The View, which airs on ABC, played it safe this morning after the network took Jimmy Kimmel Live off the air “indefinitely” over comments host Jimmy Kimmel made about Charlie Kirk.
While the ladies spend most of their broadcasts dissecting the latest in politics and pop culture in their daily Hot Topics segments, they failed to mention what was arguably the biggest piece of news of the last 24 hours.
In this morning’s episode, they instead spoke about FBI Director Kash Patel sparring with Democrats at the House Judiciary Committee hearing, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. firing CDC Director Susan Monarez, and whether or not it’s important to break up with someone before deciding to marry them. Even when their guests, Eugene Levy and Terry Bradshaw, joined the panel, there was no word about Kimmel or his preempting.
On Wednesday (Sept. 17), ABC announced that Jimmy Kimmel Live would be going dark for the foreseeable future after Kimmel spoke about Kirk’s murder in the opening monologue he delivered during Tuesday night’s (Sept. 16) episode.
“We hit some new lows over the weekend with the MAGA gang desperately trying to characterize this kid who murdered Charlie Kirk as anything other than one of them and doing everything they can to score political points from it,” Kimmel said, referring to murder suspect Tyler Robinson. While Robinson reportedly comes from a family of registered Republicans, he allegedly stated in a text to his romantic partner that he had “had enough” of the conservative activist’s “hatred,” leading many to believe his actions were politically motivated.
The ladies on The View have repeatedly condemned political violence in the episodes that have aired since Kirk’s murder, and have emphasized the importance of free speech on both sides of the aisle. But with attorney General Pam Bondi telling The Katie Miller Podcast that the government will “target” or “go after” anyone engaging in hate speech, the ladies argued that even that is protected by the First Amendment.
“We’re talking about the government right now speaking about free speech,” Sara Haines said on Tuesday’s episode of The View. “People at the highest levels of leadership have said this death has been politicized. I would argue it’s also politicizing it when you go against the very spirit of Charlie Kirk.”
She added, “This man was out there speaking and disagreeing with people to protect speech so I don’t think people should weaponize his memory or his life by politicizing free speech.”
Since The View shares a network with Jimmy Kimmel Live, it’s not surprising that the co-hosts would skip over any mention of the late-night show getting pulled from the air. Other prominent figures, however, have not been afraid to voice their opinions.
Hacks star Jean Smart wrote that she was “horrified” by the cancellation, while actor Ben Stiller said, “This isn’t right.”
The View airs on weekdays at 11/10c on ABC.