Was 'Jimmy Kimmel Live' a moneymaker for ABC? The decline of late-night points to no.

ABC's move to suspend Jimmy Kimmel's show following his comments on the 
assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk comes amid a decline 
in late-night TV viewership and advertising revenue.

Disney-owned ABC announced the move on Wednesday after a pair of prominent 
media groups that own ABC affiliates, Nexstar and Sinclair, announced they 
would preempt "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" indefinitely following his comments. 
It's unclear when Kimmel's show will return to the airwaves.

Sources confirmed to FOX Business that CEO Bob Iger was involved in 
removing Kimmel from the air. 

ABC's suspension of Kimmel's show comes in the wake of the recent decision 
by Paramount, the parent company of CBS, to end "The Late Show with 
Stephen Colbert" after its current season concludes. 

Though the broadcast networks don't disclose specific data about the 
profitability or expenses of their respective late-night programs, Puck 
reported that CBS insiders said Colbert's show was losing upwards of $40 
million a year. Data showing declines in viewership as well as ad revenue 
suggests late-night TV financial woes may be felt at other networks.

LateNighter reported that "Jimmy Kimmel Live," as well as CBS's "The Late 
Show" and NBC's "The Tonight Show with Seth Meyers" have seen viewership 
declines of 70% to 80% since 2015 – the year Kimmel's show moved to 11:35 
p.m.

Nielsen data cited in the outlet's report showed "Jimmy Kimmel Live's" 
share of the key demographic of 18 to 49-year-olds declined from 0.68 in 
2013-14 to 0.16 in 2024-25.

By comparison, The Late Show's share of the 18-49 demographic was 0.18 in 
2024-25, while "The Tonight Show's" was 0.13 in that period.

https://www.foxbusiness.com/markets/jimmy-kimmel-live-moneymaker-abc-
decline-late-night-points-no