For the first time in its 23-year run, Jimmy Kimmel Live! has been named a Peabody Award winner.
The ABC late-night mainstay will be recognized at the 86th annual Peabody Awards, which celebrate the most compelling and impactful stories in media. This year’s 36 winners—selected unanimously by a 28-member jury from more than 1,000 entries—span a wide range of storytelling, from prestige drama to animation and experimental comedy.
Kimmel joins Adolescence (Netflix), Andor (Disney+), Heated Rivalry (HBO Max), The Pitt (HBO Max),Pluribus (Apple TV+), and Season 2 of The Rehearsal (HBO) among the organization’s eleven entertainment winners this year.
In its citation, the Peabody Awards singled out Jimmy Kimmel Live! for its 2025–26 season, during which the show was abruptly taken off the air under pressure from FCC chair Brendan Carr in the wake of Kimmel criticizing “the MAGA gang” for attempting to “score political points” off Charlie Kirk’s murder. Kimmel’s suspension—widely criticized across the ideological spectrum—sparked a public backlash centered on free speech concerns and Kimmel’s right to satirize political figures, including Donald Trump.
The show was ultimately reinstated, and Peabody praised Kimmel’s on-air return as “a master class in public apology,” noting that he addressed the controversy while continuing to assert his role as a critic of Trump and the MAGA movement.
Jimmy Kimmel Live! celebrated the win on Instagram, writing: “WE WON A PEABODY!!! Thank you @PeabodyAwards for this incredible honor. Congratulations to our staff & crew and to all of our fellow Peabody winners!!!”
The recognition places Jimmy Kimmel Live! alongside a select group of late-night programs that have previously earned Peabody honors, namely The Daily Show, The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, Late Night with David Letterman, The Colbert Report, Last Week Tonight with John Oliver, and Saturday Night Live.
The 86th annual Peabody Awards will be celebrated May 31 at the Beverly Wilshire Hotel in Beverly Hills.
