Jimmy Kimmel FCC Censorship – A Reason to Abolish the FCC
Former President Donald Trump celebrated ABC’s cancellation of Jimmy Kimmel Live.
Source: Yahoo News report.
Jimmy Kimmel FCC censorship became headline news when ABC abruptly cancelled his show after he criticized political exploitation of the Charlie Kirk murder. Whether you like Kimmel or not, the speed of this sequence shows how a sitting President can stifle opposition in real time by pressuring the FCC and spooking media corporations.
For our broader position on speech and regulation, see our page on
free speech and government overreach.
Kimmel vs. Trump: A Tale of Two Narratives
Former President Donald Trump, speaking only hours after the murder of Charlie Kirk, set his own frame:
“We have radical left lunatics out there and we just have to beat the hell out of them.”
Trump’s immediate blame on “radical left lunatics,” delivered before the shooter’s motive was known, turned a developing tragedy into a partisan rallying cry.
By contrast, Jimmy Kimmel mocked the rush to exploit the event and called out the eagerness to assign blame.
Jimmy Kimmel on Sept. 15, 2025
“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.
This is not how an adult grieves the murder of someone he calls a friend. This is how a four-year-old mourns a goldfish.”
This contrast matters because the president’s megaphone shapes more than headlines. When that same president’s appointee at the FCC signals license trouble for a network that airs dissenting voices, narrative and regulatory power reinforce each other. This is why the Jimmy Kimmel FCC censorship episode resonates far beyond late night.
What the Jimmy Kimmel FCC Censorship Shows About Power
The FCC is meant to be an independent agency overseen by Congress. In practice, the executive branch exerts decisive influence:
- Appointments & leadership: The President selects every FCC commissioner and the Chair, who sets the agenda and controls enforcement.
- Regulatory discretion: License renewals and merger approvals can be delayed or denied at will.
- Public signaling: A single remark from the FCC chair—especially when the president is displeased—can trigger panic in boardrooms.
Disney, which owns ABC, has billions of dollars in broadcast, streaming, theme-park, and sports ventures depending on FCC approvals. Risking those for one host, no matter how popular, is a business calculation executives won’t make.
When All Branches Bend to One Will
The U.S. Constitution’s separation of powers is supposed to prevent abuse. Yet when one party controls both houses of Congress, enjoys a sympathetic or hesitant Supreme Court, and commands the executive agencies, formal checks become paper thin.
- Shape the public story with immediate statements.
- Lean on regulatory agencies to enforce that story.
- Count on allied legislators and judges to look the other way.
This convergence is unprecedented in American history and serves as a stark warning that the wheels are coming off our democracy. What was designed as a system of competing powers is tilting toward a single point of failure.
Libertarians Have Been Right All Along
Many Americans were raised to believe that a little regulation keeps things fair. But this case shows how those same levers can go terribly wrong, punishing speech and rewarding political favoritism. It’s a vivid reminder that when government holds the keys to communication, everyone eventually suffers.
California Libertarian Report 
