The View Hosts Stay Silent on Jimmy Kimmel Live! Suspension During First Episode After ABC Announcement

On Thursday, September 18, The View returned for its first broadcast since ABC announced that Jimmy Kimmel Live! had been pulled from the network’s schedule indefinitely — but the panel made no mention of the decision that has rocked Hollywood and sparked fierce political debate.

The news broke on Wednesday night, when ABC confirmed that Jimmy Kimmel’s late-night program would go on an indefinite hiatus following controversial remarks the 57-year-old comedian made about the death of right-wing commentator Charlie Kirk.

Yet on Thursday’s broadcast, Whoopi Goldberg, Sara Haines, Sunny Hostin, Joy Behar, and Alyssa Farah Griffin chose not to discuss the decision. Instead, they opened the show on a lighter note, celebrating Haines’ 48th birthday.

“Welcome to The View,” Goldberg said cheerfully. “But first, it’s Sara’s birthday!” The audience applauded before the panel moved on to the day’s topics.

The first segment focused on FBI Director Kash Patel’s testimony before the House Judiciary Committee, followed by a discussion about Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and updates from the CDC. The panel also spotlighted Eugene Levy’s new travel series The Reluctant Traveler, featuring a short interview with the Schitt’s Creek star, and later talked about the new cookbook from NFL legend Terry Bradshaw and his wife Tammy.

The episode ended on a festive note with cookies for Haines’ birthday, as Goldberg told viewers, “See you tomorrow.” Noticeably absent from the entire broadcast was any acknowledgment of Kimmel’s removal — despite the story dominating headlines and sparking reactions from politicians, comedians, and industry insiders since the night before. PEOPLE reached out to The View for comment but has not received a response.

Fans quickly noticed the silence. Under The View’s Instagram birthday post for Haines, one commenter asked, “Why was there no mention of Jimmy Kimmel today? Did I miss it?” Others accused the network of being “compromised” and ignoring one of the biggest media stories of the week.

Elsewhere on ABC, Good Morning America did report the news of Kimmel’s suspension but offered no commentary or discussion.

ABC’s announcement followed Kimmel’s remarks on the September 15 episode of Jimmy Kimmel Live! in which he said: “The MAGA gang is 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. In between the finger-pointing, there was grieving.”

Nexstar Media Group, the largest local broadcast and digital media company in the U.S., issued a statement condemning Kimmel’s comments as “offensive and insensitive” and announced it would replace the late-night show with alternative programming in its ABC-affiliated markets. The move comes as Nexstar awaits final FCC approval of its $6.2 billion acquisition of rival broadcaster Tegna — a deal that would put Nexstar stations in 80% of U.S. TV households.

FCC Chair Brendan Carr praised Nexstar’s action, saying it is important for broadcasters to “push back on Disney programming that they determine falls short of community values.”

The decision triggered strong backlash. Comedians Wanda Sykes, Mike Birbiglia, and actor Ben Stiller spoke out against ABC’s move, and on Thursday, former President Barack Obama condemned what he called dangerous government interference.

“After years of complaining about cancel culture, the current administration has taken it to a new and dangerous level by routinely threatening regulatory action against media companies unless they muzzle or fire reporters and commentators it doesn’t like,” Obama posted on X. “This is precisely the kind of government coercion that the First Amendment was designed to prevent — and media companies need to start standing up rather than capitulating to it.”

Former President Donald Trump, meanwhile, celebrated the news, writing on Truth Social that ABC’s decision was “great news for America” and urging NBC to do the same with Jimmy Fallon and Seth Meyers.

As of Thursday morning, Kimmel has not commented publicly on the suspension. His late-night time slot was filled on September 17 by an episode of Celebrity Family Feud.