Did Sinclair Group ask Jimmy Kimmel to donate to TPUSA and apologize to Charlie Kirk's family? Internet erupts in criticism amid the host's suspension

Jimmy Kimmel has recently landed himself in trouble after commenting on Charlie Kirk’s death in an episode of his show on September 15, 2025. A spokesperson for ABC also told Deadline that Kimmel’s talk show has now been “preempted indefinitely.”

Kimmel said in his monologue that Kirk’s murder suspect, Tyler Robinson, was allegedly a pro-Trump Republican. While Brendan Carr, the chairman of the Federal Communications Commission, has already reacted to the matter, ABC affiliate Sinclair Inc. also criticized Kimmel in a lengthy statement.

As per the Business Wire, the broadcast group is not willing to remove the suspension for now and has asked Kimmel to apologize to Kirk’s family alongside donating to the late political activist’s organization, Turning Point USA.

“Sinclair also calls upon Mr. Kimmel to issue a direct apology to the Kirk family. Furthermore, we ask Mr. Kimmel to make a meaningful personal donation to the Kirk Family and Turning Point USA. Regardless of ABC’s plans for the future of the program, Sinclair intends not to return “Jimmy Kimmel Live! to our air until we are confident that appropriate steps have been taken to uphold the standards expected of a national broadcast platform,” Sinclair said.

Although the comedian has yet to respond to the ongoing criticism and Sinclair’s statement, netizens took to the comments section of a post shared by Pop Base on X to share their reactions to the requests made by the broadcast group.

A user seemingly criticized the statement, referring to the violation of the freedom of speech. Another person suggested that Kimmel should sue Sinclair.

“What happens to freedom of speech??”, @yoda_rwa wrote.

“More instances of BRIBERY and EXTORTION. This is textbook QUID PRO QUO HARASSMENT and frankly, Kimmel should SUE Sinclair for these actions”, @MemberBlasts commented.

Among other responses, a user expressed his doubt about whether Jimmy Kimmel will listen to the requests of Sinclair.

“I highly doubt Jimmy is going to do that”, @warmssunrise said on X.

A few individuals even claimed that Kimmel did not do anything, alongside another describing the statement as a form of bullying and extortion.

“I still don’t understand what he did for them to be acting like this lol he didn’t do anything!”, @tallyohhh stated.

“Shameless bullying and extortion”, @allYourBaseNfT mentioned.

Sinclair said that Jimmy Kimmel’s words about Charlie Kirk were inappropriate

In their statement that is currently going viral, Sinclair Inc. said that they are going to have a formal discussion with ABC about their commitment to professionalism and accountability.

Sinclair’s statement mentioned that the suspension of Jimmy Kimmel’s talk show was not sufficient and requested additional action from the FCC and ABC at the same time. They even included a response from the company chairman, Jason Smith, which reads:

“Mr. Kimmel’s remarks were inappropriate and deeply insensitive at a critical moment for our country. We believe broadcasters have a responsibility to educate and elevate respectful dialogue in our communities. We appreciate FCC Chairman Carr’s remarks today.”

Sinclair also confirmed that the timeslot for Kimmel’s show will be replaced with a remembrance of Charlie Kirk on September 19, 2025, and it will air on all the stations alongside the ABC affiliates.