Hour 1 - You Are a Gift

Buck Sexton dedicated the majority of the hour discussing the indefinite suspension of late-night host Jimmy Kimmel by ABC/Disney. He argued that this was a justified business decision based on Kimmel's poor performance and offensive comments, rather than an issue of free speech. Sexton framed the event as a market correction and a sign that corporations were no longer willing to antagonize conservative audiences. He contrasted the left's current defense of Kimmel with their past calls for censoring conservatives, highlighting what he saw as hypocrisy. He accused the left, including figures like Stephen Colbert and David Letterman, of hypocrisy for defending Kimmel on free speech grounds after previously supporting the "cancellation" of conservatives. Buck argued that late-night comedy had been in decline for years because hosts like Kimmel and Colbert had betrayed their craft by becoming partisan political commentators instead of entertainers who sought to unite audiences with laughter. "They've betrayed their craft. They have betrayed their craft of comedy... I cannot believe how narcissistic and just nasty people like Colbert and Kimmel are because, remember, there are people that would've tuned into those shows who just wanted some lightness and laughter at the end of their day, and they get mocked." He argued that the political left was hypocritical for defending Kimmel after years of advocating for the de-platforming and censorship of conservatives, citing past comments from media figures like Brian Stelter. A third argument was that late-night comedy had deteriorated into partisan activism, alienating audiences and leading to its decline. He contrasted hosts like Kimmel and Colbert with the success of Greg Gutfeld's show, which he claimed served its audience well. Buck cited a Wall Street Journal report detailing that Disney executives acted after FCC Chairman Brendan Carr's comments led to pressure from major station owners like Sinclair and Nexstar. He played audio clips of Stephen Colbert and David Letterman defending Kimmel to illustrate what he described as the left-wing media establishment closing ranks. He used a 2021 audio clip of former CNN host Brian Stelter arguing for "reducing a liar's reach" to highlight the left's contradictory stance on "cancel culture" and freedom of reach. He included calls from listeners who agreed that late-night hosts like Johnny Carson and Jay Leno were successful because they avoided overt partisanship, unlike Kimmel.