America’s late-night TV hosts have rallied behind fellow comedian Jimmy Kimmel after he was suspended by ABC in a row over comments he made about the killing of Charlie Kirk.
Stephen Colbert began his show by saying “we are all Jimmy Kimmel”, and said the star’s removal was a “blatant assault on freedom of speech”.
Seth Meyers declared it was “a privilege and honour to call Jimmy Kimmel my friend”, while Jon Stewart and Jimmy Fallon tackled the free speech issue by doing satirical sketches in which they were apparently forced to praise Donald Trump.
Their broadcasts came shortly after the US president said the main networks were overwhelmingly negative about him and could have their licences “taken away”.
While I appreciate your sentiment, it’s important to consider how it will actually play out. Above all else, (nearly) every corporation will take the path that is the most profitable. That will decide each step along the way.
First, ABC will happily replace Kimmel with whomever brings in the money. It might be a full-on Nazi, or it might just be inoffensive Kimmel-lite that won’t rock the boat. The time slot will not simply go empty.
Something similar would happen to Fallon, Stewart, and the rest.
At this point, the influencers begin to lose their influence. They are no longer the voice of a frustrated nation. They become a former voice. Someone that we used to listen to. This is actually where Jon Stewart was for a number of years, and I’m still not convinced he’s regained his influence.
When the voices we need are silent, other voices will rise to the top. By definition, they will not be what we need. They will probably be working against us.
I don’t have a solution to any of this. I’m merely analyzing the problems of one approach.