The producer for the late Charlie Kirk accused late-night host Jimmy Kimmel of failing to offer a proper apology for controversial comments the comedian made about Kirk’s assassin.
Kimmel was briefly suspended last week over comments he made about Trump supporters’ reaction to Kirk’s alleged killer. Authorities have said the suspect, Tyler Robinson, had left-leaning political values.
Upon being reinstated Tuesday evening, the comedian explained during his returning monologue on Jimmy Kimmel Live! that “it was never my intention to blame any specific group.” This led Kirk producer Andrew Kolvet to say, “Not good enough.”
“It’s simple. Here’s what you need to say,” Kolvet said in a post to X. “’I’m sorry for saying the shooter was MAGA. He was not. He was of the left. I apologize to the Kirk family for lying. Please accept my sincere apology. I will do better. I was wrong.’”
Other right-leaning figures, political personalities, and commentators added their criticism of Kimmel’s monologue. Many argued that Kimmel applied a double standard in speaking out against his temporary suspension, due to accusations that the comedian failed to stand up for others in the media industry who lost their jobs for espousing what some believe to be controversial views, including Tucker Carlson, Megyn Kelly, and Roseanne Barr.
In a satirical post to social media, Kelly said: “Remember when I was cancelled & held back tears on the air & Kimmel stood up for me saying ‘All she did was ask a Q about blackface Halloween costumes, whereas I, Jimmy, have actually worn blackface many times & still have a show! This is wrong!’ Me neither. F him & his self pity.”
In another post, Piers Morgan responded to a statement Kimmel made in which the comedian said: “I do want to make something clear, because it’s important to me as a human, and that is … you understand that it was never my intention to make light of the murder of a young man.”
Morgan responded, “Yet that is exactly what he did.”
In another statement, Morgan added, “Hard to feel sympathy for Jimmy Kimmel and his crocodile tears given how gleefully he has always gorged on the career entrails of conservative stars who lost their jobs like Tucker, Roseanne etc. He’s become a partisan political activist, not a comedic host.”
Kimmel initially provoked outrage on Sept. 15 when he seemed to tie Kirk’s killer to the MAGA movement.
“The MAGA gang is 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,” he said in comments that led to his temporary suspension.
Although ABC has reinstated the show, two of its major broadcasters, Sinclair and Nexstar, have declined to bring it back on air, citing the need for assurances “that all parties are committed to fostering an environment of respectful, constructive dialogue in the markets we serve.”
While he declined to give a direct apology for his comments during his late-night return Tuesday, Kimmel referenced Kirk’s widow, Erika Kirk, forgiving her husband’s accused killer during Kirk’s memorial service over the weekend.
“That is an example we should follow,” Kimmel said, as he began to tear up. “If you believe in the teachings of Jesus as I do, there it was. That’s it. A selfless act of grace, forgiveness from a grieving widow. It touched me deeply, and I hope it touches many, and if there’s anything we should take from this tragedy to carry forward, I hope it can be that and not this. So, thank you for listening, and I’ll have more to say when we come back.”
Kimmel also continued attacks on Republicans for advocating his suspension and accused the Trump administration of violating First Amendment protections of free speech by backing some form of retribution for the comments.
WHO IS BRENDAN CARR, THE MAN AT THE CENTER OF THE KIMMEL SUSPENSION CONTROVERSY?
Federal Communications Commission Chairman Brendan Carr, who has come under the deepest scrutiny for suggesting Kimmel should face consequences, pushed back against critics on Tuesday.
“Democrats just keep digging themselves a deeper & deeper hole on Kimmel,” Carr said. “They simply can’t stand that local TV stations — for the first time in years — stood up to a national programmer & chose to exercise their lawful right to preempt programming.”