David Letterman is reacting to Jimmy Kimmel‘s suspension.
On Wednesday evening (September 17), it was announced that ABC had pulled Jimmy Kimmel Live! off the air indefinitely following comments the 57-year-old late-night talk show host made in the wake of right-wing podcaster Charlie Kirk‘s passing.
ABC pulled Kimmel after Brendan Carr, who is the Chairman of the Federal Communications Commission of the United States, threatened legal action against the network over Jimmy‘s comments.
The following day, David, 78, appeared at The Atlantic Festival where he slammed ABC for their decision.
Keep reading to find out more…“This is a misery,” David said, via USA Today. “In the world of somebody who is an authoritarian, maybe a dictatorship, sooner or later, everyone is going to be touched.”
While sharing his support for “my good friend” Jimmy, the former Late Night host continued, “I feel bad about this because we all see where this is going, correct? It’s managed media. It’s no good. It’s silly. It’s ridiculous. And you can’t go around firing somebody because you’re fearful or trying to suck up to an authoritarian, criminal administration in the Oval Office. That’s just not how this works.”
David then noted that during his years hosting late-night shows, he regularly criticized and cracked jokes at whoever the president was at the time.
“Not once were we squeezed by anyone from any governmental agencies, let alone the dreaded FCC,” he added.
“The institution of the president of the United States ought to be bigger than a guy doing a talk show,” David said, adding that the situation “would be hilarious if it wasn’t all leading to something from which we won’t recover.”
He also shared that he has texted with Jimmy, who he joked is “sitting up in bed taking nourishment” and is “going to be fine.”
See all of the other stars that are voicing their support for Jimmy Kimmel following his suspension.