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Obama slams Trump's attack on free speech in wake of Kimmel suspension
Obama slams Trump's attack on free speech in wake of Kimmel suspension - Daily KosFormer President Barack Obama on Thursday criticized media companies for buckling under the Trump administration’s censorship demands. His comments follow the decision by Disney-owned ABC to sideline late-night host Jimmy Kimmel for a joke about... Donald Trump’s response to the death of bigoted activist Charlie Kirk.
“After years of complaining about cancel culture, the current administration has taken it to a new and dangerous level by routinely threatening regulatory action against media companies unless they muzzle or fire reporters and commentators it doesn’t like,” Obama wrote on Bluesky Thursday.
Referring specifically to Kimmel’s indefinite suspension, Obama added, “This is precisely the kind of government coercion that the First Amendment was designed to prevent — and media companies need to start standing up rather than capitulating to it.”
“After years of complaining about cancel culture, the current administration has taken it to a new and dangerous level by routinely threatening regulatory action against media companies unless they muzzle or fire reporters and commentators it doesn’t like,” Obama wrote on Bluesky Thursday.
Referring specifically to Kimmel’s indefinite suspension, Obama added, “This is precisely the kind of government coercion that the First Amendment was designed to prevent — and media companies need to start standing up rather than capitulating to it.”