose he had been making them $40M a year, not losing them that. Would they have fired him? No. Of course not. The idea a big entertainment network would make a moral decision is absurd.

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Brian DeLeon's avatar

Amazing how when the shoe is on the other foot, suddenly it’s government censorship. Hypocrisy indeed. And who cares about Jimmy Kimmel? He was a real douchebag.

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Amy Kennedy's avatar

This!! The networks have been a propaganda machine for the dems for years and now it’s a problem?!?

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Kidbuck's avatar

Yeah, well they took the gloves off a long f'ing time ago, so cry me a river.

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Bill Mullen's avatar

ABC was told by NextStar & a few others that they would no longer carry Kimmel as a result of of his left wing hatred with the straw that broke the camel’s back being Jimmy’s lie that it was a right winger that shot Charlie Kirk.

It was a race to who would fire him first.

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Bernadette's avatar

Jimmy Kimmel has free speech, and ABC has the freedom to terminate him. No one is "canceling" him but his employer and his fiduciaries. He is free to be hired again, he has not been de-banked, and he has not been cast out into the darkness. If his ratings were good he'd likely still be employed. He is ultimately the victim of his own lack of comedic talent, IMO

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jabster's avatar

More succinctly, Jimmy Kimmel has free speech, including keeping his mouth shut, and ABC has free speech, including keeping their electronic mouth shut.

Freedom of contract FTW!

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Jeff Perkins's avatar

Good for you to point out his non-debanking. Unlike others, he is not a nonperson.

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Patricia Taylor's avatar

I hope you are ready, emotionally, to have the government take away your free speech. Because, once they start taking it, they don’t stop.

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Juju's avatar

Sort of like the Biden years right? That was the MOST censorship I’ve ever witnessed in my entire 60 years. And nobody is limiting free speech today. 🙄

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Doctor Hammer's avatar

Well, yes, like the Biden years, only now it seems the other side is doing it. Now, maybe the FCC didn't pressure ABC and that is just a false report, but looking at Pam Bondi the past week I wouldn't be too surprised. People, especially government officials, can't be trusted to have free speech principles and instead can be trusted to follow the principle of expediency. As you point out at least since Biden it has become normal for the government to pressure citizens into obeying their illegal rules. Remember when states threatened businesses with taking away their business licenses if they didn't require COVID shots?

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Marie's avatar

Note that conservatives are pushing back on Bondi. We didn’t change. The left did.

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Doctor Hammer's avatar

Agreed. We have to focus on the principles and doing right, not which team is doing the thing before deciding if it is right or not.

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Karen Bandy's avatar

And remember when states threatened to fine businesses who didn’t close during covid? Here in Oregon they sent BOLI after us and yes, they did hand out fines. Then they gifted us with unemployment checks and the feds gave us PPP money to shut us up.

What a flipping mess those times were.

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Doctor Hammer's avatar

Indeed. Once it becomes something “ok when my team does it” it becomes a matter of course that whichever team is in power will use that power as a bludgeon against all the rest. The answer to “they did it to us” is thus not “so let’s do it too”; that just makes it more certain to continue. The answer is to punish those who did wrong and make it so it cannot be done again.

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KARYN TRUITT's avatar

I spent 12 years walking on eggshells because of democrats. Hundreds of thousands of people have been in the same position, and now you cry. The democrats HAMMERED people who disagreed with them - look at Twitter before 'X', look at blue sky NOW. Democrat censorship is alive and well - and they don't even KNOW what the Constitution *actually* says.

So stop with the whole whiny 'emotional' garbage. You sound silly.

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biff33's avatar

I was principled then and I'm principled now. Nothing silly about it.

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Jeff Perkins's avatar

I am not ready. And it will be long before I again visit the UK.

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Chris Gorman's avatar

Actually his ratings were terrible and the reason he still worked can't be very difficult to imagine. He like Colbert was an inveterate lefty in a business that maintains an unspoken rule to hire lefties. If you speak up on set in any meaningful way about the utter meaninglessness of leftist talking points, you will be bounced. That wasn't the case when I started out. And pathetic, spineless cretinous men like Kimmel were created by decades of hectoring by vile feminists and are the reason we're in this place, voiceless. Thanks ladies. I don't blame Kimmel for his baptism into the orgy of liberal shibboleths. He was after all host of THE MAN SHOW for God's sake. You can't blame a dog raised to fight for biting other dogs.

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Jeff Keener's avatar

The good news is that Kimmel is available to help our farmers bring in the last of the fruit and vegetables. Fresh air, productive work, and a break from the poison he trafficks would do him a world of good. He can come back stronger and better than ever.

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Patricia Taylor's avatar

Oh, I see. You think Jimmy K. Would be good at farming because he’s Mexican. Do you really think God believes that Mexicans are only good at farming? I just wondered.

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Jeff Keener's avatar

🙄What a strange thing to wonder about. I don't think any of those things that you think I think. Here's what I think: I think Kimmel would be a lousy farmer, but I think it would do him some good to work with a picking crew for a bit and take a break from his current tawdry life and experience something real. Doesn't require too much skill or knowledge to pick squash or pumpkins.

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Formerly_Known_As_Someone's avatar

Wikipedia says he’s German and Italian.

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KARYN TRUITT's avatar

well that's a bit racist. Do you think only farmers are Mexican? Or all Mexicans are farmers?

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Deborah Gallaway's avatar

Good observation, Karen.

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KARYN TRUITT's avatar

thank you!

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Dena's avatar

Jimmy Kimmel is Mexican? Who cares.

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Juju's avatar

🤣 I couldn’t tell, I don’t even know if that’s true, but ol Patricia sure is trolling as hard as she can all over these comments trying to stoke discord. 🤣 so obvious

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Dena's avatar

I know, I usually just ignore them til they go away. I had a weak moment🙂

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Kidbuck's avatar

Kimmel is Mexican?

Ok then, hasta la vista,, BABY!

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Deborah Gallaway's avatar

Oh. Give. Us. A. Break.

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KAM's avatar

Free speech is never absolute. We try to find the line. As much freedom as possible. As much order as necessary. It’s always contingent.

Celebrating murder is not OK. I’ll live with pressure to do better.

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Lynette's avatar

Celebrating a death by assassination broke a basic moral code. I hope TPUSA and Erika Kirk still sue these evil liars like a Democrat. Who has the guts to address the assassination culture and to do something about it? If everyone followed The Golden Rule, we wouldn't be here.

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Patricia Taylor's avatar

I am surprised by how much anger and mean words that Christians use against Democrats.

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Lynette's avatar

Are all Democrats sociopaths, or are all sociopaths Democrats?

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Wendi's avatar

All sociopaths are attracted to the Democrat party!

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Rooster's avatar

So a Christian has no right to express anger Patricia Taylor? Especially when the focus of that anger is a Democrat Party that has been promulgating such offensive nonsense as men in women’s sports and, ‘gender affirming care( the sexual mutilation of gender dysphoric young people),and an open border that aided and abetted human trafficking which in countless cases involved innocent children? Or the attempts to squelch the questioning of the Covid vaccine by the h companies who Bwere ckesrli n Are Christians or anybody else for that matter supposed to dummy up, play nice and ignore blatant evil?

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Trapped in IL's avatar

Yes, we are expected to play nice. That way the Left can roll over us, like they always have, with their lies, lies, lies.

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Rooster's avatar

To complete my thought: the squelching of the questioning of the Covid vaccine by tech companies who were in bed with the Biden administration.

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Trapped in IL's avatar

Cry me a River, Patricia Taylor.

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Matthew J Florio's avatar

People are often surprised by reality when they think they know about people they've never associated with.

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Cindy Akins's avatar

It’s hardly unheard of nor forbidden - even Jesus showed anger when flipping the tables of the money lenders in the temple.

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Stan Josselyn's avatar

Is spewing hate and anger legal? I thought so?

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biff33's avatar

Sue them for what?

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jabster's avatar

Celebrating murder is OK from a 1A standpoint, but not a personal decency standpoint.

The 1A recognizes the right of everyone to be an asshole (or a sicko) by what they say.

I don't think the Mouse likes assholes working for them.

https://www.amazon.com/Asshole-Rule-Civilized-Workplace-Surviving/dp/1600245854

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Janet Merran's avatar

Don’t forget what happened to Roseanne Barr

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BD's avatar

Yes, and she was fired, not because of Obama, but because of Obama's dumb ass girlfriend.

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Patricia Taylor's avatar

It still surprises me how people can always find a way to blame Obama for anything they disapprove of.

~~Do Christians really think Jesus would be ok with people judging others cause of their skin color?

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BD's avatar
Sep 18Edited

Brilliant deduction. Obama=skin color. So why not raise the racist flag? Huh? You don't even understand the comment so you regress to the old racist mantra. Nice job. BTW, I don't judge Obama on his skin color. The leftist America he's helped create is reason enough to judge him as a failed President.

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Marie's avatar

You do realize you’re way out of your depth in this locale, don’t you?

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Kevin Dolan's avatar

Why don't you pray on it and get back to us?

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Ruth H's avatar

Karma is sweet. Kimmel was an egotistical ignorant POS. The left set up these rules and did all they could to debunk, censor, lawfare, accuse, and destroy we the ‘deplorables.’ We finally are playing by their rules in a very limited way, as we never want to repeat every atrocious action they thought was ok.

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Michael Pergola's avatar

Antifa designated a terrorist organization.

Now we’re talking !!!!

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Patricia Taylor's avatar

We’ll end up like Nazi Germany. Is that ok with Christians?

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Michael Pergola's avatar

What a stupid thing to say . America defeated Nazi Germany, dimwit .

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Juju's avatar

They have a hyper-fixation with “Christians” in almost every reply they post. LOL truest sign of a propaganda troll. Wonder if she has hairy feet too

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Wendi's avatar

Patricia, not everyone here is a Christian -you need to sit down with your resentment towards religion. Not everyone here, believes in God and clearly you don’t.

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Matthew J Florio's avatar

I thought we were ALREADY in Nazi Germany according to your favored dunces in Congress, toots. Can you make up your mind about whether Hitler is coming or already here, please?

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Kurt's avatar

Another Trump masterful play--put Disney in the position of defending a money-losing clown who is not funny.

This is not a free speech issue. There are plenty more democrat jackels in the media.

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ReadingRainbow's avatar

It used to be illegal for network news to blatantly lie. Obama repealed that law. Jimmy Kimmel saying the shooter was a MAGA Republican was straight up disinformation.

What would they have done to Jimmy if he had told his audience not to take the Covid vax? Would he have even made it on the air?

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Karen Bandy's avatar

Wish they had done the same to David Muir. He told a blatant lie about Trump and didn’t get fired. I remember wanting to throw something at my tv, but for the life of me can’t remember the lie, lol! At least now I know he’s a liar and don’t watch him.

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Paul Scofield's avatar

The First Amendment talks about "Congress" making no law abridging the freedom of speech. That does not mean that the consequences of shooting off one's mouth in the private sector are protected. If you have legitimate citations and proof of the Trump administration coercing ABC (or others) to can employees (like a written EO sent along to the FCC), you might want to post the URL. Otherwise it is just talk.

Given the wholesale media-led assault on American citizens' and President Trump's constitutional rights both before and during the FJB interregnum, I think it is convenient for the self-same to now cast themselves as the aggrieved and the defenders of 1A. To hell with that. Both the MSM and the American Left writ large have permanently lost any claim to being anyone's moral betters.

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Juju's avatar

THIS!

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biff33's avatar

"We can do this the easy way or the hard way" (FCC Chairman Brendan Carr) isn't a threat to de-license all those Nexstar and Sinclair stations?

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Gary W.'s avatar

I remember when the Democrats were in power and Sen. Chuck Schumer gave a speech strongly encouraging FOX to not allow anymore Tucker segments on J6. And of course they dropped Tucker not long after, when he had high ratings, unlike Kimmel.

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Tom from WNY's avatar

Same happened to Glen Beck after Soros met with Murdoch. Bye-bye!

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Karen Bandy's avatar

Same happened to Megan Kelly when she was on the 3rd hour of the Today show, (she went there after Murdoch’s sexual harassment thing).

I loved it when she criticized Hillary on ABC, but there was more to her firing than that.

Dr Oz talked about taking Vit D to help prevent covid and then was replaced as the medical expert.

I used to watch that show every morning while getting ready for work. Not anymore! Not watching and not working full time.

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Gary W.'s avatar

Yes the common thread seems to be that someone didn't like what the conservatives were saying, and it wasn't about ratings. The amazing thing is that Joy Reid, Don Lemon, Kimmel stayed on the air as long as they did, and makes you think that the network bigshots liked them.

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Roger Beal's avatar

The network bigshots may have been paid to like them. Which industries buy the most advertising time on MSM programs? (Hint: One of them rhymes with "harma").

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Karen Bandy's avatar

That’s logical. Those people you mentioned supported the big shot’s agenda.

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Barbara Bergin's avatar

I agree 100%, and have written such to Trump, Vance and my representatives. We must let our voices be heard, especially since right now, we should not have fear of government retribution. However, I do believe private entities should be allowed to fire people based on their public behaviors. As a previous business owner, I would have fired an employee for public immorality, be they left or right. If it did not represent what I wanted to convey to the public, I should have every right to can someone behaving badly, whether they say, "I'm happy Charlie Kirk is dead," or something homophobic. But as a private business owner, I did not have someone else's wealth bouying me up with financial support, as do the legacy media institutions. I have only the income generated directly from customers. Kimmel and others should have been gone a long time ago, but they were financially supported. It was time for him to go. No matter when that was, the left would blame the administration for suppression of free speech.

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Patricia Taylor's avatar

But what if GOP loses elections in 2028? What if new Leftie leaders want to fire people for being Christians?

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Wendi's avatar

No one gives a shit, Patricia. You need to fuck off about all of your Christian bullshit.

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Alan Potkin's avatar

Oh, Puh-leeeze, Ms. Patricia!

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KARYN TRUITT's avatar

Then they would get sued out of their collective minds - unless they happen to re-write the Constitution which is what Harris wanted to do.

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Marcos Amine's avatar

So I’m sure you were against the Biden administration pressuring FB and Twitter to deplatform and ban conservatives…

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david's avatar

It’s a business, with his terrible ratings they were probably looking for a reason to get rid of him. He provided them an easy out.

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Jennifer James's avatar

Late night killed funny…which jimmy Kimmel helped happen!

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Wendi's avatar

Bingo!! no one has been able to pressure these corporations before or any media outlet. They’ll pretend that they’re being pressured so they can appease their left, leaning audience and donors.

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david's avatar

Exactly

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Marilyn's avatar

All week I have been remembering that quote by Maya Angelou..."When someone tells you who they are, believe them". Funny how I haven't heard that quote this week being applied to these horrible, hateful commentators about the murder of Charlie Kirk.

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Allison Gilliland's avatar

I wish the FCC chair hadn’t said anything. ABC would’ve made the same decision because they have stockholders (and moral people) to answer to. It would’ve taken care of itself.

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Juju's avatar

I’m not so sure the FCC did say anything because I don’t trust the news organizations reporting that, and even if they said something I highly doubt what was said is being presented truthfully.

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FLGenX's avatar

Read the Matt Taibbi piece Sasha linked to in her article where Matt quotes the FCC Chair.

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Juju's avatar

Yeah I know, but they were finally doing their job and it wasn’t done as it was being presented. There are obligations to the public that these broadcast stations must adhere to and they are not allowed to lie to the public, but the FCC was not doing their job the past decade at least, if not longer. My point was even if they said something I’m sure it wasn’t the spin the media is presenting. It was the proper warning they are supposed to give when a broadcast station violates their obligation. This wasn’t some free speech infringement by the president, some bully tactic. It was simply the FCC giving the proper warning when a clear lie is being broadcast.

Broadcast stations have freedom to forfeit their public license if they don’t want to follow the obligations they agreed to, and they have the freedom to not take public money and say whatever the hell they want to without government interference. But they cannot take public money and then lie to the public.

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Juju's avatar

Sorry I never click on ANY links without some clear explanation as to what is behind it. Thanks anyway but I won’t click this

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biff33's avatar

A National Review editorial arguing for abolition of the Federal Communications Commission -- because you wrote that the FCC isn't doing its job.

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