Sinclair Broadcast Group Doubles Down, Still Refuses To Air ‘Jimmy Kimmel Live’—
Sinclair Broadcasting Group doubled down on Monday, saying that despite an agreement reached earlier in the day by ABC and late-night comedian Jimmy Kimmel, their ABC affiliates would not air “Jimmy Kimmel Live” when it returns to ABC on Tuesday.
Sinclair owns nearly 40 ABC affiliates across the country — including one in the nation’s capital — and while those affiliates will preempt Kimmel’s show for the time being, the broadcasting group released a statement indicating that a deal could be reached in the future.
“Beginning Tuesday night, Sinclair will be preempting Jimmy Kimmel Live! across our ABC affiliate stations and replacing it with news programming. Discussions with ABC are ongoing as we evaluate the show’s potential return,” the statement read.
Sinclair’s statement came just hours after ABC parent-company Disney announced that Kimmel’s show would return on Tuesday after several days off the air.
