Kimmel says interview with James Talarico won't air on TV under pressure from the FCC
Kimmel said his interview with Talarico would be posted online rather than broadcast on television.
SOURCE CHECK
TAP FOR WHYCredibility rates WKMG, where this article appeared. The other scores rate the article itself.
The page attributes the reporting to The Associated Press, an established wire service with strong editorial standards and correction practices. The article also includes an explicit correction and identifies its contributing AP writer.
- Source type — The article is credited to The Associated Press, a major wire service.
- Author attribution — The byline identifies an AP reporter and notes an AP contributor.
- Correction history — The page includes a correction clarifying when ABC sued the FCC.
- Editorial standards — AP attribution and a published correction indicate accountable reporting practices.
The report identifies the key participants, includes Kimmel’s account and Gomez’s criticism, and notes that the FCC did not respond. It provides relevant context about the equal-time rule and ABC’s dispute with the FCC, though the agency’s perspective is not directly represented.
HOW WE SCORE ↗The article includes Kimmel’s explanation, Gomez’s criticism, background on the FCC’s rule and license review, and the agency’s lack of an immediate response. The FCC’s rationale appears, but no agency representative directly explains the alleged threat concerning this interview.
- Counterarguments presented — The FCC’s prior rationale for reviewing ABC’s licenses is described, but its response to Kimmel’s specific allegation is unavailable.
- Source diversity — The article includes Kimmel, Gomez, and background on FCC actions, but no direct FCC comment.
- Loaded language — Charged descriptions are attributed to Kimmel and Gomez rather than presented as the article’s own conclusions.
The report is mostly straightforward in tone, but it gives prominent space to Kimmel’s and Gomez’s characterization of the FCC’s actions as threats and censorship. It also includes the FCC’s stated rationale for the license review and notes that the agency did not respond to this request for comment.
- Language tone — The article’s narration is largely neutral, while quoted sources use charged terms such as “censorship” and “intimidation.”
- Source selection — Kimmel and Gomez criticize the agency; the FCC’s position is represented through earlier stated reasons for its actions.
- Framing — The account foregrounds the interview’s removal from broadcast television and the dispute over editorial control.
Original publisher not identified
This article credits another publisher, which ChamberLight has not identified, so the scores are WKMG's own.
Jimmy Kimmel said an interview with Texas Senate candidate James Talarico would air on YouTube rather than television after what Kimmel described as threats from the FCC. The FCC did not immediately respond, while Commissioner Anna Gomez criticized the agency’s actions.
Kimmel said the FCC had threatened his show, ABC and local stations over the decision to book Talarico. The interview will be posted on YouTube; Talarico’s appearance on Stephen Colbert’s show had also moved online amid network concerns about equal-time rules for political candidates. The FCC did not immediately respond to a request for comment, and Gomez said the decision showed an administration campaign of censorship and control. The article reports that the Trump administration announced in January that late-night and daytime hosts had to follow the equal-time rule, which traditionally had not applied to talk shows.
The article also describes ABC’s August lawsuit challenging an FCC review of its broadcast licenses. The FCC had cited ABC’s diversity and inclusion practices in ordering the review, which came shortly after a Kimmel joke angered President Donald Trump. The article notes that Trump and Melania Trump had called for ABC to fire Kimmel over another joke.
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SWIPE →Texas Senate candidate whose interview will not air on broadcast television
President whose administration announced the equal-time rule for late-night and daytime hosts; he also called for ABC to fire Kimmel
Republican Senate candidate in the Texas race
Part of a bigger story
46 OUTLETSOutlets agree Jimmy Kimmel said his interview with Texas Senate candidate James Talarico would be posted on YouTube instead of airing on ABC, amid a dispute over FCC pressure and equal-time rules. Left-leaning outlets frame the move as a consequence of FCC pressure on political speech. Center outlets focus on how equal-time rules and FCC scrutiny may affect political interviews, generally attributing claims and including official responses. Right-leaning outlets are more skeptical of the censorship claim, with some emphasizing equal-time rules and others reporting Kimmel’s account alongside a denial.
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