Jimmy Kimmel updates: Show to return air after suspension over Charlie Kirk comments

Image source, Reuters

Last week, the head of the US broadcast regulator said Jimmy Kimmel was “appearing to directly mislead the American public” with his comments about Charlie Kirk’s death.

Many Conservatives felt Kimmel inaccurately suggested the man accused of killing Charlie Kirk was a Trump supporter, when authorities had said that the suspect had a “leftist ideology”.

Brendan Carr, chair of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), said Kimmel’s comments were “not a joke”, or “making fun”.

Asked whether the FCC was trying to censor Trump’s critics, Carr said channels with a “broadcast TV licence” had a bigger responsibility than, for example, podcasts.

Carr was also asked about his previous comments that the government shouldn’t “censor” speech it didn’t like.

He said broadcasters with a license are free “to go on the internet and do whatever they want”, but added that “if they want to keep access to those valuable airwaves, I’ve been clear, we’re reinvigorating the FCC’s enforcement of public interest”.