As two of America’s largest station groups, Sinclair and Nexstar, stand firm in their decision to preempt ABC’s “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” over comments about a “MAGA gang” and the suspected shooter of Charlie Kirk, powerful elements of the left are pressuring the broadcasters to relent.

For more than a week, Sinclair and Nexstar, which own about a quarter of ABC’s affiliate stations, have been preempting Mr. Kimmel’s show after he said a “MAGA gang” was “desperately trying to characterize this kid who murdered Charlie Kirk as anything other than one of them,” despite the governor of Utah and other officials stating that the suspect held left-wing views.” 

When Mr. Kimmel returned from a nearly week-long suspension, he said in his widely watched monologue that his comment was taken out of context and was not meant to make light of Kirk’s murder. But he did not apologize for what his detractors say was an objectively false statement that was insulting to the Kirk family and derogatory to the MAGA movement. While Mr. Kimmel’s monologue was greeted with effusive praise by the dominant media, Nexstar and Sinclair – whose owners are openly conservative in their politics – were not impressed. They have signaled they are not budging on not carrying his show.

Nexstar said in a statement after Mr. Kimmel’s return that its stations would continue to preempt “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” The country’s largest station group said that while it’s having “productive” conversations with Disney, ABC’s owner, it won’t be lifting its ban on Mr. Kimmel until steps are taken “to ensure the program reflects and respects the diverse interests of the communities their stations serve.” 

Mr. Kimmel, a key part of Hollywood’s Democratic fundraising machine who campaigns for Democrats and emcees major presidential fundraisers (including the notorious 2024 fundraiser where George Clooney complains President Biden didn’t recognize him), has used his show for years to excoriate Mr. Trump and conservatives with withering mockery. 

Nexstar’s statement suggests that its owners feel the show is not respectful of Nexstar viewers who are Trump supporters or conservatives. While Disney owns the biggest local ABC stations whose urban audiences lean left (such as the giant stations in deep blue New York, Los Angeles, and Chicago), many ABC stations owned by outside companies are in more conservative markets. 

Disney values good relationships with its stations – who have significant leverage – and is not expected to try any pressure tactics, such as suing them or starving them of sports programming, over something as trivial as the fast-declining late-night daypart.  Therefore, left-wing groups and lawmakers are now seeking to ratchet up the pressure on the broadcasters. 

A Democratic senator, Maria Cantwell of Washington (Jimmy Kimmel is pre-empted in the Seattle area) sent a letter to Sinclair and its CEO, Christopher Ripley, urging it to resume airing Mr. Kimmel’s show. 

“The First Amendment ensures the freedom of expression and a free press, and our nation’s media landscape needs to embody those ideals,” Ms. Cantwell said. “As a trusted voice in the community, local broadcasting is a critical part of that landscape. Your decision not to reinstate comedian Jimmy Kimmel’s late-night talk show appears contrary to the inherently local aspects of your station licenses, given the popularity of Mr. Kimmel’s show in the market. I urge you to return Mr. Kimmel’s show to KOMO-TV.”

She noted that broadcast stations “can – and do – decide what programming to air in their communities of license.” However, she said, “Your ABC affiliate in Seattle, KOMO-TV, is one of the most popular stations in the area, and ratings for Jimmy Kimmel Live! are higher in the Seattle DMA than the national average. I am concerned that your decision, made on a national level, will negatively impact how millions of viewers in the Puget Sound region access quality, local news, and programming.”

Separately, a group of Democratic senators – Elizabeth Warren, Ron Wyden, Edward Markey, and Chris Van Hollen – sent letters to Sinclair and Nexstar asking for explanations for their decisions to preempt Mr. Kimmel’s show. The senators noted that the Trump-appointed chairman of the Federal Communications Commission, Brendan Carr, said on September 17 that broadcasters “can find ways to take action on Mr. Kimmel, or there is going to be additional work for the FCC ahead.”

Mr. Carr’s comment, which was made hours before Sinclair and Nexstar announced their decision to preempt Mr. Kimmel’s show, was seen as a threat of future government action. (Mr. Carr has denied he was making a threat and that he merely meant an individual might fight a complaint against the broadcasters, which the FCC would be statutorily obligated to investigate). 

Democratic  lawmakers and left-wing journalists pointed out that Nexstar recently announced a deal to acquire another station group, Tegna, a deal that requires the approval of the FCC, and suggested that dumping Mr. Kimmel’s show was an attempt to ensure the merger is approved by the government. 

Nexstar and Sinclair – and even Disney –  have both stated they felt Mr. Kimmel’s comments were ill-timed and insensitive, and that is why they decided to preempt his show. 

On Tuesday, Mr. Kimmel did not apologize for his comment, despite having ample opportunity to do so. Instead, he simply conceded he likely will not change anyone’s negative view of him with his comments. The closest he came to an apology was stating that he understood why people were upset and suggesting that his comment was “unclear” or “ill-timed.” The comedian stated that it was not his “intention to blame any specific group for the actions of what was obviously a deeply disturbed individual.”

The remainder of his monologue was spent talking about himself and the support he’d received from various important Hollywood figures, as well as from Senator Ted Cruz, and warning about the future of free speech under the Trump administration. He also skewered President Trump and the chairman of the Federal Communications Commission, Brendan Carr. 

While Hollywood celebrities and left-wing journalists hailed the monologue and said it “met the moment,” his comment further frustrated conservatives who felt he did not do “enough.”

A spokesman for Turning Point USA, Andrew Kolvet, posted on X, “Not good enough. Jimmy, it’s simple. Here’s what you need to say: ‘I’m sorry for saying the shooter was MAGA. He was not. He was of the left. I apologize to the Kirk family for lying. Please accept my sincere apology. I will do better. I was wrong.’”

Sinclair and Nexstar have also stated that Mr. Kimmel’s Tuesday night monologue did not sway their decision to preempt his show. 

Sinclair, whose management is more conservative than other station groups, has demanded that Mr. Kimmel apologize to Kirk’s family and personally make a donation to Turning Point. 

The pressure on Nexstar and Sinclair from Democrats and left-wing groups is similar to the pressure campaign CBS and its corporate parent, Paramount Global, faced last spring as executives sought to win the government’s approval of its merger with Skydance Media.

While the FCC reviewed the Skydance deal, Paramount executives mulled whether to settle Mr. Trump’s $20 billion lawsuit against CBS, which led to warnings from Democrats that the settlement would violate anti-bribery laws and would lead to lawsuits and investigations. Despite the intimidating letters, Paramount agreed to pay $16 million to settle Mr. Trump’s lawsuit and the FCC later approved the Skydance deal. (Mr. Carr and Paramount stated that the Trump lawsuit and Skydance deal were unrelated.) 

So far, the predicted wave of investigations and lawsuits against Skydance appears not to have materialized, though that could change if Democrats regain control of Congress after the 2026 midterm election. 

Given the decision of Nexstar and Sinclair to stand by their initial decisions to preempt Mr. Kimmel’s show, it appears unlikely that the pressure campaign will sway the station groups.

Sinclair did not respond to the Sun’s request for comment by the time of publication. Nexstar did not respond to the Sun’s request for comment by the time of publication.