By Tiffany Williams –
New York City Democratic mayoral nominee Zohran Mamdani said Monday he’ll reschedule a local ABC town hall after the network’s about-face on Jimmy Kimmel — a week after blasting Disney for what he called “cowardice” in yanking the late-night host off the air under pressure from the Trump administration.
Mamdani, who had pulled out of the event in protest, quickly claimed victory after ABC announced Kimmel would be back on Tuesday. “Last week, Disney/ABC caved to Trump administration pressure. Millions of Americans helped them find their backbone,” Mamdani crowed on social media. “Whether you watch Jimmy Kimmel or not, today’s decision is a victory for free speech.”
Disney stayed mum when asked for comment but issued a statement insisting it reached the decision “after thoughtful conversations with Jimmy.”
On the stump earlier in the day, Mamdani railed against what he branded government censorship. “It is not the government’s job to bully talk show hosts off the air. It is not the government’s job to tell us what we can and cannot talk about,” he told supporters on Roosevelt Island. He warned that the dust-up showed the First Amendment “is no longer a right that can be counted on.”
Mamdani didn’t stop at Trump. He torched his two general election rivals, former Gov. Andrew Cuomo and Mayor Eric Adams, calling them cowards for failing to stand up to corporate and political pressure. “We cannot understand this moment of authoritarianism as solely coming from the White House,” Mamdani sneered. “It is also characterized by the cowardice of those in response to it… typified by the parent company of ABC, or by so-called leaders like Andrew Cuomo and Eric Adams.”
The firebrand progressive originally ditched the town hall “in response to the corporate leaders who will put their bottom line ahead of their responsibility in upholding the freedom of the press.”
That posture drew a sharp slap from the White House. Spokesperson Abigail Jackson mocked Mamdani as “the Little Communist” and said he was “too scared to defend his absurd policy positions on live TV.”
Cuomo’s camp piled on too. Spokesman Rich Azzopardi said ABC’s suspension of Kimmel “was a big mistake” but blasted Mamdani for ducking reporters. “Refusing to talk to local reporters because of the actions of their parent company shouldn’t pass anyone’s smell test,” Azzopardi said, accusing Mamdani of “running from reporters” since his upset primary win.
Adams’ campaign stayed silent.
ABC initially suspended Kimmel “indefinitely” after the comedian torched conservative activist Charlie Kirk, whose accused killer’s motives became a political football. FCC Chair Brendan Carr threatened “action” against Disney and ABC, while Nexstar Media announced it would yank Kimmel’s show from its affiliates while waiting for FCC approval of its $6.2 billion Tegna deal.
The suspension triggered outrage from Democrats and free speech advocates who accused the administration of punishing Kimmel for telling jokes they didn’t like.
Mamdani stunned the political world in June when he toppled Cuomo in the Democratic primary. Cuomo is still running as an independent, alongside Adams — leaving New Yorkers facing a three-way brawl in November.