Emma Ruby
Audio By Carbonatix
UPDATE 9/26, 3:58 p.m.:Jimmy Kimmel will return to Nexstar airwaves starting tonight, the media group announced Friday afternoon. A statement announcing the late-night host’s reinstatement on ABC-affiliate channels owned by the group says the decision was made after conversations with executives at the Walt Disney Company, which owns ABC, that resulted in a “constructive approach to addressing (Nexstar’s) concerns.” The statement also emphasized that the decision to preempt Jimmy Kimmel Live! for the last week was made “independent of any external influence from government agencies or individuals.”
“As a local broadcaster, Nexstar remains committed to protecting the First Amendment while producing and airing local and national news that is fact-based and unbiased and, above all, broadcasting content that is in the best interest of the communities we serve,” the statement said. “We stand apart from cable television, monolithic streaming services and national networks in our commitment – and obligation – to be stewards of the public airwaves and to protect and reflect the specific sensibilities of our communities.”
Original story from Tuesday, Sept. 23 below.
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Around 35 Dallasites gathered outside the North Texas headquarters of media juggernaut Nexstar on Tuesday to call for stronger free speech protections and protest the potential merger of Nexstar and broadcast company Tegna.
One event organizer joked that the mid-day gathering was made up of “a bunch of old hippies exercising their right to protest.” A spokesperson for Nexstar declined to comment on the gathering.
Nexstar, the largest television station owner in the United States, has led the charge in sanctioning comedian Jimmy Kimmel for comments he made on his late-night television show, Jimmy Kimmel Live!, in the days after the assassination of conservative commentator Charlie Kirk. Nexstar was the first major media group to remove Kimmel’s show from the airwaves after Brendan Carr, the chair of the Federal Communications Commission, called for “action” to be taken against Kimmel.
On Tuesday morning, Nexstar announced that the company’s channels would not broadcast Kimmel’s show even after ABC announced that the comedian would return to air Tuesday night.
“Fuck Nexstar,” said Ellen Saler-Santini, a protester who arrived at the media company’s headquarters dressed in the draped, teal garb of Lady Liberty. “My biggest concern is that this regime — and it is a regime, not an administration — is taking away our rights.”
Emma Ruby
Saler-Santini said she believes the conservative outrage and subsequent punishing of Kimmel is a bellwether that the Trump administration intends to pursue future “unconstitutional” attacks on free speech. Last week, President Donald Trump told reporters that he believes the FCC should consider revoking the licenses of broadcasters that “give me only bad publicity.”
The FCC, which regulates radio and television communications across the country, is an independent government agency. However, the first few months of Trump’s second term have revealed a partisan shift within the agency. Last November, The Hollywood Reporter conducted a deep dive and speculated that the second Trump administration would likely signal a change to how media operations are done in the United States.
Possible Dangers Ahead
Until now, no broadcast company has been allowed to own airwaves in more than 39% of households. Last month, though, Nexstar announced plans to merge with another broadcast company, Tegna, in a $6.2 billion deal that would see Nexstar’s already dominant footing in the industry further strengthened. The FCC has to approve the sale because the purchase would put Nexstar above that 39% threshold.
Annette Krausse, a Dallas County activist who helped organize Tuesday’s protest, said she’d already been wary of Nexstar’s plans to scoop up more television stations when last week’s announcement that Kimmel’s show would be paused indefinitely came out. She believes that Nexstar’s decision to keep the comedian off the media group’s channels is an attempt to curry favor with the Trump administration ahead of the possible merger.
“It is corruption when there are threats by our government to companies in order to suppress free speech,” Krausse said. “The visuals are bad.”
Krausse added that she watched a clip of the monologue that landed Kimmel in hot water and found the remarks to be “congenial.” She is “interested” to see what the comedian will have to say on Tuesday evening as his show returns to air on ABC-affiliated channels that are not owned by Nexstar or Sinclair Broadcast Group.
Several of those in attendance expressed concern for what Nexstar’s acquisition of Tegna will mean for Dallas’ local news offerings. WFAA is one of the 64 television stations that would be included in the deal, and protester Alan Davis said he hopes the FCC denies the purchase.
“Sinclair and Nexstar are trying to suppress free speech. They are buying up stations and then determining what goes on those stations,” said Davis, who lives in East Dallas. “I don’t want Nexstar or Sinclair owning WFAA.”
