Beginning Tuesday night, Sinclair will be preempting Jimmy Kimmel Live! across our ABC affiliate stations and replacing it with news programming. Discussions with ABC are ongoing as we evaluate the show’s potential return. pic.twitter.com/beGC6VID2x
— Sinclair, Inc. (@WeAreSinclair) September 22, 2025
While “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” will return to ABC on Tuesday, the late night show won’t be returning to Sinclair’s ABC affiliates as the broadcaster will replace the show with news programming as discussions with ABC continue.
“Beginning Tuesday night, Sinclair will be preempting ‘Jimmy Kimmel Live!’ across our ABC affiliate stations and replacing it with news programming,” a Sinclair spokesperson told TheWrap. “Discussions with ABC are ongoing as we evaluate the show’s potential return.”
Sinclair Broadcasting owns, operates or provides services to 178 television stations in 81 markets, including 30 ABC affiliate stations. The company pulled “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” from its airwaves on Wednesday over remarks the late night host made about Charlie Kirk’s assassin, which Sinclair called “inappropriate and deeply insensitive at a critical moment for our country.”
“We believe broadcasters have a responsibility to educate and elevate respectful, constructive dialogue in our communities,” Sinclair vice chairman Jason Smith said at the time. “This incident highlights the critical need for the FCC to take immediate regulatory action to address control held over local broadcasters by the big national networks.”
Though ABC later suspended Kimmel indefinitely, Sinclair argued that the suspension was “not enough” and demanded that he apologize and make a “meaningful personal donation” to the Kirk family and Turning Point USA. It also called for “formal discussions” with ABC regarding “the network’s commitment to professionalism and accountability.”