Suspension

John Oliver used the main segment of his HBO show Sunday night addressing the suspension of Jimmy Kimmel.

Last week, Disney suspended the host of Jimmy Kimmel Live! following the ABC late-night host’s remarks about the assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk.

The dramatic move followed Federal Communications Commission chair Brendan Carr threatening to take action against ABC affiliates in the wake of a Kimmel comment that many took as suggesting the shooting suspect, Tyler Robinson, was a MAGA Republican during his Monday monologue.

“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,” Kimmel said.

After station owners Nexstar and Sinclair said they would not be airing Jimmy Kimmel Live! in the wake of those comments, Disney made the decision to suspend Kimmel indefinitely. The company has faced backlash from Hollywood A-listers, current and veteran late-night hosts, politicians and the public for its decision, with many accusing Disney of bowing to pressure from the Trump administration.

On Sunday’s Last Week Tonight, Oliver started off his main segment by noting Kirk’s tragic death.

“A person getting shot is tragic and a person getting shot for their ideas is horrifying,” he said. “That is true no matter what those ideas are, and I also recognize that for many, especially those who are the targets of some of Kirk’s ideas, it has been hard to stay quiet as they see flags lowered to half staff, and claims that he debated things the right way. But setting all of that aside, it does seem like some are now willing to weaponize Kirk’s death to do things they’ve been wanting to do for years, whether it’s going after liberal groups, trans people, or their remaining critics in the media, and under some shamelessly flimsy pretext, all of which brings us back to Jimmy Kimmel.”

Oliver noted he appeared on Kimmel’s show the very night Kimmel made this comments. He defended Kimmel and said he was unclear about what was offensive about Kimmel’s remarks.

“While you may have seen headlines saying he got in trouble for remarks about Charlie Kirk himself, or even remarks about his death, that’s not strictly accurate,” Oliver noted. “The comments that got him in trouble weren’t about Kirk. In fact, Kimmel’s first comments after his murder were a post reading, ‘Can we just for one day agree that it is horrible and monstrous to shoot another human? On behalf of my family, we send love to the Kirks and to all the children, parents, and innocents who fall victim to senseless gun violence,’ ” Oliver added, quoting a social media post by Kimmel.

“What got Kimmel in trouble was a passing reference on Monday night. Now at the time there were still rumors flying around regarding the killer’s motivations, including that he was on the far right, something that Kimmel alluded to like this,” he said, showing a clip of Kimmel’s aforementioned remark.

“Yeah, that was it,” Oliver said. “Weirdly, I was actually a guest on his show that night and I didn’t even register that comment and that’s only partly because I wasn’t really paying attention,” he quipped. “And I’m not alone in that. After Kimmel’s suspension, many struggle to pick the offensive line out of his monologue, as YouTube is filled with comments under the video like, ‘I’m still waiting for the offensive part.’ And, ‘What did he say that got him fired? I’m rewatching the last week of episodes and have’et heard it yet.””

Oliver continued: “The point is, Kimmel didn’t denigrate Charlie Kirk or make light of his killing. The worst thing you could say is that he appears to have been wrong about the shooter’s ideology, which, OK. But he was also pointing out that many on the right seem desperate to weaponize Kirk’s death, an argument that’s aged pretty well, given, you know, everything that’s happened to Kimmel since. Because that one line set off a firestorm in some corners of conservative media.”

Oliver also noted that Nexstar has a motivation to keep the Trump administration happy, since it’s currently in the process of acquiring competitor Tegna and needs regulatory changes for that deal to be completed.

“Nexstar badly needs FCC approval, so it is hardly surprising that when Carr specifically said companies should pull Kimmel off the air or face consequences, it quickly complies,” Oliver said. “Basically, Brendon Carr said jump, and Nexstar took his dick out of their mouth for just long enough to say how high exactly.”

Oliver also called out Sinclair as another “major owner of TV stations who were also apparently exploring merger options that would require FCC approval [that] announced that they too would not air Kimmel’s show, and Sinclair even cited Carr’s remarks in their statement, saying, ‘We appreciate FCC Chairman Carr’s remarks today,’ and come on, Sinclair. As I believe Olandria once said to Huda on Love Island, ‘Don’t embarrass yourself going too hard for a man.’ Just solid advice for the islands of love and for business.”

Oliver went on to note that Carr wasn’t “trying to dissuade people from connecting the dots here as when one media reporter asked him for a comment, he sent back a smiley emoji” and sent a gif of The Office to CNN in response.

“It’s from The Office, and that’s, that was the actual response by the chairman of the FCC,” Oliver said, adding: “Look, I like The Office. Who doesn’t like The Office? Sure, I could have done without seasons 8 and 9, but if it’s on at a hotel, I’m not kicking it out of bed. That said, I want you to run through your friend list in your head right now and pick out the person most likely to text you a gif from The Office. Do you have them in your mind? They’re your least favorite friend, right? Just be honest. They’re the one you invite to stuff just because you’re afraid no one else will show up. They’re a third-string friend, they’re your backup’s backup, and if you’re thinking, ‘There’s nothing wrong with sending Office gifs,’ I’m afraid that person might be you.”

Oliver again emphasized that what went down was very easy to see.

“Look, the sequence of events here could not be clearer because it was all done in plain view,” he said. “Carr leaned on broadcasters to take down Kimmel. They did that, sometimes even directly citing Carr while doing so, and then Carr celebrated with a fun gif. That sure seems like a pretty clear case of the government pressuring companies to censor speech.”

Oliver went on to say that Kimmel’s suspension feels like a “turning point.”

“Not because comedians are important, but because we are not,” he said. “If the government can force a network to pull a late night show off the air and do so in plain view, it can do a fuck of a lot worse.”

He quipped that he and his show are in a “different situation” because he isn’t on broadcast TV and HBO parent company  Warner Bros. Discovery doesn’t own broadcast networks, meaning that it’s less susceptible to pressure from the FCC  than Disney, which owns ABC. Oliver then showed a news clip of Paramount Skydance reportedly prepping a bid to buy Warner Bros. Discovery.

Cut to Oliver shouting expletives. “It was fun while it lasted, guys. Whatever happens next, let me say now, it has been the honor of my life to age like a haunted painting before your very eyes,” he joked.

Oliver then noted the importance of free speech and the First Amending. 

“It should be clear to everyone that the First Amendment is absolutely critical in this country,” he said. ” That is something even Brendan Carr knows, given that he once tweeted, ‘Free speech is the counterweight. It is the check on government control. That is why censorship is the authoritarian’s dream.’ And I’m guessing that Trump is currently enjoying that dream so much he could break his bed sheets in half.”

Oliver then urged Disney to stand by Kimmel and his staff and shared ways in which viewers could “encourage” them to do that, including by canceling their subscriptions to Disney+ or Hulu. 

He then wrapped up his segment by addressing Disney CEO Bob Iger directly.

“Hi there, Bob, we haven’t met, but you probably know me as America’s third favorite Zazu,” the character Oliver voiced in The Lion King. “Congratulations on recasting that role, by the way, it was a fun thing to learn about after the fact,” he joked. 

“Anyway, one day, the history of the time we’re living through is going to be written, and when it is, I’m not sure it’s those in this administration who are even gonna come off the worst,” he continued. “Now don’t get me wrong, they’re going to come off terribly. But history’s also gonna remember the cowards who definitely knew better, but still let things happen, whether it was for money, convenience or just comfort. And I know, this is something of a tough sell, and it can be a bit of anathema to risk averse business leaders, but I will say this: If we’ve learned nothing else from this administration’s second term so far, and I don’t think we have, is that giving the bully your lunch money doesn’t make him go away, it just makes him come back hungrier each time. They are never going to stop.”

He continued: “At some point, you’re going to have to draw a line, so I’d argue why not draw it right here. And when they come to you with stupid, ridiculous demands, picking fights that you know you could win in court, Instead of rolling over, why not stand up and use four key words that they don’t tend to teach you in business school. Not ‘OK, you’re the boss.’ Not ‘whatever you say goes.’ But instead, the only phrase that can genuinely make a weak bully go away, and that is, ‘Fuck you, make me.’”