Kimmel Is Back — And So Are We
A little over a week ago, I wrote about how Jimmy Kimmel’s show was pulled off the air after a dust-up with the FCC and some of the biggest broadcast chains in the country. Disney suspended him. Then Sinclair and Nexstar — two giant media companies that own dozens of ABC stations — kept his show blacked out even after Disney said he could return.
Well, here’s the update: Kimmel is back on the air everywhere. Disney reinstated him, and after days of pressure and criticism, both Sinclair and Nexstar finally caved and ended their blackout. What started as a dangerous example of censorship has turned into a rare win for free speech. (AP News)
Why this matters
This wasn’t just about one late-night comedian. It was about whether powerful corporations and government officials can silence voices they don’t like. For a few days, it looked like they could. But public backlash, criticism from across the media world, and the simple fact that millions of people tuned in anyway forced Sinclair and Nexstar to back down. (Politico)
That shows us something important: these companies aren’t untouchable. When enough people push back, they move.
Kimmel’s return
When Kimmel finally came back on air, he didn’t just crack jokes and move on. He opened with an emotional monologue, admitting how shaken he was by the attempt to silence him. At one point he said:
“This show is not important. What is important is that we get to live in a country that allows us to have a show like this.”
That line captured exactly why this fight mattered. It wasn’t really about one program or one host — it was about whether people in this country still get to speak freely, criticize leaders, and laugh at power without being shut down.
Kimmel also thanked viewers and fellow performers for standing by him, and he called out Trump directly, saying the former president “tried his best to cancel me.” The episode drew the show’s biggest audience in years — proof that people do care when free expression is under threat.
The Bigger Picture: Nexstar + TEGNA
This fight ties directly into something even bigger — the proposed Nexstar–TEGNA merger. If approved, Nexstar wouldn’t just be the largest owner of local TV stations in the country — it would dominate the market, reaching nearly 80% of U.S. television households.
Think about what we just saw: one company, with its hand on the switch, was able to silence millions of viewers overnight. Now imagine giving that same company the power to reach four out of every five American homes. That’s not just business — that’s control.
And here’s something worth noting: TEGNA didn’t join the blackout. Their stations kept airing Kimmel when Nexstar’s didn’t. That shows there’s still some diversity of judgment in the system — and a reason why TEGNA deserves to exist as an independent company. If Nexstar swallows them, that independent check disappears.
The FCC’s rules were supposed to limit any single company’s reach to about 39%. But changes in recent years have loosened those restrictions, opening the door for massive consolidation. If Nexstar gets TEGNA, the balance tips even further away from independent local voices and toward corporate boardrooms.
A win worth celebrating — and a reminder to stay vigilant
So take a moment to recognize this victory. You helped make it happen. By speaking up, sharing the story, and refusing to accept censorship quietly, ordinary people reminded the biggest broadcasters in the country that free speech still matters.
But let’s also keep our eyes on the larger fight. The Nexstar–TEGNA merger could make this kind of censorship easier to pull off next time. If one company controls nearly 80% of local stations, we all lose.
We have more power than we think we do — but only if we keep using it.