Did Sinclair and Nexstar Accomplish Anything By Banning Jimmy Kimmel?

“”Nexstar and Sinclair Lost Their Game of Chicken”

That was The Atlantic’s headline over the weekend, a declaration of victory for Jimmy Kimmel in the battle for the right to criticize the Trump administration over the public airwaves. The taunt comes in the wake of the announcement that Nexstar and Sinclair, owners of several ABC affiliates nationwide, will once again air episodes of the late-night talk show after a three-episode holdout. 

Sinclair, in particular, appears to be the loser in the standoff. It made several public demands tied to reinstating Kimmel, including a public apology to the Charlie Kirk family and a “meaningful personal donation to the Kirk Family and Turning Point USA.” It’s not clear what Sinclair intended by “meaningful,” but my guess is at least six figures.

Kimmel didn’t meet any of the terms of Sinclair’s ransom note, although he expressed sympathy for Kirk’s family before and after his suspension. 

So why did Sinclair and Nexstar surrender so quickly? The Atlantic notes that both companies were losing big bucks by refusing to broadcast Jimmy Kimmel Live!, which generated $70 million in ad dollars last year. No one was watching the replacement programming, which the companies had to pay for. 

More punishments could have been on the way. ABC had the right to impose fines if the affiliates didn’t live up to their end of their contracts, and it could have pulled Monday Night Football and other sports if Sinclair and Nexstar continued the standoff. For local viewers who wanted Kimmel and sports, plenty of streaming options existed — did affiliate stations want to continue losing viewers to Disney+ and Hulu? 

Sinclair and Nexstar were playing a losing hand from the start. And when ABC called their bluff, the two players quickly folded.

But was the public display of righteous indignation a total loss? Only if you think those companies’ bigwigs were taking a moral stand based on their love of Charlie Kirk. Neither mega-organization took a stand until FCC Chairman Brendan Carr made a podcast appearance suggesting that affiliates should fall in line. 

“These companies can find ways to change conduct to take action on Kimmel or, you know, there's going to be additional work for the FCC ahead,” Carr said. In an amazing coincidence, Sinclair and Nexstar announced they’d preempt Kimmel’s show just hours later. 

Nexstar is planning a massive merger that requires the FCC’s approval, and Sinclair is rumored to have similar deals in the works. Could they have been influenced by CBS’ firing of Stephen Colbert, a move that paved the way for the FCC’s thumbs-up to the sale of its parent company, Paramount?

Publicly, Sinclair and Nexstar appear to have caved. However, if those ring-kissing boycotts lead to FCC business-deal approvals, the two companies are likely to get what they were hoping for all along.