Who Owns Nexstar Media Group? Here's the Scoop Behind the Company That Suspended 'Kimmel'
The company, like many major corporations, has a complex hierarchy at the top.
Published Sept. 18 2025, 2:52 p.m. ET
On Sept. 17, 2025, news broke that Jimmy Kimmel's late-night comedy show was being suspended indefinitely. The news came after Jimmy made an opening monologue comment about the death of Charlie Kirk, accusing MAGA supporters of grifting off his death.
Nexstar, which owns a number of ABC affiliates, promptly suspended Jimmy's show "indefinitely," calling his remarks "offensive and insensitive."
With Nexstar making headlines, including for its chairman's comments about Jimmy's suspension, many people are turning to the media company's motives to answer some questions. So, who exactly owns Nexstar Media Group? Here's what we know.
Who owns Nexstar Media Group?
Like with most major corporations, ownership of Nexstar Media Group is complicated. Per Nexstar's website, the company is run by a board of directors consisting of Bernadette Aulestia, Jay M. Grossman, Ellen Johnson, Thomas McMillen, Lisbeth McNabb, John R. Muse, and Tony Wells.
The Chairman of the board is Perry A. Sook.
The company itself is publicly traded, so public shareholders have a say in how the company is run. Yet as the media company's founder, Sook, seems to have retained some majority control among board members, although the exact numbers are hard to come by.
As a major media group, Nexstar owns a number of networks, including several major ABC affiliates.
It was Sook who spoke up against Jimmy Kimmel and announced plans to suspend his show indefinitely following Jimmy's comments.
Sook said the remarks were "offensive and insensitive at a critical time in our national political discourse, and we do not believe they reflect the spectrum of opinions, views, or values of the local communities in which we are located.”
Why did ABC agree to pay Trump $15 million?
But Nexstar's connection to the administration of President Donald Trump goes beyond the scuffle over Jimmy's show. Although Trump weighed in on Jimmy's suspension by crowing on Truth Social, "Great News for America: The ratings-challenged Jimmy Kimmel Show is CANCELLED," there's more to it than meets the eye.
In fact, given the history between ABC and Trump, it makes more sense than ever that they would suspend Jimmy rather than risk the President's ire once again.
In December 2024, ABC settled out of court with Trump, agreeing to donate $15 million to his presidential library fund.
The settlement came from a defamation case against the network, after news anchor George Stephanopoulos said that Trump had been found civilly liable for raping writer E. Jean Carroll.
In addition to the donation, they covered Trump's legal costs and issued a retraction on their website.
With Colbert's show getting the axe after running afoul of Trump and ABC already on the President's list of networks to dislike, their proactive move against Jimmy was likely a desperate grasp for safety amid a turbulent era for free speech and media expression.
Nexstar may have hoped that taking action against Jimmy would soften the blow and prevent the President's considerable influence in entertainment from coming to bear against them. With Trump's congratulation of ABC on Truth Social, the bid may have worked.