Late-night television is supposed to be one of the last places Americans can count on for a laugh after a day of political chaos. But this week, fans were met with something entirely different: indefinite postponement of Jimmy Kimmel’s show.
It raises bigger questions than just programming. Can a voice that has consistently poked fun at politics, across both parties, but often with a sharper edge toward today’s leaders, really be silenced indefinitely without consequence?
On paper, no constitutional amendment guarantees your right to Kimmel’s opening monologue. But in spirit, this kind of disruption speaks to something larger: the boundaries of free expression, entertainment, and how power reacts when satire cuts too close.
It’s not the first time comedy has been throttled in moments of political tension. Late-night hosts from Carson to Colbert have faced pressure, direct or indirect, when jokes wandered too close to the uncomfortable truth. What makes Kimmel’s case unique is the sheer vagueness of “indefinitely postponed.” It’s less a schedule change and more a shrug, leaving fans and commentators wondering what’s really at stake.
And that’s the ridiculous part: when entertainment starts to look like censorship-by-delay, it’s no longer just about who gets the last laugh, it’s about whether the audience even gets one.
Maybe the most fitting response is to carry the absurdity with us. As one of our designs puts it: “Unprecedented, Again.” Because moments like these? They sure don’t feel normal anymore.
Photo: Eddy Chen/ABC via Walt Disney Television, on Flickr — “146028__0824” (2017).
Source: https://www.flickr.com/photos/disneyabc/32324654463
License: CC BY-ND 2.0 — https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/2.0/
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