By Haddon Libby
Last week, I attended the taping of what may be the final episode of Jimmy Kimmel Live! I was at the Tuesday 4:30 p.m. show—less than 24 hours before Disney placed the program on hiatus amid escalating protests following Nexstar Media Group and Sinclair Broadcast Group pulling the show from their affiliates.
These two companies collectively own 378 local television stations, including 28% of all NBC affiliates. They had announced their intent to pull Jimmy Kimmel Live! from their schedules in response to Kimmel’s commentary on the Kirk assassination. This move prompted FCC Chairman Brendan Carr to suggest that the agency might take action against ABC or Disney over Kimmel’s remarks.
It’s worth noting that Nexstar currently has a $6.2 billion merger with TEGNA pending FCC approval, a deal that requires a waiver of national ownership limits. Nexstar already reaches 39% of U.S. television households through its 200 stations, including 28 ABC affiliates. TEGNA owns 265 stations, with 13 ABC affiliates. If the merger proceeds, a single company would control 80% of U.S. television households and 20% of NBC affiliates—far beyond the current FCC ownership cap of 39%.
Meanwhile, Skydance Media, led by David Ellison—the 42-year-old son of Oracle founder Larry Ellison—recently acquired CBS. Many speculate that CBS’s abrupt cancellation of The Late Show with Stephen Colbert was intended to ease regulatory approval for the acquisition.
Now, Skydance appears to be eyeing Warner Bros. Discovery, which includes CNN, suggesting a further consolidation of media power.
Let’s not forget that Larry Ellison, a vocal supporter of the President, has an estimated net worth of $400 billion. In the Coachella Valley, he’s known for his ownership of the Indian Wells Tennis Garden and the luxury wellness retreat Sensei Porcupine Creek. Nationally, he’s playing an even larger role: Oracle and Ellison are reportedly involved in the forced spin-off of TikTok to a private consortium that includes Oracle, Silver Lake, and Marc Andreessen’s venture capital firm.
When the President recently stated that “Jimmy Fallon and Seth Meyers are next,” it may have been a reference to Comcast’s planned spin-off of several cable networks—including MSNBC, CNBC, E!, USA Network, and the Golf Channel. That transaction, expected to occur early next year, is still awaiting regulatory approval. Would it really be surprising if Comcast preemptively cancels its own late-night programming to help secure those approvals?
Given how Disney has already faced fierce backlash from the MAGA movement, particularly in Florida, its decision to take Kimmel off the air may have been an effort to avoid another political battle. It also mattered that station groups controlling one-third of ABC’s affiliates were threatening to drop the show. Recent ratings haven’t helped either: Kimmel draws around 1.1 million viewers, with only 20% in the key 18–49 demographic. Where the show once generated healthy profits, rising production costs now make it hard to break even.
According to staff at the show, the outdoor concert segments that used to close each episode cost about $75,000 per night. As advertisers have become reluctant to fund these performances, the musical acts are now pre-recorded instead of performed live—another cost-cutting measure.
The episode I attended featured Rob Lowe, promoting the new season of The Floor on Fox. Ironically, that show flies over 100 cast, crew, and contestants to Ireland in order to reduce production costs. It illustrates just how challenging it is to produce a show like Kimmel Live! four nights a week. Traditional TV is bleeding viewers to streaming platforms, which has depressed ad revenue and squeezed production budgets across the board.
So, it’s not surprising that corporations are prioritizing profit and regulatory goodwill over programming that barely breaks even—and sometimes causes political headaches. What’s more troubling is the growing role of a handful of billionaires, working in tandem with government actors, to silence dissent and reshape the media landscape.
Radio was supplanted by podcasts. Newspapers by digital media. And now, traditional television is being replaced by streaming. These new media platforms are where vocal opponents of censorship will likely continue to emerge and thrive.
Haddon Libby is the Founder and Chief Investment Officer at Winslow Drake Investment Management. For more information on our services, please visit www.WinslowDrake.com.
