(Reuters) – Walt Disney executives will meet with suspended talk-show host Jimmy Kimmel to discuss the future of his program, Bloomberg News reported on Thursday, citing three people with knowledge of the matter.
The parties will discuss whether there is a way to return “Jimmy Kimmel Live” to the air, the report said.
Disney-owned ABC said on Wednesday it was pulling Kimmel’s show off the air over comments by the late-night show host about the assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk.
The suspension of Kimmel’s show marked the latest action taken against media figures, academic workers, teachers and corporate employees over their remarks about Kirk following his assassination.
Kimmel, who has frequently targeted U.S. President Donald Trump on his late-night comedy show, drew fire for remarks he made about the killing in his monologue.
“We hit some new lows over the weekend, with the MAGA gang desperately trying to characterize this kid who murdered Charlie Kirk as anything other than one of them, and doing everything they can to score political points from it,” Kimmel said.
His comments led to a response from Federal Communications Commission Chair Brendan Carr, who urged local broadcasters to stop airing “Jimmy Kimmel Live” on ABC.
Carr suggested that the commission could open an investigation and that broadcasters could potentially be fined or lose their licenses if there was a pattern of distorted comment.
Trump, during a state visit to Britain on Thursday, said Kimmel had been punished for saying “a horrible thing” about Kirk, a close political ally of the president who is credited with building support for Trump among young conservative voters.
Disney did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.
(Reporting by Zaheer Kachwala in Bengaluru; Editing by Shinjini Ganguli)
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