Nexstar Media Group will again carry Jimmy Kimmel Live! on its ABC affiliates beginning tonight, ending a nine-day preemption that followed controversy over remarks Kimmel made after the killing of conservative activist Charlie Kirk. The decision restores the late-night show in major Nexstar markets and aligns the company with other station groups reversing similar moves. Nexstar confirmed the return in a company statement, and industry reporting placed the restart on Friday, September 26.
The blackout originated after ABC briefly suspended the host on September 17 amid political blowback to a segment that drew criticism from FCC Chair Brendan Carr and conservative groups. Although ABC reinstated the program earlier this week, Nexstar and Sinclair continued to preempt it for several days, citing concerns about tone and community standards.
By Friday, both companies said the show would come back to their ABC stations, a shift that followed a sustained public debate over editorial judgment, affiliate autonomy, and whether government officials should weigh in on broadcast content. A report on the reversal noted that the two groups together reach roughly a quarter of U.S. TV households, magnifying the impact of their decisions on a national program’s reach.
Nexstar characterized its course correction as consistent with a commitment to free expression while emphasizing “fact-based” programming in its news operations. The return also reduces friction within Disney’s distribution footprint at the start of a competitive fall season, when late-night viewership patterns can be influenced by special episodes and on-location weeks; Kimmel is slated for a Brooklyn run in the near term.
The episode has renewed scrutiny of consolidation in local broadcasting and the leverage large station groups exert over network lineups, as well as the commercial calculus affiliates face when weighing local sensitivities against national programming. For viewers in markets where the show was bumped, Friday’s reinstatement restores ABC’s standard late-night schedule.
