MSNBC Team Gushes Over Jimmy Kimmel’s ‘Perfect’ Tone in Monologue

Jimmy Kimmel’s first monologue after his show returned from suspension got a warm reception on MSNBC right after it aired, drawing effusive praise from the host and panelists on Tuesday’s episode of The 11th Hour with Stephanie Ruhle.

Jimmy Kimmel Live! was indefinitely suspended by ABC after comments Kimmel made about Tyler Robinson, the 22-year-old charged with the murder of Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk.

“We hit some new lows over the weekend, with the MAGA gang desperately trying to characterize this kid who murdered Charlie Kirk as anything other than one of them, and doing everything they can to score political points from it,” said Kimmel on the Sept. 15 episode.

President Donald Trump and other Republicans lauded the suspension while Kimmel’s supporters denounced it as censorship, since it came in the aftermath of vociferous criticism from the president and comments from his Federal Communications Commission Chairman Brendan Carr that his agency “can do this the easy way or the hard way” if companies don’t “find ways to change conduct and take action.”

On Monday, Disney announced that Jimmy Kimmel Live! would be returning on Tuesday, after “thoughtful conversations with Jimmy” about comments that “were ill-timed and thus insensitive.” Nexstar and Sinclair announced they would not be airing Kimmel’s show on the dozens of local ABC affiliates that they own.

Tuesday night, Kimmel thanked his supporters and emphasized that it was “never my intention to make light of the murder of a young man,” choking up as he spoke about Kirk’s death. He was far more combative when speaking about Trump — who threatened to sue ABC in a furious Truth Social post shortly before the show aired — and FCC chairman Carr.

Stephanie Ruhle was joined by Status newsletter founder Oliver Darcy, Media Matters president Angelo Carusone, MSNBC columnist and political analyst Charlie Sykes, and MSNBC contributor and former Rep. Carlos Cubelo (R-FL).

Carusone remarked that Kimmel “didn’t double down,” which he expected, and highlighted his comments about how his show “his show is not important, but living in a country that allows shows like his to exist is important.”

This was “the catalyst for so much of the organic pushback and the consumer pushback that you saw against Disney’s suspension to pull him in the first place,” he added. “And I think that, to me, was the most significant takeaway — that’s what this is about.”

Darcy pointed out Kimmel’s praise for the conservatives who had defended him and showing they “understand that the government shouldn’t have a place in telling comedians what jokes they can make,” calling it “a very interesting tack” to be quoting Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX)

After Ruhle played the clip of Kimmel’s monologue where he choked up talking about Kirk’s murder, Curbelo said it “showed his humanity and showed his compassion,” and thought it was good that Kimmel had “offer[ed] a significant amount of regret” for his Sept. 15 comments.

“Kudos to Jimmy Kimmel,” Curbelo added, “because I think his tone was just perfect tonight, and that’s what the country needs.”

Watch the clip above via MSNBC.