Comedian David Letterman at The Atlantic Festival on September 18, 2025

Legendary comedian David Letterman issued scathing criticism for ABC's decision Wednesday night to take late-night host Jimmy Kimmel's show off the air during an appearance at The Atlantic Festival.

While speaking to Atlantic editor Jeffrey Goldberg, Letterman had sharp words for Kimmel's employer, calling out what he viewed as a craven and cowardly decision to silence his fellow comic. He told Goldberg that when he was CBS' late night host, he never had to worry about being "squeezed by anyone from any governmental agency, let alone the dreaded FCC."

"We all see where this is going, correct? It's managed media," Letterman said.

"You can’t go around firing somebody because you’re fearful or trying to suck up to an authoritarian — a criminal administration — in the Oval Office," he continued. "That’s just not how this works."

"The institution of the president of the United States ought to be bigger than a guy doing a talk show," he added.

Letterman's remarks came a day after Federal Communications Commission chairman Brendan Carr threatened to revoke the broadcast licenses of local ABC affiliates who continued to air Kimmel's show. Media conglomerate Nexstar first announced it was preempting Kimmel's show by broadcasting other content, which was almost immediately followed by ABC announcing Kimmel's suspension.

Carr issued the threat in an interview with far-right podcaster Benny Johnson, which came after Kimmel's Monday night monologue in which the late-night host chastised the Trump administration for trying to "score political points" off of Charlie Kirk's death last week. Kimmel asserted that "the MAGA gang" was doing everything it could to prove that Kirk's alleged killer wasn't "one of them."