High-profile defense attorney Alan Jackson said he would choose to represent ABC and Nexstar Media Group over Jimmy Kimmel if the late-night host’s suspension ever turned into a courtroom battle.
Jackson, who recently helped secure Karen Read’s acquittal in the death of her Boston police officer boyfriend, joined Billy Bush on “Hot Mics with Billy Bush,” where he was asked who he’d prefer to represent following the controversy over “Jimmy Kimmel Live!”
“ABC and Nexstar, without a question,” Jackson said. “… I like taking on a challenge, and I love the idea of private companies doing what private companies are allowed to do. You get to hire and fire people. That’s just the bottom line.”
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The Walt Disney Company announced this week that “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” would return to ABC after a brief suspension. Nexstar Media Group and Sinclair Broadcast Group, however, said they would continue to preempt the program.
ABC had originally suspended the late-night show indefinitely following Kimmel’s remarks about Charlie Kirk’s death and the Trump administration’s response to it.
Bush pressed Jackson on whether the timing of the show’s suspension appeared “a little fishy.” However, Jackson pushed back, arguing that ABC acted within its rights.
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“Are they a private company? Did they take offense to what he said? Did they think that it fit the rubric of what their platform is and what it stands for? No, they didn’t,” Jackson said. “So they’re allowed to fire and hire who they want to. It’s still a free country. It’s still a private organization.”
He added, “Kimmel has a right to stand up and say what he wants to say. People say, ‘Well, this is an attack on free speech.’ Nobody’s putting Kimmel in jail. Nobody’s put handcuffs on Kimmel for what he’s said. This isn’t some country where you can’t say what you want to say. He can say what wants to, but you got to pay the price.… You got to pay the piper.”
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On Wednesday, several investors in Walt Disney asked the media giant to share documents about its decision to suspend Kimmel’s show last week for inspection.
In a letter to the company, lawyers for the American Federation of Teachers, U.S. labor federation AFL-CIO and Reporters Without Borders requested Disney turn over records related to Kimmel’s suspension.
With Jackson representing her, a jury in Karen Read’s retrial acquitted her in June of second-degree murder in the 2022 death of Boston police officer John O’Keefe, but found her guilty of driving under the influence. For that, she was sentenced to one year of probation and mandatory classes, which is a standard sentence for a first-time offender.
Jackson did not immediately respond to FOX Business’ request for comment.
Reuters contributed to this report.
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