When late-night talk show host Jimmy Kimmel joked about the reaction to Charlie Kirk’s killing, he likely didn’t expect the silencing that would follow. Within 24 hours, stations and broadcasting groups refused to broadcast his show, critics condemned his remarks, and regulators hinted at possible consequences.

On his talk show, Kimmel said “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 is likely trying to hint at the fact that the Republican party is using Kirk’s death as a way to attack other parties and boost their public image when the actual perpetrator is a Republican. This statement caused major backlash with the show not being streamed on some TV services, temporary suspensions and reactions from the public.

“I believe that he has the right of free speech and although his comment might have come off as offensive to some, that does not mean he has to be taken off of many TV services and censored like that,” said senior Eddie Monahan. This is one of the most popular opinions taken on the subject overall with multiple students reporting the same thought.

“In my opinion, the TV services are streaming his show on their service. They have a right to broadcast what they want on their services and so Jimmy Kimmel being taken off the programs and receiving temporary bans is understandable.” Said junior Matthew Baptiste when informed about the situation and asked his opinion on the topic. Such a controversial issue is expected to have many opinions surrounding it, like this one does.

All in all, the Jimmy Kimmel controversy shows the ongoing tension between free speech and media responsibility and censorship. The opinions vary greatly with some believing that it was an unfair act and other believing that there was reasoning behind the consequences and backlash he had received for his comments.