Jimmy Kimmel has another champion of free speech. Megyn Kelly harshly criticized Donald Trump for calling on Disney and ABC to fire late-night hosts after Kimmel praised Melania Trump as a “glowing pregnant widow.”
Kelly said on Thursday’s episode of her podcast, “The Megyn Kelly Show,” that she thought Kimmel’s joke was “off base.” She also said, “ABC has set the rules for how we engage in cancel culture. There are many examples at ABC. They have a lot of scalps on the wall.” For example, ABC canceled Roseanne Barr’s sitcom in 2018 after Barr posted a comment on Twitter referring to former Obama aide Valerie Jarrett as a descendant of the “Muslim Brotherhood and Planet of the Apes.” (Mr. Barr apologized for the tweet.)
Kelly continued, “And that’s not good news for Jimmy if he’s going to be held to ABC/Disney standards. You know, standards have to apply even if the person offended is a Republican. But of course, that’s not really how ABC operates.”
But with that said, Kelly opined that President Trump is wrong to require private companies to fire employees, especially over issues of free speech.
“He just retweeted again today that he wants Kimmel fired,” Kelly said. “It’s highly inappropriate. The president of the United States should not require any private company to fire employees, especially on grounds of free speech.”
President Trump on Thursday morning reiterated his call for ABC and Disney to fire Kimmel. “When will the ABC Fake News Network fire the totally unfunny Jimmy Kimmel, who incompetently hosts one of the lowest-rated shows on TV?” Trump raged in a post on his Truth Social account. “People are angry. It better be quick!!! President DJT.”
Notably, President Trump recently slammed Kelly, along with other conservative influencers such as Tucker Carlson and Candace Owens, for opposing Trump’s war on Iran. President Trump called them “low IQs,” “NUT JOBS,” and “troublemakers” who do “third-rate podcasts.”
Meanwhile, “Jimmy Kimmel Live! On Thursday, Meryl Streep appeared on the show and praised Kimmel in the face of President Trump’s bullying. “You’re a prince. You’re a Templar,” Streep said. “You are flying the flag of freedom of the press.”
As President Trump seeks Kimmel’s ouster, the FCC issued an unprecedented order this week forcing Disney-owned ABC to reapply early for spectrum licenses for eight stations it owns and operates. FCC Chairman Brendan Carr, appointed by President Trump, denied that the agency was under pressure from the White House on the matter. Carr supported the FCC’s official position that the ABC license review was related to the agency’s investigation into Disney’s diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) practices, and not because of “speech.”
National Association of Broadcasters Chairman Curtis LeGate said the FCC’s review of ABC’s license was “nearly unprecedented” and said the order violates established principles of “predictability, fairness and transparency.” Asked about that at a news conference Thursday, Carr referred to religious broadcasters’ opposition to Kimmel’s joke. “NAB is going to say what NAB says, I get that…I think Disney is a member of NAB, but not all broadcasters agree with NAB on this,” Kerr said. Regarding Kimmel’s Melania joke, he said, “The National Religious Broadcasting Corporation has filed a petition asking the FCC to take action against Disney.”
