Topline
Jimmy Kimmel’s late-night show was pulled earlier this week by Nexstar Media, the largest television station owner and operator in the U.S., founded by Perry Sook, who has remained largely out of the spotlight over nearly four decades as chairman of the local media giant.
Nexstar executives announced the late-night show would be pulled after Kimmel’s “offensive and insensitive” comments about Charlie Kirk.
Associated Press
Key Facts
Sook, an alumnus of Ohio University in 1980, founded Nexstar in 1996 after he purchased Scranton, Pennsylvania, broadcaster WYOU, in a deal ranging between $20 million and $28 million.
Nexstar expanded over the next several years, acquiring broadcasters across small- and mid-market stations in the Northeast and Midwest, before the company went public on the Nasdaq in 2003 after acquiring Quorum Broadcasting, which owned about 10 stations in New York, Louisiana and Texas, among other states.
The media firm continued expanding until 2019, when Nexstar acquired Tribune Media in a deal valued at $4.1 billion, increasing its portfolio to more than 200 broadcast stations across 116 markets.
What Media Outlets Does Nexstar Own?
Nexstar’s portfolio includes network affiliates across ABC, CBS, NBC, Fox, and while operating The CW Network, which Nexstar in 2022 acquired a 75% stake in, as well as NewsNation and The Hill. The media firm owns large-market stations in New York (WPIX), Los Angeles (KTLA), Chicago (WGN-TV) and Philadelphia (WPHL-TV) in addition to several smaller broadcasters.
What Do We Know About Perry Snook’s Political Affiliations?
Since 1998, Sook has donated to several election campaigns across the aisle, including donations in support of Sens. Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., John Cornyn, R-Texas, Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., Ted Cruz, R-Texas, and former Rep. Liz Cheney, R-Wyo., among others, in addition to multiple donations to the National Association of Broadcasters. Sook has made appeals to President Donald Trump since Trump was elected in November 2024, telling investors in an earnings call shortly after Election Day he hoped a second Trump administration would help Nexstar expand further, adding he believed Nexstar would help eliminate “the level of activist journalism out there.” In a statement announcing Nexstar’s $6.1 billion purchase of Tegna, Sook lauded “initiatives being pursued by the Trump administration [which] offer local broadcasters the opportunity to expand reach, level the playing field and compete more effectively” with larger media companies.
Big Number
$35 million. That’s roughly how much Sook was compensated as Nexstar’s chief executive in 2024, according to recent regulatory filings.
Why Did Nexstar Pull Jimmy Kimmel?
Andrew Alford, president of Nexstar’s broadcasting, said Wednesday owned and partnered television stations affiliated with ABC would preempt “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” for the “foreseeable future.” Alford cited Kimmel’s “offensive and insensitive” comments about conservative activist Charlie Kirk, who was fatally shot last week during a speaking event, which came “at a critical time in our national political discourse.” On Thursday, FCC Chairman Brendan Carr said Kimmel tried to “directly mislead the American people about a significant fact” about “probably one of the most significant political events we’ve had in a long time.” During the late-night show on Monday, Kimmel said in his monologue: “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.” Videos of Kimmel’s monologues that covered the Kirk shooting are still available on YouTube.
Further Reading
Source: https://www.forbes.com/sites/tylerroush/2025/09/19/what-to-know-about-nexstar-and-founder-perry-sook-after-local-media-giant-pulls-kimmel-show/
