Comedian Jimmy Kimmel on Wednesday said his interview with Texas Democratic Senate candidate James Talarico would not air on national television due to pressure from the Trump administration.
Kimmel, who has a late-night show on ABC and has long feuded with President Donald Trump, inferred the Talarico interview would not air on TV because the president’s Federal Communications Commission “has threatened me, threatened our show, threatened our network, ABC, our affiliates, our local stations, based on simple, traditional editorial decisions, guest bookings it would seem they don’t like.” The interview will instead be posted on Kimmel’s YouTube channel.
“Out of consideration for our local stations, especially our ABC affiliates in Texas, who would have to deal with this nonsense, my interview tomorrow with James Talarico will not air on television,” the late-night host said during the Wednesday night segment of his Jimmy Kimmel Live show.
Talarico is locked in one of the tightest congressional races nationwide against Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, as Democrats look to flip the Senate seat blue. In a statement to the Washington Examiner on Thursday, the White House denied claims that the FCC is looking to intimidate ABC out of airing Talarico’s interview.
“Jimmy Kimmel is play-acting – as he often does – to create a false narrative about this administration’s policies,” White House spokesman Davis Ingle said. “Chairman Carr has not threatened him regarding interviewing James Talarico, or any other candidate. Any media outlet blindly amplifying Kimmel’s egocentric delusion should insist on proof. Of which they will find none.”
The development comes after disagreements between the FCC and several broadcasters over whether certain programs on their networks are subject to the federal government’s equal time rule, which requires granting equal airtime to competing candidates for office.
That rule does not apply uniformly to all media, with disputes over its interpretation leading to battles over whether late-night and daytime talk shows must adhere to the rule.
THE GOP’S TEXAS-SIZED KEN PAXTON DILEMMA
For instance, Talarico’s appearance on ABC’s The View in February stoked concerns from the FCC that it was violating the equal time rule, with FCC Chairman Brendan Carr suggesting that ABC had not established that The View qualified for the “bona fide news” exemption protecting it from the rule.
In another case, late-night host Stephen Colbert also claimed in February that CBS did not air his interview with Talarico out of fear of the FCC’s equal-time rule. CBS denied prohibiting the interview and said it provided Colbert with “legal guidance that the broadcast could trigger the FCC equal-time rule for two other candidates” and “presented options for how the equal time for other candidates could be fulfilled.” Similar to Kimmel’s announcement this week, Colbert instead posted his interview with Talarico on his YouTube channel.