Earlier this week, Jimmy Kimmel was suspended after comments about Charlie Kirk’s assassination garnered criticism and threats from affiliate stations to boycott. While Disney has been officially quiet on the matter, former Disney CEO Michael Eisner is not keeping quiet. He took to X (formerly Twitter) to voice his displeasure about the situation. In a post, he said the following:
Where has all the leadership gone? If not for university presidents, law firm managing partners, and corporate chief executives standing up against bullies, who then will step up for the first amendment? The “suspending indefinitely” of Jimmy Kimmel immediately after the Chairman of the FCC’s aggressive yet hollow threatening of the Disney Company is yet another example of out-of-control intimidation. Maybe the Constitution should have said, “Congress shall make no law abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press, except in one’s political or financial self-interest.” By-the-way, for the record, this ex-CEO finds Jimmy Kimmel very talented and funny.
Michael Eisner on X
Earlier this week, Jimmy Kimmel said on his show, Jimmy Kimmel Live!, “We hit some new lows over the weekend with the MAGA gang 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.” A clip of Trump responding to a reporter asking about how he was doing after Kirk’s death, by changing the subject to the construction of the White House ballroom construction was also shown.
Following the September 16th airing of this show, Federal Communications Commission Chairman Brendan Carr said, “What people don’t understand is that the broadcasters … have a license granted by us at the FCC, and that comes with it an obligation to operate in the public interest. When we see stuff like this, look, we can do this the easy way or the hard way. These companies can find ways to change conduct, on Kimmel, or there’s going to be additional work for the FCC ahead.”
As criticism grew and following the Chairman’s comments, Nextstar released a statement saying “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.” Sinclair also released a similar statement. Nexstar is the largest owner of ABC Affiliate stations and is currently attempting to purchase Tegna. Nexstar has been lobbying the FCC over regulatory issues regarding this merger.
This led to Jimmy Kimmel being suspended “indefinitely.” Since the suspension, protests have erupted both online and in front of The Walt Disney Studios. Many people are also cancelling subscriptions to Disney’s streaming services. The situation is complicated by First Amendment issues, business issues, and political issues. How it plays out is anybody’s guess.
Michael Eisner was the CEO of The Walt Disney Company from 1984 to 2005.
