Jimmy Kimmel says his lower ratings are due in part to his Donald Trump jokes.
“I have lost half of my fans — maybe more than that,” Kimmel claimed on the “Naked Lunch” podcast this week.
“10 years ago among Republicans I was the most popular talk show host,” the “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” host claimed.
Kimmel went on to say that executives at ABC “hinted” he needed to tone down his comedic takedowns of the then-presidential candidate. In response, Kimmel claims, “I just said, ‘If that’s what you want to do, I understand and I don’t begrudge you for it, but I’m not going to do that.'”
“I couldn’t live with myself [otherwise],” he explained on the pod and later said, “I love this country too. That flag doesn’t belong to them. This is ours. And when I see somebody coming in and ruining it I’m going to say something about it.”
However, it comes at a cost, as Kimmel added, “there’s a sacrifice you make when it comes to your audience and you could do pretty well if you just stayed down the middle.”
But the late night host said he hopes to still be on the air when “Trump goes to jail.”
While Kimmel’s ratings have dropped since his debut in 2003 so have all late night programs.
“No one is watching network television anymore,” Kimmel explained, admitting most viewers catch his show on the internet instead — the “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” YouTube channel boasts 18.9 million subscribers.
, Entertainment,International, ,