NEWSJimmy Kimmel Claims FCC 'Threatened' ABC, Forcing Him to Move Texas Senate Candidate Interview to YouTube
Jimmy Kimmel moved his planned James Talarico interview from ABC to YouTube.
Sept. 12 2026, Published 1:52 p.m. ET
Jimmy Kimmel says his planned interview with Democratic U.S. Senate candidate James Talarico of Texas will not air on ABC after all.
During the September 9 episode of Jimmy Kimmel Live!, the host told viewers that the interview, scheduled for September 10, would instead be posted in full on the show’s YouTube channel.
James Talarico’s interview move came as he faced Republican rival Ken Paxton in the Texas Senate race.
Kimmel framed the move as a response to ABC’s ongoing fight with the Federal Communications Commission and concerns for local affiliates, especially in Texas.
The decision comes as Talarico runs against Republican Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton in the U.S. Senate race.
‘Unusual Circumstances’
Jimmy Kimmel cited pressure surrounding ABC’s ongoing fight with the Federal Communications Commission.
“For a lot of years, for the whole 20-plus years of our show, in fact, I’ve been interviewing Americans who are running for office with no problem at all,” Kimmel said.
Kimmel noted that he had interviewed candidates ranging from Hillary Clinton to Ted Cruz to now-President Donald Trump.
“At that time, when he was the one sitting next to me, he seemed to have no problem with the idea of talk show hosts interviewing candidates,” Kimmel said of Trump’s past appearances.
“But for some reason, and I can’t seem to figure out what that reason is, something has changed,” he joked.
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ABC, the FCC and YouTube
The late-night host said the interview would stream in full on the show’s YouTube channel.
“Now that [Trump is] president, his FCC has threatened me, threatened our show, threatened our network, ABC, our affiliates [and] our local stations based on simple traditional editorial decisions, guest bookings, it would seem, they don’t like,” Kimmel said.
The FCC clash follows Kimmel’s September 2025 suspension after Chair Brendan Carr objected to comments Kimmel made about the reaction to conservative commentator Charlie Kirk’s killing. ABC was later criticized over The View as well, and the network has sued the FCC over efforts to challenge its broadcast licenses and content.
Kimmel said the Talarico move was made “out of consideration for our local stations, especially our ABC affiliates in Texas who would have to deal with this nonsense.”
Another Late-Night Talarico Fight
Jimmy Kimmel’s decision echoed Stephen Colbert’s earlier move to stream a James Talarico interview online.
This is not the first time Talarico has been moved from broadcast to YouTube. Stephen Colbert previously said CBS lawyers blocked him from interviewing Talarico on The Late Show broadcast, citing FCC guidance for political candidates on talk shows.
That interview later ran on YouTube, where it has been viewed 9.5 million times.
“If you want to learn about a candidate for the Senate tomorrow,” Kimmel said, “you will have to go to the Jimmy Kimmel Live! YouTube channel, where you will see it in its entirety.”
