Topline
The Federal Communications Commission is planning to review Disney’s broadcast licenses, according to multiple reports, pressing the media conglomerate after First Lady Melania Trump blasted a joke made by late night host Jimmy Kimmel in which he said the first lady had “a glow like an expectant widow” days before a shooting at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner.
Kimmel said the joke he made about Trump concerned the president’s age.
Photo by Randy Holmes/Disney via Getty Images
Key Facts
The FCC will make an unprecedented, early review of Disney’s broadcast licenses for ABC, according to Semafor.
If the FCC moves forward Tuesday, the review would come less than a week after Kimmel’s joke, which the late night host said was about Trump’s age and not a call for his assassination.
The president has called for Kimmel’s firing over the remarks.
The FCC may not trigger the review, Semafor added, though it noted FCC Chairman Brendan Carr’s threats against Disney’s licenses over its diversity programs.
“Jimmy Kimmel Live!” is broadcast on ABC, which receives licenses from the FCC to publicly air its programs across the country.
Eight licenses will potentially be reviewed, according to CNN, which cited an unnamed source that said the FCC will attribute the license review to an ongoing investigation into Disney’s diversity, equity and inclusion practices.
Forbes has reached out to the FCC and Disney for comment.
Tangent
Disney is under new leadership since Kimmel’s last feud with the Trump administration and the FCC, when the host was briefly taken off the air over comments about late conservative political activist Charlie Kirk. Disney did not initially stand by Kimmel’s side amid the backlash but eventually brought Kimmel back on air. Josh D’Amaro took over as Disney’s chief last month from former CEO Bob Iger. He has not issued a public comment on the feud between the Trumps and Kimmel.
Key Background
The joke at the heart of the conflict was made during a parody of the White House Correspondents’ Dinner on Kimmel’s show. The host jabbed at President Donald Trump’s supposed health issues and said Melania Trump had “a glow like an expectant widow.” Two days later, the real correspondents’ dinner was hosted at the Washington Hilton and shut down after a suspect armed with a shotgun attempted to run past security and into the hotel’s ballroom. No injuries were reported outside of the suspect and a Secret Service agent who was shot in his bulletproof vest. The first lady wrote in a Monday tweet “people like Kimmel shouldn’t have the opportunity to enter our homes each evening to spread hate . . . Enough is enough. It is time for ABC to take a stand,” though she did not explicitly mention the dinner shooting in her post. Kimmel has pushed back against the first lady, saying his joke was “obviously…about their age difference” and “not by any stretch of the definition a call to assassination.” The late night host said Melania Trump should talk to the president about the “hateful and violent rhetoric” she accused Kimmel of.
Further Reading
Melania Trump Accuses Jimmy Kimmel Of ‘Hateful And Violent Rhetoric’ (Forbes)