At some point in the past few days, Jimmy Kimmel ceased to (just) be Jimmy Kimmel.

That is to say: After ABC suspended his series last Wednesday , he transformed in the public imagination from Jimmy Kimmel the genial talk-show host, a comedian so broadly unobjectionable that he’s hosted the Oscars four times, to Jimmy Kimmel the symbol, a high-profile victim of creeping American authoritarianism and therefore a hero of free speech to rally behind.

Upon his return Tuesday night, then, he had a tough line to walk, as Jimmy Kimmel Live ! itself acknowledged in an opening montage of newscasters talking about what a “huge moment in American history” his monologue would be. Still, even with all that heated anticipation, it’s hard to imagine anyone would have blamed him if he’d tried to

See Full Page