Trump administration urges Disney to fire comedian Jimmy Kimmel over Melania joke

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Donald Trump and his allies mounted their outrage at Disney television host Jimmy Kimmel on Tuesday, with the White House communications chief urging the media group to “fire him immediately” for a joke about the president’s wife.

In its latest clash with US media, Trump’s administration hit out at Kimmel after the comedian described the president’s wife Melania as an “expectant widow” — days before a shooting took place at the White House Correspondents Dinner. 

Both the president and Melania on Monday called for Kimmel to be fired, with the first lady posting to X: “It is time for ABC to take a stand.” White House communications director Steven Cheung on Tuesday added that Kimmel “should be shunned for the rest of his life”. 

Disney has not responded to requests for comment. Kimmel’s show aired as usual on Monday evening.

On air, Kimmel explained: “It was a very light roast joke about the fact that he’s almost 80 and she’s younger than I am. It was not, by any stretch of the definition, a call to assassination.”

The episode stirred concerns about corporations being cowed by Trump. It came two months after Paramount said it would scrap Stephen Colbert’s The Late Show — another comedian who has frequently criticised the US president on air — as the media group sought regulatory approval for a merger.

On Tuesday, Semafor reported that the Federal Communications Commission was preparing a review of Disney’s television licences, citing people familiar with the matter — a move which would escalate the dispute.

Under Trump’s FCC chair Brendan Carr, the agency has taken on a more assertive approach to regulating US airwaves, threatening licence reviews in what Carr has described as an effort to “smash the facade” of the “fake news media”. 

He suggested to Fox News earlier this month that ABC’s broadcast licence could be at risk over its diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives. 

The conflict comes amid a broader debate in the US over political violence and freedom of speech. The First Amendment provides robust protections for speech, including satire, although it does not protect individuals from professional consequences.

Critics point to some of Trump’s own inflammatory language about political opponents. When former FBI director Robert Mueller died last month, Trump posted online: “I’m glad he’s dead.” He also mocked the death of Hollywood director Rob Reiner last year, attributing his killing to “Trump derangement syndrome”.

The confrontation with Disney is the first big Trump test for the group’s new chief executive, Josh D’Amaro, who took over from Bob Iger in February after a years-long succession process.

Last year, Carr hit out at Kimmel and Disney briefly took the comedian off the air — a decision that drew outcry and protests from subscribers, unions, star talent and even Republican politicians such as Senator Ted Cruz. Disney brought Kimmel back days later. 

The FCC did not immediately respond to a request for comment.