Erika Kirk, the widow of the late conservative activist Charlie Kirk, revealed that Sinclair Broadcast Group executives privately offered to intervene with ABC to secure an apology from Jimmy Kimmel Live! after host Jimmy Kimmel falsely linked her husband’s assassination to the “MAGA gang.”
During an interview with Fox News host Jesse Watters, Kirk said the offer came shortly after Kimmel’s controversial September segment, in which he said “the MAGA gang” was “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.”
Jesse Watters: “Jimmy Kimmel lied about your husband’s mu*der and didn’t really apologize. What would you say to Jimmy Kimmel?”
Erika Kirk: “The same thing I told Sinclair [Broadcast Group]… They asked, ‘Do you want Jimmy Kimmel to give you an apology? Do you want to be on his… pic.twitter.com/WmRMSwJV6D
— RedWave Press (@RedWave_Press) November 4, 2025
Disney temporarily pulled Kimmel’s show from the air on Sept. 17 after backlash over his remarks. The suspension, coordinated by Nexstar and Sinclair, both major affiliate operators, was later lifted, and Kimmel returned to the air on Sept. 23.
In the interview clip, Watters asked Kirk, “Jimmy Kimmel lied about your husband’s murder and didn’t really apologize. What would you say to Jimmy Kimmel?”
Kirk responded that Sinclair executives reached out quietly with an unusual offer.
“Same thing I told Sinclair,” she said. “They asked, I haven’t really told anybody this, ‘Do you want Jimmy to give you an apology? Do you want to be on his show? How can we make it right?’ Through our team, I responded, I said, ‘Tell them thank you, we received their note. This is not our issue. Not our mess.’”
Kirk continued, “If you want to say I’m sorry to someone who’s grieving, go right ahead. But if that’s not in your heart, don’t do it. I don’t want it. I don’t need it.”
In his first monologue after returning to the air, Kimmel said it was “never [his] intention” to “make light” of the assassination and appeared emotional while referencing Kirk’s forgiveness of the accused gunman, Tyler Robinson. However, he did not issue a direct apology for his earlier remarks.
Following the show’s reinstatement, Kimmel’s initial return drew 6.5 million viewers — a notable spike for late-night television. However, the audience quickly faded. Within days, ratings dropped 64%, with steep declines in key advertising demographics.
LATE-NIGHT HOST JIMMY KIMMEL MELTS DOWN AT JD VANCE FOR MOCKING HIS RATINGS
Kimmel has since resumed his trademark political jabs, mocking Vice President JD Vance as “Vice President Maybelline” and celebrating his show’s full return to affiliate stations.
Watters’s full interview with Kirk will air at 8 p.m. ET on Wednesday, Nov. 5, on Jesse Watters Primetime.