While accepting a Peabody Award Sunday night, Jimmy Kimmel told those in attendance that “making jokes about the president – in America – shouldn’t win you a prize.”
Kimmel’s long-running late night ABC series, “Jimmy Kimmel Live!,” was among the projects honored by this year’s Peabody jury. While the host said he had “never felt dumber” than when he found himself being honored alongside this year’s other chosen projects and artists, the Peabody jury said in its awards selection that Kimmel’s show had been chosen for its work in 2025 “embracing the responsibility of comedy to reveal truths amid political volatility.”
“We have the right, guaranteed by the Constitution, to criticize and satirize our leaders. That is a right I took for granted, for the first 57 years of my life, until last September, when the FCC delivered an unpleasant surprise,” Kimmel said Sunday night.
While accepting the award, the late night host reflected on his suspension last year, which came following intense calls from President Trump and FCC Chairman Brendan Carr that he be taken off the air over comments Kimmel made in the aftermath of the assassination of conservative political activist Charlie Kirk. Talking to those in attendance at the Peabody Awards ceremony, Kimmel said he was shocked by the unity he saw in the wake of his suspension.
“I experienced something even more surprising. I watched firsthand as millions of people, even some from across the aisle, objected. They spoke up, they marched, they canceled their subscriptions to ‘Star Wars,’ because they refused to allow our freedoms to be bulldozed like the East Wing of the White House,” Kimmel reflected. “They sent a message that we do care. And that we will stand up. And that we will not stand by when comedy and journalism and dissent are censored, regulated and criminalized.”
During his speech, Kimmel humorously recalled some of the jokes he told about President Trump last year.
“I called our President ‘Fattyshack.’ And ‘Blob the Builder.’ And ‘Lie-ger Woods.’ And the ‘Hungry Hungry Hypocrite.’ ‘Our Fondling Father.’ ‘Mar-a-Lardo.’ ‘Nelson Tandela.’ And ‘Nostra-Dumbass.’ And somehow, we got a Peabody out of it. This country really has gone to shit,” Kimmel joked.
“We thank those who supported us during last year in September. Thank you to the Peabody jurors for this adorable little trophy,” the late night host added. “And thank you to Donald Trump, our commander-in-thief, ‘Abrascam Lincoln,’ ‘Orange Julius Caesar,’ ‘Greedy McGolfy,’ ‘Dopey McGropey’ and ‘Pumpkin McPornhumper.’”
Kimmel was presented the award on stage by Ben Affleck, the latter of whom praised Kimmel for showing viewers “what speaking truth to power really means.”
“For years he’s used his show to challenge authority on a nightly basis,” Affleck said, before joking,”And by authority, I think we all know that that means. One in particular: A credit-hogging narcissist named Matt Damon!”
