Trump suggests TV networks which criticise him could have licences taken away

US President Donald Trump has suggested that if any TV networks only give him bad press, “maybe their licence should be taken away”.

Trump was speaking after US TV host Jimmy Kimmel’s show was taken off air following comments he made about the fatal shooting of conservative activist Charlie Kirk.

The decision by US network ABC to pull Jimmy Kimmel Live! from its schedule has led to widespread criticism and claims of government censorship, including from Hollywood stars.

Trump was questioned on the matter by reporters onboard Air Force One as he left the UK following his second state visit this week.

Trump said: “I read someplace that the networks were 97% against me. I get 97% negative … and if they’re 97% against and they give me only bad publicity, press, and they’re getting a licence, I would think maybe their licence should be taken away.”

The president said of other late-night shows: “All they do is hit Trump, that’s all they do” and described them as an “arm of the Democrat Party”.

He told reporters: “If you go back and you see they haven’t had a conservative on in years, I think somebody said, when you go back take a look, all they do is hit Trump.

“They’re licensed. They’re not allowed to do that. They are an arm of the Democrat Party.”

Kimmel’s fellow late-night comedians used their own programmes to criticise ABC’s decision and show their support for the axed host.

Jon Stewart hosted a special edition of The Daily Show on Thursday, portraying what he described as a “patriotically obedient host” and satirically admonishing his studio audience for booing clips of Trump.

He closed his opening monologue by stating: “Naysayers may argue that this administration’s speech concerns are merely a cynical ploy.

“A thin gruel of a ruse. A smokescreen to obscure an unprecedented consolidation of power and unitary intimidation, principle-less and coldly antithetical to any experiment in a constitutional republic governance.

“Some people would say that. Not me though, I think it’s great.”

Late Night with Seth Meyers followed a similar tact on NBC, with the host telling his audience: “The (Trump) administration is pursuing a crackdown on free speech … completely unrelated, I just want to say before we get started here that I’ve always admired and respected Trump.

“I’ve always believed he was … a visionary, an innovator, a great president, an even better golfer. And if you’ve ever seen me say anything negative about him, that’s just AI.”

Stephen Colbert was more direct in his criticism as he hosted Thursday’s episode of The Late Show, which was preceded by a social media post from the show’s official Instagram account which stated: “The Late Show stands with Jimmy Kimmel and his staff.”

“People across the country are shocked by this blatant assault on the freedom of speech,” said Colbert, whose own show is set to end next year.

Over the summer, CBS said the show was being cancelled because of financial reasons – a decision made just after Colbert criticised a settlement between Trump and CBS’s parent company over a 60 Minutes story.

Meanwhile, The Tonight Show host Jimmy Fallon said: “To be honest with you all, I don’t know what’s going on — no-one does.

“But I do know Jimmy Kimmel, and he is a decent, funny and loving guy. And I hope he comes back.”

Former long-time late-night host David Letterman also called Kimmel’s suspension “ridiculous”.

Speaking during an appearance at The Atlantic Festival in New York on Thursday, the 78-year-old said: “I feel bad about this, because we all see where this is going, correct?

“It’s managed media. It’s no good. It’s silly. It’s ridiculous.”

Letterman also said people should not be fired just because they do not “suck up” to what he called “an authoritarian” president.

Former president Barack Obama suggested the issue was “precisely the kind of government coercion that the First Amendment was designed to prevent”.

“After years of complaining about cancel culture, the current administration has taken it to a new and dangerous level by routinely threatening regulatory action against media companies unless they muzzle or fire reporters and commentators it doesn’t like,” Obama posted on social media.

In an address to the audience during his show earlier this week, Kimmel had said the “Maga gang are desperately trying to characterise this kid who murdered Charlie Kirk as anything other than one of them”.

He also said “this is not how an adult grieves the murder of someone they call their friend” in response to a video of the US president saying he was doing “very good” after Kirk’s death.

Many famous names, including Ben Stiller and Jamie Lee Curtis, have taken to social media to voice their concerns and speak of their support of everyone’s right to free speech after the suspension.

The Screen Actors Guild–American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (Sag-Aftra) released a statement saying: “The decision to suspend airing Jimmy Kimmel Live! is the type of suppression and retaliation that endangers everyone’s freedoms.”

However, Kimmel’s comments drew the ire of Federal Communications Commission (FCC) chairman Brendan Carr, who told Fox News on Thursday the FCC was “going to continue to hold these broadcasters accountable to the public interest”.

He added: “If broadcasters don’t like that simple solution, they can turn their licence in to the FCC.”

Kirk, who was a prominent political commentator in the US and ally of the president, was shot dead at a Utah Valley University event last week.

Tyler Robinson, 22, was charged on Tuesday and could face the death penalty if convicted of killing Mr Kirk.