Jimmy Kimmel back on TV: praise and anger after short suspension

Photo: ANP / EPA / Caroline BREHMAN

American talk show host Jimmy Kimmel is back on television, but his comeback is causing considerable division, according to The New York Times .

California’s Democratic Governor Gavin Newsom has called the resumption of Jimmy Kimmel Live! on X “a victory for free speech everywhere.” Not everyone shares that enthusiasm.

Thank you to everyone but @BrendanCarrFCC .

This is a win for free speech everywhere. https://t.co/Ww8eHwFfhk

— Gavin Newsom (@GavinNewsom) September 22, 2025

Former Fox News host Megyn Kelly thinks Kimmel’s suspension is far too short. “It must be nice to be left-wing,” she writes on X. “The suspension is five days and he’s back in the spotlight. If he’d been right-wing, he would have been marginalized.”

Conservative commentator Matt Walsh also voiced strong criticism. He argued that progressive Americans consider Kimmel's temporary suspension a greater attack on freedom of speech "than the shooting of Charlie Kirk ," the conservative activist about whom Kimmel had previously made controversial statements.

Which makes “reaching out” to these ppl impossible. As is so often the case with the Left, they commit harm, then want the conversation about what's next to be premised in pure fiction. Complete and total deal breaker. https://t.co/aRo477IhCj

— Megyn Kelly (@megynkelly) September 23, 2025

Jimmy Kimmel Live! was put on indefinite hiatus last week following Kimmel's comments about Kirk's death. Disney decided, after "in-depth discussions," to restart the talk show this week.

The American civil rights organization ACLU already criticized the suspension yesterday. In an open letter signed by over 500 celebrities, the organization argued that the government was pressuring companies to shut down the show. Following Kimmel's return, the ACLU emphasized that, in their view, "this will not be the government's last attempt."

Last week, a satirical video by Arjen Lubach, featuring alternative scenes and songs from Disney classics, went viral in both the Netherlands and America.

In it, Lubach stated that "Trump is trying to silence anyone who criticizes him." "Trump has all those companies completely in his pocket, and even the giant Disney is terrified of Trump. Everything must now go Trump's way. Everything must become MAGA."

On X someone jokes: “Arjen Lubach’s video worked.”