The senators question whether Nexstar and Sinclair’s business deals, which require FCC approval, influenced their decision to pull the talk show last month.

Jimmy Kimmel, the host of ABC’s “Jimmy Kimmel Live,” delivers an opening monologue at the start of his show. (Still frame via broadcast)
Four U.S. Senators have sent a letter to the top executives at Nexstar Media Group and Sinclair, Inc. with a demand for answers over their decision to pull episodes of “Jimmy Kimmel Live” from their ABC affiliates last month.

In their letter, the lawmakers note that both broadcasters have pending business deals that require the approval of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), and that their decision to pull the program in September came just a few hours after FCC Chairman Brendan Carr encouraged them to do so.

The letter was sent to Nexstar CEO Perry Sook and Sinclair CEO Chris Ripley. It was endorsed by Senators Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts, Ron Wyden of Oregon, Ed Markey of Massachusetts and Chris Van Hollen of Maryland, all Democrats. Carr is a Republican who was appointed to lead the FCC by President Donald Trump earlier this year.

The senators note that the decision to pull Kimmel’s show from around 60 ABC affiliates owned by the two companies came about two days after a monologue in which Kimmel wrongly implied that a man suspected of shooting political activist Charlie Kirk was politically aligned with Trump’s supporters.

During the same monologue, Kimmel also criticized how Trump responded to a reporter’s question about Kirk’s killing. Trump offered a brief statement, then began to ramble about ongoing construction of a ballroom at the White House, which prompted Kimmel to say that the president had the memory of “a goldfish.”

Two days after the monologue, Carr gave an interview with a conservative podcaster, during which he suggested ABC affiliates pull Kimmel’s program and threatened the network with unspecified regulatory action if they didn’t address the situation.

Nexstar and Sinclair later announced their intention to pull the show from their affiliated stations. ABC put the show on hiatus for about a week.

Both broadcasters have denied that their pending business-related transactions — which the FCC must approve before they can close — influenced their decision to pull the show. But lawmakers aren’t so sure: Citing reports from The Desk and other media outlets, the four senators questioned whether the broadcasters attempted to curry favor with Carr and the FCC in order to win regulatory approval for their business deals.

“This series of events raises serious questions about whether Nexstar and Sinclair responded to Trump officials’ warnings by removing Mr. Kimmel’s show, not only to avoid regulatory backlash from the FCC, but also to influence the Trump administration’s review of your pending deals,” the lawmakers wrote. “If you suspended a late-night comedian’s show in part to seek regulatory favors from the administration, you have not only assisted the administration in eroding First Amendment freedoms but also create the appearance of a possible quid pro quo arrangement that could implicate federal anti-corruption laws.”

The letter was sent after ABC announced it was returning Kimmel’s show to the network, but before Sinclair and Nexstar affirmed their intentions to do the same. The broadcasters ultimately decided to restore the show to their ABC affiliates about three days after it resumed taping.

The senators asked Ripley and Sook to provide information about which executives were involved in discussions to pull Kimmel’s show from their affiliated stations, and whether those executives spoke with anyone at the FCC before or after the decision.

Officials at Sinclair and Nexstar did not return requests from The Desk seeking comment about the letter or information about any answers provided.