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Upon returning to the airwaves, one of the first things Jimmy Kimmel did was thank his fellow Late-Night hosts, past and present, in the US and abroad. Kimmel, who was obviously moved by the entire groundswell of support, clearly understood the value of solidarity from his peers, especially those peers currently hosting shows on TV. Each of those men could have stayed silent, but chose instead to publicly stand with their friend and colleague.
Earlier this week, I wrote some quick takeaways on what we could learn from this win. A few longtime readers noticed that I left one I usually emphasize off: solidarity.
That was intentional.
I wanted to focus my initial post on how the actions of everyday Americans, rather than celebrities, had brought this victory about, and encourage us to keep putting pressure on Sinclair and Nexstar. (Good work there, y’all, because on Friday, both corporations caved and are putting Kimmel back on their stations.) But I also held off because I think the lesson on solidarity was important enough to merit its own article.
Let’s acknowledge that collectively, late-night hosts have a significant amount of power and influence, and less to lose than most Americans. At this point, all of these guys can surely afford a job loss, and while the threat of losing their platform is real, with the Internet, it’s highly unlikely any of them would be silenced or unable to monetize their talents in other ways. As I mentioned when discussing Stephen Colbert’s cancellation, a non-network show or podcast might honestly be a better showcase for Colbert’s talent and star power. You could argue that collectively, this group doesn’t actually have as much to lose by speaking out.
But as we’ve seen all year, institutions and elites have been capitulating and collaborating with the Trump Regime left and right. As Adam Serwer wrote in the Atlantic this week:
Kimmel’s refusal to capitulate stands out because so many other well-situated people—those with the resources, platform, and power to stand up to the president, including, initially, the leaders of ABC—have surrendered, withdrawn, or become Trump sycophants themselves. One by one, American leaders supposedly committed to principles of free speech, due process, democracy, and equality have abandoned those ideals when menaced by the Trump administration. These cascading acts of cowardice from the people best positioned to resist Trump’s authoritarian power grabs have made Trump seem exponentially more powerful than he actually is, sapping strength from others who might have discovered the courage to stand up. Defending democracy requires a collective refusal to acquiesce to lawless behavior from many different sectors of society. All of these powerful people trying to save their own skin have effectively multiplied Trump’s attacks on constitutional government, by enhancing a false sense of inevitability and invincibility.
Additionally, the capitulators and collaborators make this fight so much harder. It’s not enough to pressure the Trump Regime. We also have to pressure the various pillars upholding it, institutions and people who should know better. And we have to pressure them so much that ignoring us scares them more than standing up to the Regime. That’s an incredibly high bar to clear, and it’s exhausting!
That’s why I found the solidarity so refreshing. Of course, it started with Colbert, and Jimmy Kimmel came out particularly strong, campaigning to award Colbert’s show an Emmy over his own. Collectively, late-night hosts have used their platforms, including valuable network airtime, to stand up first for Colbert and then Kimmel. Trump has made it clear that he wants them all off the air, but instead of cowering (as you could argue the corporations they work for have mostly done), they’ve stuck together.
Solidarity is the right thing to do, but it’s also the only practical way forward, a lesson Donald Trump seems happy to illustrate for us as he threatened to sue ABC over Kimmel’s return. “Last time I went after them, they gave me $16 million. This one sounds even more lucrative.” Trump said on TruthSocial.
It doesn’t get any clearer than that. You might not win every time you stand up to Trump, but you’ll always lose when you stand down. Because the only lesson Trump learned is that you’ll fold.
This is especially important when we think about the upcoming attacks on progressive groups and infrastructure that the Trump Regime unveiled in a memo this week. I know that decision makers and funders count themselves among my readers, and I’m thinking specifically about you and the pressure you’re currently facing. I know, from my day job, the anxiety you’re feeling and the preparations you’re making as you wait for executive orders to come down.
The way forward is to stand in solidarity with your staff and supporters, and with organizations that are being targeted. By now, we’ve seen this enough times to know how it plays out. You won’t win every fight, but you will rack up some wins… especially since the Trump Regime often folds when directly challenged. You’ll slow down the authoritarian creep and inspire others to link arms and stand with you.
Plus, solidarity is good for business. Trump is a deeply unpopular president, currently underwater on all key issues, who is both vulnerable and desperate for us not to realize it. Meanwhile, despite not being shown in multiple major media markets thanks to Sinclair and Nextstar, Kimmel’s ratings and YouTube numbers were sky-high the night of his return, and still up through the rest of the week. I suspect his fellow hosts saw bumps at least in their YouTube view counts as well. The grassroots are mad as hell and ready to punish institutions that fail America, but they’re also primed to mobilize, donate, and support institutions that do the right thing.
ICYMI
The Story of DOGE, as Told by Federal Workers (Wired) Your must-read for the week. Wired produces a haunting narrative led by the voices of civil servants who were caught up in Elon Musk’s DOGE tornado. It’s all too familiar to those of us who followed Musk’s takeover and destruction of Twitter.
No, Supporting Trans Rights Doesn’t Cost Elections (The Advocate) From my good friend, Rebecca Buckwalter-Poza. Chock full of valuable data and hard numbers.
Anti-Vax Groups Struggle to Explain How Tylenol Fits in With Their Whole Thing (Mother Jones) Trump’s Tylenol presser was a dud with nearly everyone, including some prominent anti-vaxxers.
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Let’s end with some NSFW solidarity. Jon Stewart’s response to the cancellation of his friend Stephen Colbert’s show — gospel choir edition. Enjoy and I’ll see you next Sunday.
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Yes to this! The reality is... people have the power, they are the majority. They create demand, markets, and elections... the issue is being so divided, that there isn't enough power
Yes, yes -- and yes, but . . . Those of us who've been around awhile will suspect that once we get through this, the upper-level Democrats -- especially the white ones -- will sell us down the river again. The so-called moderates will go back to marginalizing anyone who talks about economic justice as "left" and even "far left." Which is suspiciously like what Trump keeps doing with his screeching about "radical left Democrats." This is not a coincidence.
As long as Citizens United stands, and the far-right SCOTUS majority remains in place, we're in very big trouble.
From its onset I've had serious reservations about the NO KINGS framing. Its #1 plus is that it's short, catchy, and fits on a sign. Its #1 negative is that the U.S. isn't a monarchy, hereditary or otherwise, so it ignores what we're actually up against. OTOH, the grievances laid out in the Declaration of Independence are remarkably similar to we're up against today, so OK. But let's keep focused on what comes next as well as what's happening now.