Sinclair Makes Itself Visible - emptywheel

"In his monologue, Kimmel did not pull punches. He called out Trump's efforts to target his show because he is thin-skinned, then mocked both Trump's escalator failure at the UN and his screed against Tylenol. He noted he was not on the air in Seattle, DC, Nashville, New Orleans, Portland, Salt Late, and St. Louis, where Sinclair or Nexstar refused to show it, then returned to efforts to coerce ABC affiliates not to air his show."

"He explicitly called out Brendan Carr, highlighting his flipflop on free speech since 2022. He joked that the US had become more authoritarian than Germany. He choked up when he addressed his comments about Charlie Kirk's death. By refusing to air the show (and with Kimmel's allusions to them, though he did not name them), Sinclair and Nexstar made themselves visible in a way they were not to most consumers."

"This article describes some of the tension between the local outlets and the networks. Local TV outlets receive retransmission payments from cable and satellite operators, and the networks take a cut of those retrans dollars. (That money sent to the networks is called "reverse compensation," because once upon a time, the networks used to pay its affiliates to carry its lineups. Now, it's the reverse and stations pay the networks.)"

Donald Trump targeted Jimmy Kimmel, prompting Kimmel to deliver a forceful monologue that mocked specific incidents and accused Trump of thin-skinned actions. Kimmel noted his show was not aired in multiple cities where Sinclair or Nexstar refused to show it and accused efforts to coerce ABC affiliates not to air the program. Kimmel called out Brendan Carr for a perceived free-speech flipflop, joked about U.S. authoritarian trends, and became emotional addressing comments about Charlie Kirk's death. Sinclair and Nexstar's refusal to air the show made those companies unusually visible. Local TV outlets receive retransmission payments, and networks take a cut called "reverse compensation." Affiliates have grown concerned that networks are demanding too much of that retransmission money, and most stations currently pay fixed fees to networks for the right to carry their programming, including sports.

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