Jimmy Kimmel made a surprising request during a recent Disney event. The late-night TV host used his platform to encourage support for a show on rival network CBS.
There is plenty of competition in late-night TV thanks to the number of shows vying for viewership and advertisers. And while the hosts themselves get along fine, it's still in the networks' best interest to bring in as many viewers as possible in order to secure ad revenue.
That was the goal of Disney's annual upfronts held earlier this year. Jimmy Kimmel delivered a monologue that mostly mocked the competition and hyped up the content offerings from ABC, Disney, and Hulu.
But Kimmel broke protocol at the end of his bit by make a sincere plea on behalf of a CBS show. “I know it’s not part of our multi-platform, but support 60 Minutes," Kimmel said. "They deserve it. You have the power because you have the money. Support journalism. It’s important, and it doesn’t work without you,”
Kimmel's request came as 60 Minutes faces a lawsuit brought on by President Donald Trump. The president is suing the news program for $20 billion over claims it deceitfully edited an interview with then-Vice President Kamala Harris. According to TheWrap, Kimmel's statements were part of his prepared speech and not an ad-lib (like his Trump joke at the Oscars).
It's unsurprising Kimmel would use his stage to push back against President Trump. But it's extremely out of the norm for one network's star to push advertisers toward a competitor. Plus, ABC has its own news programs that didn't get the same call to action from Kimmel.
Instead, Kimmel made a plea for what he sees as the greater good. Advertisers pumping more money into CBS would help the network and, by extension, Kimmel's "rival," Stephen Colbert. And if it results in another loss for Donald Trump, Kimmel will gladly take it.