Jimmy Kimmel’s suspension shows how fragile free speech becomes when corporations bow to political pressure. ABC made its move while angling for FCC approval of a merger, proof that independence was treated as expendable. David Pepper calls it “especially awful” because institutions with the most leverage against Trumpism are caving first. The result is a chilling precedent: Those with power to resist are handing over their voices instead.
Kimmel’s response to Charlie Kirk’s murder was not controversial but compassionate. He asked, “Can we just for one day agree that it is horrible and monstrous to shoot another human?” — a sentiment that should have been unifying. Days later, he was punished for airing a clip that showed Trump as ridiculous in his own words. Authoritarians fear mockery more than outrage, because satire reveals weakness they cannot admit exists.
Lisa Senecal cuts to the heart of why that mockery matters. Political satire is “terrifying to strongmen,” she argues, because it punctures the myth of invincibility. That’s why Trump’s lack of empathy after Kirk’s death felt so jarring — satire highlighted what leadership tried to obscure. When humor exposes arrogance and cruelty, it threatens the very performance authoritarianism depends on.
The parallels to authoritarian regimes are impossible to ignore. Pepper recalls Soviet leaders shielded by public rituals of loyalty, even as citizens mocked them in private, warning, “Let’s not let ourselves get anywhere closer to that.” Trump’s cabinet meetings already echo that hollow theater with their preambles of praise. Silencing comedians is an effort to extend that false reality to everyone else, but the antidote is simple: speak out, organize locally, and refuse the silence they’re trying to impose.
Tune in for this week’s conversation with Lisa Senecal and David Pepper and let us know what you think in the comments!
LINCOLN SQUARE WILL NOT BE SILENCED
Free speech in America is under attack, with constitutional guarantees being eroded by the very people sworn to uphold them.
