WASHINGTON—NRB has filed a complaint with the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) requesting that the regulator investigate ABC Television regarding controversial remarks made on the April 23, 2026 national broadcast of “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” that the NRB said, “raise serious concerns about the normalization and potential incitement of political violence.”
The broadcast was presented as a parody of the upcoming White House Correspondents’ Dinner. The actual dinner, which occurred two days later, was interrupted when a gunman attempted to attack President Trump and other government officials.
During the parody, Kimmel quipped, “our first lady, Melania, is here. Look at Melania, so beautiful. Mrs. Trump, you have the glow of an expectant widow.”
In the complaint the NRB noted that the 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 respectfully suggests that Mr. Kimmel’s statement could well be interpreted as an instigation of violence against the life of the President of the United States,” the FCC filing said. “Incitements to kill or inflict bodily harm on the President of the United States are serious felonies.”
Michael Farris, NRB general counsel, issued a separate statement saying that “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 speech loses constitutional protection when it encourages lawless action, is intended to produce such action, and is likely to result in imminent harm.”
The complaint asks the FCC to “investigate and sanction, as warranted by evidence discovered thereby, ABC Television” but does not cite any specific rules that the broadcast may have violated.
Nor does it say whether the FCC should use the incident to investigate Disney’s TV station licenses or if the regulator should impose fines for the content of the program. In addition, it did not supply any specific link between Kimmel's comments and the opinions, statements or motivation of the man who attacked the Correspondents' Dinner.
The complaint comes at a time when the FCC is already investigating The Walt Disney company for DEI practices. On April 27, the regulator significantly escalated that investigation by issuing an order for Disney to file for an early renewal of the ABC-owned TV station licenses.
Historically, it is unusual for the FCC to open up an early renewal process and TV Tech is unaware of it doing so in the case of a network-owned station.
In a statement, NRB president and CEO Troy A. Miller said “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.”
