The Trump Administration and the FCC are moving to challenge Disney‘s broadcast licenses for ABC as retaliation for jokes made by Jimmy Kimmel, with Semafor and CNN reporting that paperwork could be filed as soon as this afternoon.
One source told CNN’s Brian Stelter, “The FCC is preparing to call in all of the TV licenses for Disney/ABC for early renewal,” with the implicit threat of refusing to renew. Disney’s licenses cover eight ABC owned-and-operated stations in cities including Chicago and New York.
Last week, Kimmel said that First Lady Melania Trump looks like an “expectant widow” — a joke that went viral two days later after an alleged gunman attempted to attack the White House Correspondents’ Dinner. Melania called for Kimmel to be fired, perhaps confused about the timeline, though if you’ve been waiting for your husband to die for over 20 years, you might also think time is standing still.
Kimmel’s response was defiant, invoking the First Amendment, and telling Melania, “I agree that hateful and violent rhetoric is something we should reject. I do. And I think a great place to start to dial that back would be to have a conversation with your husband about it.”
But while Kimmel’s response was more or less expected, Disney’s support for him is at least a little surprising. The House of Mouse previously suspended their late-night host following a joke about the Charlie Kirk assassin, but this time Kimmel has the company’s support. Not only did they air Kimmel’s Monday show without batting an eye, sources told CNN that they are gearing up for a fight.
It might take a while. What Trump is trying to do to Disney has never been done before, not to mention all of the 1st Amendment issues that come up when a government retaliates over protected speech. One thing is for sure: If the FCC calls in those licenses for early renewal, the fight will be ugly.
Disney is standing by Jimmy Kimmel and sees this as a First Amendment fight that's worth having. But it might be a long procedural fight with the FCC… pic.twitter.com/QTMhSa8XGv
— Brian Stelter (@brianstelter) April 28, 2026
