America's late-night TV hosts have rallied behind fellow comedian Jimmy Kimmel after he was suspended by ABC in a row over comments he made about the killing of Charlie Kirk.
Stephen Colbert began his show by saying we are all Jimmy Kimmel, and said the star's removal was a blatant assault on freedom of speech.
Seth Meyers declared it was a privilege and honour to call Jimmy Kimmel my friend, while Jon Stewart and Jimmy Fallon tackled the free speech issue by doing satirical sketches in which they were apparently forced to praise Donald Trump.
Their broadcasts came shortly after the US president said the main networks were overwhelmingly negative about him and could have their licences taken away.
For years, Trump has focused on those in the media whom he views as his opponents.
Is Kimmel's suspension an attack on free speech? A sign of another media company bowing to Trump's assault? Or a long overdue reckoning? It depends on whose side you are on.
This latest decision has sent a chill through liberal America - and encouraged the president's supporters who have long railed against the late-night talk show hosts who criticise him.
The row started after Kimmel said in his monologue on Monday that the Maga gang were desperately trying to characterise this kid who murdered Charlie Kirk as anything other than one of them and trying to score political points from it.
He also likened Trump's reaction to the conservative political activist's death to how a four-year-old mourns a goldfish.
Brendan Carr, the chairman of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), which regulates network TV, called those comments sick. Carr has threatened to take action because Kimmel appeared to directly mislead the American public.
Conservative critics say Kimmel was pushing a false narrative by suggesting Kirk's suspected killer was a Make America Great Again Republican.
On CBS, The Late Show presenter Colbert said: To Jimmy, I say I stand with you and your staff 100%.
This is a pivotal moment in our democracy and we must all stand up for freedom of expression, Meyers stated during his show.
As Trump once again decried the late-night shows for their negative portrayal of him, the challenges surrounding media freedoms in this politically charged environment have become more pronounced.
