Amid Feds’ Authoritarian Push, WWLP’s Parent Company Hits a Censor Spot…
22 News…the boss is censoring you! (WMP&I)
Although WWLP is not the Western Mass affiliate of ABC, the Disney-owned network that airs Jimmy Kimmel Live!, its parent company, Nexstar, owns ABC affiliates elsewhere. It was via those affiliates that Nexstar contributed to Disney’s decision to suspend Kimmel’s show. The ostensible reason was a joke that mocked Republicans’ reaction to the murder of conservative celebrity and provocateur Charlie Kirk.
Nexstar announced its preemption of Kimmel on Wednesday, shortly after Federal Communications Commission chair Brendan Carr began demanding station owners and Disney pull the comedian. While much of the attention has focused on Disney, Nexstar seems to have first responded to Carr’s pressure. The company will need the FCC’s approval to complete a $6.2 billion merger with Tegna, Inc., a rival owner of local stations.
Disney’s decision to pull Kimmel has prompted a wide backlash to Carr and his boss Donald Trump’s blatant efforts to censor critics. After Kimmel’s suspension, Trump used his personal social media company to pressure NBC to axe its own funnymen, Jimmy Fallon and Seth Meyers. Both air on Nexstar’s WWLP.
This episode comes amid a now-long series of actions Trump has taken to use government to enrich himself and retaliate against critics.
Despite crowning themselves defenders of free speech, Trump and conservatives have waged a campaign of retaliation against anybody with a different view of the slain Kirk. When authorities arrested a suspect, Tyler Robinson, the right-wing background of the alleged killer’s family complicated attempts to blame “the left.” It was in this context that Kimmel ribbed the GOP for deflecting blame.
“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.
Kimmel went on to make other jokes, including a bit that showed Trump “mourning” Kirk by discussing the proposed White House ballroom. Conservatives have suggested that Kimmel had somehow disparaged Kirk directly, but that did not happen.
Q: My condolences on the loss of your friend Charlie Kirk. How are you holding up?TRUMP: I think very good. And by the way, right there you see all the trucks. They just started construction of the new ballroom for the White House, which is something they've been trying to get for about 150 years.
Apparently, this was the commentary “not in the public interest” that troubled Nexstar.
“Mr. Kimmel’s comments about the death of Mr. Kirk are offensive and insensitive at a critical time in our national political discourse, and we do not believe they reflect the spectrum of opinions, views, or values of the local communities in which we are located,” Andrew Alford, Nexstar’s President of broadcasting said in a statement.
Nexstar did not seem to foreclose ending its preemption. Disney’s own suspension, while indefinite, also left a window open for Kimmel’s return. The move has backfired on the House of Mouse, however, as a flood of users posted their Hulu and Disney+ cancellations on social media. Even Disney talent have joined in.
22 News…the boss is censoring you! (WMP&I)
Disney clearly panicked over Nexstar’s preemption. However, it is not clear exactly what perturbed Nexstar. The company did not respond to a request for clarification as to what specifically Kimmel said. However, the company’s ambitions to grow via its Tegna merger loom large.
Nexstar’s marriage to Tegna would continue a recent wave of consolidation among local broadcast operators. The new company would be so large it would need a waiver on top of traditional FCC approvals.
Currently, WWLP is Nexstar’s only broadcaster in Massachusetts. The company has owned the Springfield-licensed (but Chicopee-based) station since 2016. WWLP has historically been the higher-rated of Springfield’s two local stations, the other being ABC-affiliated WGGB.
There was briefly a third CBS-affiliated station, WSHM. It and WGGB’s parent companies merged in 2015. While they carry separate networks, there is only one local facility and local newsroom on Liberty Street in Springfield. Gray Television now owns WGGB and WSHM.
Entertainment unions have condemned Kimmel’s suspension and protested Disney in California, where Jimmy Kimmel Live! is filmed. There are not presently any reports of significant protests against Nexstar or facilities like WWLP’s Chicopee studio, which is also a regional hub for the company.
A consumer boycott in Western Massachusetts could be an opportunity for WGGB and its Western Mass News programming. Gray Television referred a request for comment to WGGB/WSHM’s leadership. General Manager Patience Hettrick declined to comment.
“As I’m sure you can understand, we don’t comment or speculate on another company’s actions,” she said in an email.
Greater Springfield viewers seeking NBC programming without watching a Nexstar station may have few alternatives. Via old-fashioned over-the-air broadcasting, lower Valley viewers might receive signals from WVIT, Hartford’s NBC. The network owns that station directly.
In the 413, Nexstar’s preemption alone would not have pulled Kimmel from screens. However, Trump clearly has NBC’s late-night programming in his sights. On Thursday, he said networks that criticize him should lose their license. Whether he realizes—as Carr clearly does—that stations and not networks have federal licenses, the implications are clear.
Nexstar did not respond to a request for comment on Trump’s threats to NBC’s lineup and the impact on Springfield area viewers.