Jimmy Kimmel returned to the air last night, but if your local ABC affiliate was owned by Nexstar or Sinclair, you didn’t see it, as the two corporate giants have continued to refuse to air Jimmy Kimmel Live.
House Oversight Committee Democrats led by Reps. Robert Garcia (D-CA) and Maxwell Frost (D-FL) want answers.
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The lawmakers wrote to the Chair and CEO of Nexstar:
We are specifically concerned that Nexstar and Sinclair’s actions show a disturbing willingness to side with the Administration by silencing your creative outlets to appease the President. In your press release, your claim that Mr. Kimmel’s statement was “deeply insensitive at a critical moment for our country,” and thus worthy of the show’s cancellation altogether is a mischaracterization of Kimmel’s remarks and a disturbing effort to embrace the Administration’s censorship of dissenting viewpoints.6 As one of the largest media organizations and television broadcasters in the United States, your priority must be to uphold free speech and the free press, not to manage the tirades of the current President.
Rep. Garcia had more to say about FCC Chair Brendan Carr during an appearance on MSNBC:
The Democratic Reps. appear to have it right. What’s happening here is that two major corporations that combined owned hundreds of local TV stations are working with the Trump administration to carry out the president’s goal of silencing his critics.
FCC Chair Carr will be appearing before Congress at some point, and he will have to justify this illegal violation of the First Amendment.
Democrats know where the pressure point is on this scandal. The administration can ignore Democrats in Congress until they win back all or some control of Congress and have subpoena power.
The weak links are the two corporations that are still refusing to air Kimmel. These corporations can’t hold out forever, or they will be in breach of contract with ABC, but the co-conspirators need to be held accountable for their actions, and Democrats are keeping the pressure on those who choose to side with Trump over the right to free speech.
What do you think about the Democratic investigation? Share your thoughts in the comments below.
