When tragedy strikes, blame often precedes grief. And that blame goes far beyond finger pointing — it becomes party pointing. Is it the left or the right, almost everyone asks, who lay claim to this awful tragedy — school shootings, the murder of an innocent man, the fires that have killed thousands, the senseless wars we can’t stop fighting? Charlie Kirk’s tragic murder is no exception.
Kirk was doing what he loved and what so many loved to watch. Whether or not you agreed with his content or POV, the man amassed a huge following and his signature move was a college campus Q&A with what I’d call low hanging debate fruit (I’m a former debater).
Impressionable youth would step up to a microphone to challenge Kirk’s often criticized proclamations, including the idea that women shouldn’t work, gun control is a flawed concept, climate change is not caused by humans, the Civil Rights Act is a “huge mistake,” and college is a scam. Though much of his views have been taken out of context, I confess I found them — in full context — to be largely flawed. But that’s neither here nor there. Kirk had a First Amendment AND moral right to speak openly without the public or the government’s intervention. But beyond even the threat of government intervention, he had the right to speak freely AND stay alive while doing it.
Jimmy Kimmel took to his platform on ABC to weigh in on an issue that, in my opinion, comedians have no business commenting on. But again, that’s neither here nor there because much like Kirk, Kimmel had a first amendment right to give his opinion. Kimmel’s exact words were, “We hit some new lows over the weekend with the MAGA crowd desperately trying to depict the individual who killed Charlie Kirk as anything but one of their own, while striving to gain political leverage from the situation.” Naturally, the MAGA White House erupted with rage.
Prompted by pressure from FCC Chairman Brendan Carr’s threats of regulatory action, Nexstar Media Group and Sinclair Broadcast Group — two of the largest television broadcasting companies in the US who collectively operate many ABC affiliates—announced they would preempt Kimmel’s show on their stations. Nexstar and Sinclair’s move is motivated by their own business interests: Nexstar was seeking FCC approval for a $6.2 billion merger. In short, Nexstar doesn’t want to ruffle the regulators’ feathers and jeopardize the merger.
Sinclair demanded that Kimmel apologize and make a personal donation to both Kirk’s family and the political organization Turning Points USA. Kimmel chose not to apologize and returned to his late-night show “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” Nexstar and Sinclair affiliates continued to preempt the program, effectively boycotting the show.
We are living in an era marked by persistent hypocrisy, where the Trump Administration is enacting the very censorship they campaigned against during the election. Second, there is an odd phenomenon happening where despite video evidence indicating otherwise, many folks believe Kimmel actually mocked Kirk’s death, which he firmly did not. Lastly, I’m saddened to live in a time where large companies who value money over morality are catering to an administration of sensitive bullies who are so emotionally damaged they can’t take a bad joke from a late night host they insist is an “untalented whack job.”