Jon Stewart Responds to Jimmy Kimmel Live! Being Pulled: ‘We Have a Little Thing Called the First Amendment’

Jon Stewart is speaking out after Jimmy Kimmel’s late-night show was pulled off the air.

On Wednesday, Sept. 17, an ABC spokesperson confirmed to PEOPLE that Jimmy Kimmel Live! would be paused “indefinitely.” The decision followed comments Kimmel made during his Sept. 15 monologue about Charlie Kirk, who was shot and killed at Utah Valley University on Sept. 10.

Stewart hosted The Daily Show on Thursday, Sept. 18, even though he usually only hosts Monday episodes. He and his writers redesigned the show to imagine what a “government-approved” Daily Show might look like.

During the episode, Stewart talked about President Donald Trump’s visit to the U.K. and mentioned Trump’s comments about Kimmel, who Trump said was fired for “lack of talent.”

“You may call it free speech in jolly old England, but in America, we have a little thing called the first amendment,” Stewart said. He explained a fictional “talent-o-meter” that measures a performer’s “TQ” — or talent quotient — based on how nice they are to the president.

“At which point, the FCC must be notified to threaten the acquisition prospects for billion-dollar mergers of network affiliates,” Stewart joked. “These affiliates are then asked to give ultimatums to even larger mega corporations that control the flow of state-approved content. Or the FCC can just choose to threaten those licenses directly. It’s basic science.”

Later, Stewart added, “I don’t know who this… this… Johnny Drimmel Live ABC character is. But the point is, our great administration has laid out very clear rules on free speech.”

He continued, “Some people may argue that this administration’s speech concerns are just a trick to consolidate power and intimidate others. Some people would say that. Not me, though… I think it’s great.”

The second part of the episode included an interview with author Maria Ressa, who wrote How to Stand Up to a Dictator and won a Nobel Peace Prize in 2021.

On the Sept. 15 episode of Jimmy Kimmel Live!, Kimmel mentioned Kirk during his monologue while talking about Trump supporters. “We hit some new lows over the weekend with the MAGA gang trying to characterize this kid who killed Charlie Kirk as anything other than one of them,” Kimmel said.

He had already shared his condolences on social media, writing, “Instead of the angry finger-pointing, can we just for one day agree that it is horrible and monstrous to shoot another human? On behalf of my family, we send love to the Kirks and to all the children, parents and innocents who fall victim to senseless gun violence.”

Nexstar Media, which owns over 200 local TV stations in the U.S., said in a statement to PEOPLE that it “strongly objects” to Kimmel’s comments on Kirk.

Andrew Alford, President of Nexstar’s broadcasting division, said Kimmel’s comments were “offensive and insensitive at a critical time in our national political discourse.” He added that airing the show was “not in the public interest at the current time” and that Nexstar made the “difficult decision to preempt his show” to allow for calmer discussions.

Nexstar recently announced plans to acquire broadcast company Tegna for $6.2 billion. This deal would give Nexstar a bigger share of the U.S. TV market and requires approval from the Trump-controlled Federal Communications Commission.

FCC Chair Brendan Carr praised Nexstar for pushing ABC to remove Kimmel, writing on X that “it is important for broadcasters to push back on Disney programming that they determine falls short of community values.”

Hollywood stars responded strongly to the news. Comedian Wanda Sykes, who was supposed to appear on Kimmel Wednesday night, said in a video on Instagram, “Let’s see. He didn’t end the Ukraine war or solve Gaza within his first week. But he did end freedom of speech within his first year. Hey, for those of you who pray, now’s the time to do it. Love you, Jimmy.”

Chris Hayes called it “the most straightforward attack on free speech from state actors I’ve ever seen in my life” on X. Actress Jean Smart wrote on Instagram, “What Jimmy said was FREE speech, not hate speech. People seem to only want to protect free speech when it suits THEIR agenda. Though I didn’t agree at ALL with Charlie Kirk; his shooting death sickened me; and should have sickened any decent human being. What is happening to our country?”