What To Know
- Disney is contesting the FCC’s accelerated review of ABC’s broadcast licenses.
- The review followed government criticism of ABC and its late-night host, Jimmy Kimmel.
- The FCC’s order came shortly after President Trump and the first lady publicly called for Kimmel’s firing.
Disney has responded to the Federal Communications Commission’s challenge to ABC‘s broadcast licenses. The challenge is said to be related to the FCC’s ongoing probe of Disney’s diversity initiatives. The timing of the order, which came shortly after President Donald Trump and other members of his administration called for ABC to fire Jimmy Kimmel from his late-night show, implies that the move is a form of government retaliation.
“Disney’s ABC is hereby directed to file license renewals for all of their licensed TV stations within 30 days — in other words, by May 28, 2026,” the FCC said in an order published on Tuesday, April 28.
“We have received the Federal Communications Commission’s order initiating an accelerated review of the licenses held by ABC’s owned television stations,” a statement from Disney said in response. “ABC and its stations have a long record of operating in full compliance with FCC rules and serving their local communities with trusted news, emergency information, and public‑interest programming.”
“We are confident that record demonstrates our continued qualifications as licensees under the Communications Act and the First Amendment and are prepared to show that through the appropriate legal channels,” the statement continued. “Our focus remains, as always, on serving viewers in the local communities where our stations operate.”
Last week, Kimmel joked in his opening monologue on Jimmy Kimmel Live! that first lady Melania Trump looked like an “expectant widow.” Days later, on Saturday, April 25, a gunman attacked the White House Correspondents Dinner, at which the president and first lady were in attendance, with the apparent intent to assassinate Trump. On Monday, April 27, Trump posted on Truth Social, blaming Kimmel for the shooting incident, alleging that the host’s comments influenced the attack and that he “should be immediately fired” by ABC.
The first lady tweeted about Kimmel on April 27, calling for his firing as well. She said, “It is time for ABC to take a stand. How many times will ABC’s leadership enable Kimmel’s atrocious behavior at the expense of our community[?]”
Jimmy Kimmel Live! was briefly taken off the air in 2025 in response to his divisive comments about the late Charlie Kirk, who was shot and killed at a public speaking event in September. Kirk’s widow, Erika Kirk, was present at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner on Saturday. ABC did not take Kimmel off the air on April 27, in an apparent show of support for Kimmel.
Kimmel addressed the “expectant widow” joke during his opening monologue on April 27, saying it was “obviously a joke about their age difference and the look of joy we see on her face every time they’re together. It was a very light roast joke about the fact that he’s almost 80 and she’s younger than I am.”
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