FCC Chair Brendan Carr is being roasted for supporting free speech before attacking Kimmel Mike Snider, USA TODAY September 21, 2025 at 12:50 AM 0 Do you know how past social media posts can come back to haunt you? FCC chairman Brendan Carr does.
- - FCC Chair Brendan Carr is being roasted for supporting free speech before attacking Kimmel
Mike Snider, USA TODAY September 21, 2025 at 12:50 AM
0
Do you know how past social media posts can come back to haunt you? FCC chairman Brendan Carr does.
Carr is facing criticism not only for his pressuring of ABC to pull "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" from the airwaves, but also the re-emergence of his own previous online posts that said the FCC should not regulate the content of speech on TV. Liberals on social media are delighting in noting Carr's apparent hypocrisy. Among them: former labor secretary Robert Reich, who posted on Facebook: "It should be clear by now that to MAGA, protecting freedom of speech was always secondary to wielding the power to punish anyone who questions this regime."
Appointed by President Trump as head of the Federal Communications Commission, which regulates TV, radio and telecommunications, Carr seemed to threaten ABC, the network's parent company Disney, and Kimmel about the late-night host's monologue involving the Sept. 10 killing of conservative activist Charlie Kirk.
Adam Carolla and Jimmy Kimmel from "The Man Show" appear on "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno" at the NBC Studios in Los Angeles on Nov. 19, 2001.
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Adam Carolla and Jimmy Kimmel from "The Man Show" appear on "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno" at the NBC Studios in Los Angeles on Nov. 19, 2001.
">Adam Carolla and Jimmy Kimmel from "The Man Show" appear on "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno" at the NBC Studios in Los Angeles on Nov. 19, 2001.
" src=https://ift.tt/cvW9I1D class=caas-img>Jimmy Kimmell sits at a late night host practice desk and interviews with "TRL" host Carson Daly in New York on Jan. 14, 2003.
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Jimmy Kimmell sits at a late night host practice desk and interviews with "TRL" host Carson Daly in New York on Jan. 14, 2003.
">Jimmy Kimmell sits at a late night host practice desk and interviews with "TRL" host Carson Daly in New York on Jan. 14, 2003.
" src=https://ift.tt/m9JOyXp class=caas-img>Jimmy Kimmel and Sarah Silverman during 2nd annual Lakers Casino Night Benefiting the Lakers Youth Foundation red carpet at Barker Hanger in Santa Monica, California, in 2005.
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Jimmy Kimmel and Sarah Silverman during 2nd annual Lakers Casino Night Benefiting the Lakers Youth Foundation red carpet at Barker Hanger in Santa Monica, California, in 2005.
">Jimmy Kimmel and Sarah Silverman during 2nd annual Lakers Casino Night Benefiting the Lakers Youth Foundation red carpet at Barker Hanger in Santa Monica, California, in 2005.
" src=https://ift.tt/kRT0oGF class=caas-img>Jimmy Kimmel speaks onstage during the American Cinematheque 24th annual awards show to honor Matt Damon at The Beverly Hilton on March 27, 2010, in Beverly Hills, California.
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Jimmy Kimmel speaks onstage during the American Cinematheque 24th annual awards show to honor Matt Damon at The Beverly Hilton on March 27, 2010, in Beverly Hills, California.
">Jimmy Kimmel speaks onstage during the American Cinematheque 24th annual awards show to honor Matt Damon at The Beverly Hilton on March 27, 2010, in Beverly Hills, California.
" src=https://ift.tt/dXS6z5G class=caas-img>Jimmy Kimmel appears onstage at City of Hope's Music and Entertainment Industry's Spirit of Life Gala in the Diamond Ballroom at the Ritz-Carlton and JW Marriott Hotels on Jan. 13, 2010, in Los Angeles.
" data-src=https://ift.tt/PtgYBfN class=caas-img data-headline="ABC pulls Jimmy Kimmel off-air: Revisit the talk show host's career" data-caption="
Jimmy Kimmel appears onstage at City of Hope's Music and Entertainment Industry's Spirit of Life Gala in the Diamond Ballroom at the Ritz-Carlton and JW Marriott Hotels on Jan. 13, 2010, in Los Angeles.
">Jimmy Kimmel appears onstage at City of Hope's Music and Entertainment Industry's Spirit of Life Gala in the Diamond Ballroom at the Ritz-Carlton and JW Marriott Hotels on Jan. 13, 2010, in Los Angeles.
" src=https://ift.tt/PtgYBfN class=caas-img>Jimmy Kimmel and Emily Blunt onstage during the 16th annual Critics' Choice Movie Awards on Jan. 14, 2011.
" data-src=https://ift.tt/prsvQl1 class=caas-img data-headline="ABC pulls Jimmy Kimmel off-air: Revisit the talk show host's career" data-caption="
Jimmy Kimmel and Emily Blunt onstage during the 16th annual Critics' Choice Movie Awards on Jan. 14, 2011.
">Jimmy Kimmel and Emily Blunt onstage during the 16th annual Critics' Choice Movie Awards on Jan. 14, 2011.
" src=https://ift.tt/prsvQl1 class=caas-img>Jimmy Kimmel and Flavor Flav at the American Music Awards in 2006.
" data-src=https://ift.tt/4dCW69S class=caas-img data-headline="ABC pulls Jimmy Kimmel off-air: Revisit the talk show host's career" data-caption="
Jimmy Kimmel and Flavor Flav at the American Music Awards in 2006.
">Jimmy Kimmel and Flavor Flav at the American Music Awards in 2006.
" src=https://ift.tt/4dCW69S class=caas-img>Jimmy Kimmel speaking to media in 2015.
" data-src=https://ift.tt/rwzvIJP class=caas-img data-headline="ABC pulls Jimmy Kimmel off-air: Revisit the talk show host's career" data-caption="
Jimmy Kimmel speaking to media in 2015.
">Jimmy Kimmel speaking to media in 2015.
" src=https://ift.tt/rwzvIJP class=caas-img>Jimmy Kimmel and NBA player Kobe Bryant in 2013.
" data-src=https://ift.tt/75Dbunp class=caas-img data-headline="ABC pulls Jimmy Kimmel off-air: Revisit the talk show host's career" data-caption="
Jimmy Kimmel and NBA player Kobe Bryant in 2013.
">Jimmy Kimmel and NBA player Kobe Bryant in 2013.
" src=https://ift.tt/75Dbunp class=caas-img>Jimmy Kimmel and Molly McNearney in New York City in 2014.
" data-src=https://ift.tt/vmXBrg0 class=caas-img data-headline="ABC pulls Jimmy Kimmel off-air: Revisit the talk show host's career" data-caption="
Jimmy Kimmel and Molly McNearney in New York City in 2014.
">Jimmy Kimmel and Molly McNearney in New York City in 2014.
" src=https://ift.tt/vmXBrg0 class=caas-img>Jimmy Kimmel, John Stamos and comedian Don Rickles in Beverly Hills, California, in 2015.
" data-src=https://ift.tt/QrHXO3c class=caas-img data-headline="ABC pulls Jimmy Kimmel off-air: Revisit the talk show host's career" data-caption="
Jimmy Kimmel, John Stamos and comedian Don Rickles in Beverly Hills, California, in 2015.
">Jimmy Kimmel, John Stamos and comedian Don Rickles in Beverly Hills, California, in 2015.
" src=https://ift.tt/QrHXO3c class=caas-img>President Barack Obama talks with Jimmy Kimmel during a taping of his late-night talk show in 2015.
" data-src=https://ift.tt/z6LDQ81 class=caas-img data-headline="ABC pulls Jimmy Kimmel off-air: Revisit the talk show host's career" data-caption="
President Barack Obama talks with Jimmy Kimmel during a taping of his late-night talk show in 2015.
">President Barack Obama talks with Jimmy Kimmel during a taping of his late-night talk show in 2015.
" src=https://ift.tt/z6LDQ81 class=caas-img>Hillary Clinton appears on the "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" show in 2016.
" data-src=https://ift.tt/P5vHX9K class=caas-img data-headline="ABC pulls Jimmy Kimmel off-air: Revisit the talk show host's career" data-caption="
Hillary Clinton appears on the "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" show in 2016.
">Hillary Clinton appears on the "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" show in 2016.
" src=https://ift.tt/P5vHX9K class=caas-img>Jimmy Kimmel, wife Molly McNearney and daughter Jane Kimmel attend the 7th annual L.A. Loves Alex's Lemonade at UCLA on Sept. 10, 2016, in Los Angeles.
" data-src=https://ift.tt/i7J9hTF class=caas-img data-headline="ABC pulls Jimmy Kimmel off-air: Revisit the talk show host's career" data-caption="
Jimmy Kimmel, wife Molly McNearney and daughter Jane Kimmel attend the 7th annual L.A. Loves Alex's Lemonade at UCLA on Sept. 10, 2016, in Los Angeles.
">Jimmy Kimmel, wife Molly McNearney and daughter Jane Kimmel attend the 7th annual L.A. Loves Alex's Lemonade at UCLA on Sept. 10, 2016, in Los Angeles.
" src=https://ift.tt/i7J9hTF class=caas-img>Jimmy Kimmel attends the 2016 MusiCares Person of the Year honoring Lionel Richie at the Los Angeles Convention Center on Feb. 13, 2016 in Los Angeles.
" data-src=https://ift.tt/ojMtb3N class=caas-img data-headline="ABC pulls Jimmy Kimmel off-air: Revisit the talk show host's career" data-caption="
Jimmy Kimmel attends the 2016 MusiCares Person of the Year honoring Lionel Richie at the Los Angeles Convention Center on Feb. 13, 2016 in Los Angeles.
">Jimmy Kimmel attends the 2016 MusiCares Person of the Year honoring Lionel Richie at the Los Angeles Convention Center on Feb. 13, 2016 in Los Angeles.
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Stephen Colbert and Jimmy Kimmel present the award for lead actress in a comedy series during the 71st Emmy Awards at the Microsoft Theater on Sept. 22, 2019.
" data-src=https://ift.tt/8PB5Khd class=caas-img data-headline="ABC pulls Jimmy Kimmel off-air: Revisit the talk show host's career" data-caption="
Stephen Colbert and Jimmy Kimmel present the award for lead actress in a comedy series during the 71st Emmy Awards at the Microsoft Theater on Sept. 22, 2019.
">Stephen Colbert and Jimmy Kimmel present the award for lead actress in a comedy series during the 71st Emmy Awards at the Microsoft Theater on Sept. 22, 2019.
" src=https://ift.tt/8PB5Khd class=caas-img>Jimmy Kimmel court side at a Los Angeles Lakers game in 2023.
" data-src=https://ift.tt/M5C1GWI class=caas-img data-headline="ABC pulls Jimmy Kimmel off-air: Revisit the talk show host's career" data-caption="
Jimmy Kimmel court side at a Los Angeles Lakers game in 2023.
">Jimmy Kimmel court side at a Los Angeles Lakers game in 2023.
" src=https://ift.tt/M5C1GWI class=caas-img>Jimmy Kimmel delivers the opening monologue during the 96th Academy Awards on March 10, 2024.
" data-src=https://ift.tt/Ukts25w class=caas-img data-headline="ABC pulls Jimmy Kimmel off-air: Revisit the talk show host's career" data-caption="
Jimmy Kimmel delivers the opening monologue during the 96th Academy Awards on March 10, 2024.
">Jimmy Kimmel delivers the opening monologue during the 96th Academy Awards on March 10, 2024.
" src=https://ift.tt/Ukts25w class=caas-img>Jimmy Kimmel watches the game between the Los Angeles Dodgers and the New York Yankees during game one of the 2024 MLB World Series at Dodger Stadium on Oct. 25, 2024.
" data-src=https://ift.tt/J2Vqwed class=caas-img data-headline="ABC pulls Jimmy Kimmel off-air: Revisit the talk show host's career" data-caption="
Jimmy Kimmel watches the game between the Los Angeles Dodgers and the New York Yankees during game one of the 2024 MLB World Series at Dodger Stadium on Oct. 25, 2024.
">Jimmy Kimmel watches the game between the Los Angeles Dodgers and the New York Yankees during game one of the 2024 MLB World Series at Dodger Stadium on Oct. 25, 2024.
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Jimmy Kimmel, winner of the outstanding host for a game show award for "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire," attends the 2025 Creative Arts Emmy Awards at Peacock Theater on Sept. 7, 2025, in Los Angeles.
" data-src=https://ift.tt/6mMTjHK class=caas-img data-headline="ABC pulls Jimmy Kimmel off-air: Revisit the talk show host's career" data-caption="
Jimmy Kimmel, winner of the outstanding host for a game show award for "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire," attends the 2025 Creative Arts Emmy Awards at Peacock Theater on Sept. 7, 2025, in Los Angeles.
">Jimmy Kimmel, winner of the outstanding host for a game show award for "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire," attends the 2025 Creative Arts Emmy Awards at Peacock Theater on Sept. 7, 2025, in Los Angeles.
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1 / 23ABC pulls Jimmy Kimmel off-air: Revisit the talk show host's career
Adam Carolla and Jimmy Kimmel from "The Man Show" appear on "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno" at the NBC Studios in Los Angeles on Nov. 19, 2001.
During an episode of commentator Benny Johnson's YouTube show on Sept. 17, called on Disney and individual ABC affiliates to take action against Kimmel.
"This is a very, very serious issue right now for Disney. We can do this the easy way or the hard way," Carr said. "Disney needs to see some change here, but the individual licensed stations that are taking their content, it's time for them to step up and say this, you know, garbage to the extent that that's what comes down the pipe in the future isn't something that we think serves the needs of our local communities."
"There's calls for Kimmel to be fired," he added. "I think you could certainly see a path forward for suspension over this."
Later that day, ABC announced Kimmel's late-night talk show would be "pre-empted indefinitely."
Kimmel had alleged in a Sept. 15 show that "the MAGA gang" was "doing everything they can to score political points" off of the Sept. 10 killing of conservative activist Charlie Kirk. He also criticized Trump's mourning his ally's death, comparing it to "how a four-year-old mourns a goldfish."
Who is Brendan Carr?: FCC chair praises Jimmy Kimmel being pulled
Carr may have had an issue with Kimmel's comments, but in the past he has publicly defended free speech. USA TODAY reached out to the chairman's office for comment, but had not heard back early Saturday evening.
Back in 2019 when Carr was an FCC commissioner, he tweeted his opposition to a USA TODAY opinion column written by then-FCC chair Jessica Rosenworcel, who suggested the agency take steps towards regulating advertisements for e-cigarettes.
But Carr objected on free-speech grounds. "Should the government censor speech it doesn't like? Of course not," Carr's post dated Feb. 14, 2019 says. "The FCC does not have a roving mandate to police speech in the name of the "public interest."
Should the government censor speech it doesn't like? Of course not. The FCC does not have a roving mandate to police speech in the name of the "public interest."https://t.co/j4o2lA6LiL
— Brendan Carr (@BrendanCarrFCC) February 14, 2019
Others have found Carr's statement and offered their own commentary over the last few days. "This aged well," noted one poster.
"how is there always a tweet? You guys are so bad at this," posted another.
Before Disney pre-empted Kimmel's show, media company Nexstar, which has 32 ABC stations, said it would pull the program.
Carr's FCC is considering Nexstar's acquisition of fellow broadcaster Tegna. Approval would require lifting the station ownership limit, which bans broadcasters from reaching more than 39% of the national audience. The FCC will also be considering Disney-owned ESPN's acquisition of the NFL Network.
It's not just liberals and free speech advocates concerned about the move against Kimmel. Some conservatives, too, have voiced concerns that the Trump administration's moves to silence Kirk's critics amount to stifling of free speech.
"That's right out a mafioso coming into a bar going, 'Nice bar you have here. It'd be a shame if something happened to it'," Republican Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas said on his own podcast on Sept. 19.
Brendan Carr, commissioner at the Federal Communications Commission, testifies during a House hearing in 2022 in Washington, DC.
Charlie Kirk's memorial service: Armed man detained at stadium where service will be held
What did FCC chairman Brendan Carr say about free speech?
Carr has frequently posted in favor free speech. An hour after he was appointment to FCC chair by Trump in 2024, Carr said on X that, "we must dismantle the censorship cartel and restore free speech rights for everyday Americans."
Carr has supported free speech in additional posts on X. "Free speech is the counterweight – it is the check on government control. That is why censorship is the authoritarian's dream," he posted on Dec. 30, 2023.
Free speech is the counterweight—it is the check on government control.That is why censorship is the authoritarian's dream.
— Brendan Carr (@BrendanCarrFCC) December 30, 2023
Prior to that, in 2021, Carr posted that messaging platform Discord's ban of a server tied to the GameStop stock surge amounted to censorship. "Less speech means more power for established gatekeepers," his post read.
Fits the same censorship pattern.Less speech means more power for established gatekeepers. https://t.co/SflvYzfrBT
— Brendan Carr (@BrendanCarrFCC) January 28, 2021
Critics like Colbert call out Carr's alleged hypocrisy
During the Sept. 18 episode of "The Late Show with Stephen Colbert," the host referenced some of Carr's posts, noting how Carr suggested, "Shutting down this type of political speech – especially at the urging of those targeted or threatened by its message – would represent a serious threat to our freedoms and ability to hold those in power accountable."
Such comments seemed to run counter to the action taken against Kimmel, Colbert suggested.
"Oh man, do not tell Brendan Carr that Brendan Carr said that or he's going to get Brendan Carr to cancel Brendan Carr," Colbert said in his monologue.
Contributing: Pamela Avila, Michael Collins, Joey Garrison, Anna Kaufman, Kelly Lawler, Brendan Morrow, Kathyrn Palmer and Anthony Robledo
Mike Snider is a national trending news reporter for USA TODAY. You can follow him on Threads, Bluesky, X and email him at mikegsnider & @mikegsnider.bsky.social & @mikesnider & [email protected]
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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Brendan Carr, ABC and Jimmy Kimmel: Does FCC chair favor free speech?
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