NRB Files FCC Complaint Over Jimmy Kimmel Live! Monologue
(WASHINGTON, D.C.) – NRB has requested that the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) investigate ABC Television following remarks aired during the April 23, 2026 national broadcast of Jimmy Kimmel Live! that, when viewed in context, raise serious concerns about the normalization and potential incitement of political violence.
The broadcast, presented as a parody of the upcoming White House Correspondents’ Dinner, included comments by host Jimmy Kimmel regarding First Lady Melania Trump. During his monologue, Kimmel stated, “Our first lady, Melania, is here. Look at Melania, so beautiful. Mrs. Trump, you have the glow of an expectant widow.”
The White House Correspondents’ Dinner took place two days later, on April 25, 2026. That evening, there was an attempted attack on the life of the President of the United States and other federal officials. This incident represents the third attempted attack on the President’s life in the current period and follows a series of other violent acts, including high‑profile political assassinations and multiple school shootings across the country.
NRB asserts that, in this broader context of escalating violence, rhetoric that appears to trivialize or foreshadow harm against political leaders takes on heightened significance. Incitement to kill or inflict bodily harm on the President of the United States is a serious federal felony under 18 U.S.C. § 2385.
Michael Farris, NRB General Counsel, explained:
“While the FCC is bound by the First Amendment of the Constitution and federal law (47 U.S.C. § 326) to respect freedom of speech, Supreme Court precedent makes clear that speech which incites violence is not protected. Under Brandenburg v. Ohio (1969), speech loses constitutional protection when it encourages lawless action, is intended to produce such action, and is likely to result in imminent harm.”
NRB emphasizes that its request for FCC review is not rooted solely in legal analysis, but in deep concern over the moral and cultural conditions that increasingly give rise to acts of political and social violence. As society becomes more detached from shared moral foundations and a transcendent sense of right and wrong, violent extremism, often carried out by so‑called “lone actors,” becomes more likely.
History shows that such individuals rarely act in isolation. They are influenced over time by a persistent drumbeat of rhetoric that dehumanizes opponents, glorifies ideological struggle, and frames violence as a legitimate or even necessary response. When political causes are elevated above the inherent value of human life, whether the lives of others or one’s own, the threshold for violence is lowered.
The following quote is attributable to NRB President & CEO Troy A. Miller:
“We should be relieved that lives were spared Saturday evening; but relief can’t become complacency. We’re seeing a pattern of violence in this country that didn’t appear overnight. When influential voices joke about death or treat political opponents as disposable, it contributes to a culture where violence feels thinkable to the already unstable. National platforms carry real weight, and with that comes responsibility. That’s why this warranted action.”
Although the FCC often defers incitement determinations to local authorities, NRB believes this case fits a recognized exception identified in Greater Boston Radio, Inc. (2004), given the national scope of the broadcast that reaches millions of viewers.
NRB is requesting that the FCC conduct a full and impartial investigation to determine whether federal law or Commission precedent was violated.
Find Free Christian Streaming Here
