CBS’s announcement a few months back that it was going to terminate The Late Show was seen by many commentators as the beginning of the end for late night talk shows. They had lost their relevance, it was argued, and they were losing money for their networks.
Now Jimmy Kimmel, the host of ABC’s late night talk show, has been suspended for comments he made after the assassination of Charlie Kirk, and it has ignited debates about free speech and a meddling, autocratic government. Much of the media – social and legacy – has been focused on the remarks of a late night talk show host, his being cancelled because of them, and the ramifications of his dismissal. Which would seem to argue against the idea of the institution’s irrelevance.
