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Bill Simmons, CEO of The Ringer, is the latest sports personality to weigh in on Jimmy Kimmel’s suspension from ABC.
On Monday, Kimmel accused “the MAGA gang” of reaching “new lows” in “trying to characterize” Charlie Kirk assassination suspect Tyler Robinson “as anything other than one of them.”
Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Chairman Brendan Carr pushed for Disney, ABC’s parent company, to address the controversy. Simmons noted Rolling Stone reporting that ABC executives who did not feel Kimmel crossed a line were afraid of retaliation by the Trump administration.
Carr was appointed by Trump before his first term, then again by Biden and once more by Trump upon reelection.
With that report in his back pocket, noting the potential merger between Nexstar and Tegna and the Trump administration’s involvement, Simmons outwardly called Kimmel’s removal “censorship” rather than “cancel culture,” which he said will happen throughout Trump’s presidency.
“[Kimmel] can still have that platform wherever he wants because he’s the platform,” Simmons said on his self-named podcast. “And that’s the difference in this. And that’s why I don’t think this is quite as scary and terrible as maybe it felt this week. Yeah, we’re gonna have censorship. Yeah, stupid s— like this apparently is gonna keep happening for the next three years. Yeah, the discourse is the ugliest it’s ever been.
“But I still feel like if somebody’s good enough to have a platform, they can find it. So, I hope Jimmy’s show sticks around, and I hope ABC sticks by him. And I think if they don’t, I think it would be pretty cowardly. I don’t think that’s a crazy thing to say. But if they don’t stick by him and this is the end, I think he’s gonna be fine. He’ll find another platform somewhere, and he’ll figure out how to get all his content out in the right ways. And I would not bet against that dude.”
FORMER ESPN HOST RIPS DISNEY’S BOB IGER FOR ‘STATE-RUN MEDIA’ MOVE ON JIMMY KIMMEL SHOW DECISION
Simmons wrote for Kimmel’s show in its early days, and their friendship has remained “for 24 years.” Before his diatribe, Simmons admitted he sides with Kimmel “with most stuff.”
Kimmel’s comments came one day after both FBI officials and Utah Gov. Spencer Cox said Robinson held a “leftist ideology” and was increasingly radicalized in recent years. It was also revealed that he had a romantic relationship with a transgender partner who was biologically male and transitioning to female.
Nexstar Media Group, which owns hundreds of television stations, announced earlier it would preempt Kimmel’s show on its ABC affiliates starting Wednesday night “for the foreseeable future” and would replace it with other programming over his comments about Robinson.
Kirk, a 31-year-old father of two, was shot and killed last week while speaking at an event at Utah Valley University. Thousands of people have mourned his death in vigils across the U.S.
The conservative influencer’s funeral is set for Sept. 21 at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona.
Fox News Digital’s Jackson Thompson contributed to this report.
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