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Jennifer Aniston Condemns ABC’s Brief Kimmel Suspension, Points to Viewer Backlash

Her comments renew focus on free‑speech concerns tied to reported FCC pressure.

Overview

  • In an Elle interview, Aniston called the September suspension of Jimmy Kimmel Live! “very dangerous” and “unthinkable,” saying subscription cancellations “spoke volumes.”
  • Research firm Antenna reported that September cancellation rates roughly doubled for Disney+ (about 8%) and Hulu (about 10%) compared with the prior two months.
  • ABC and Disney paused the show from Sept. 17–22 after Kimmel’s monologue about Charlie Kirk’s killing, and Kimmel returned days later with an on‑air apology to Kirk’s family.
  • Multiple reports linked the suspension to pressure from FCC Chair Brendan Carr, while large station groups including Nexstar and Sinclair said they would preempt the program.
  • HuffPost reported that a group of former FCC chairs urged scrapping the agency’s “news distortion” policy, citing how it was invoked in discussion of the Kimmel episode.