Overview

• In a CNBC interview, Fallon said he plans to keep his head down and avoid overtly political material, describing his show as designed to make everybody laugh.
• Fallon characterized The Tonight Show as historically non-political and said it aims to hit both sides, though he focused on maintaining a familiar, joke-first monologue format.
• ABC and Disney suspended Jimmy Kimmel on September 17 over a September 15 monologue about the person who killed Charlie Kirk, drawing swift criticism from major ABC affiliates.
• FCC Chair Brendan Carr publicly said Kimmel’s comment warranted a suspension, and President Trump later mocked Kimmel after the show was taken off the air.
• ABC lifted Kimmel’s suspension on September 22; he returned without an apology, and Charlie Kirk’s executive producer Andrew Kolvet labeled him an “unrepentant liar,” while NewsBusters challenged Fallon’s claim that he targets both parties equally.