*

Sinclair ABC stations represent about 14% of US households

*

Markets to which Kimmel's show will resume broadcasts

include

Washington, Seattle, St. Louis, New Orleans and Nashville

*

Sinclair wants Disney ( DIS ) and ABC to consider ombudsman to

handle

programming complaints

*

Critics said government pressure was a violation of First

Amendment free speech protections

(Adds Nexstar statement, background, more markets in which show

is returning in paragraphs 4, 7-8, 10-12)

By David Shepardson

Sept 26 (Reuters) - Two major broadcast owners said on

Friday they will end preemption of "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" and the

show will return in the evening on their 70 ABC-affiliated

stations covering nearly a quarter of U.S. households.

Sinclair Broadcast Group and Nexstar Media Group ( NXST )

previously had declined to resume airing the show this

week after Disney ( DIS ) lifted a nearly week-long suspension.

Both had faced pressure from some lawmakers over the

decision to not air the program. Sinclair's ABC stations

represent about 14% of U.S. households and include the markets

Washington, D.C.; Seattle; Little Rock, Arkansas; Portland,

Oregon; St. Louis; Rochester, New York; and Lincoln, Nebraska.

Nexstar Media Group ( NXST ) had opted to keep Kimmel off

the air on its 32 owned-and-operated ABC stations, which account

for about 9% of U.S. households and include New Orleans;

Nashville; Richmond, Virginia; and Harrisburg, Pennsylvania.

Nexstar needs FCC approval for a $6.2 billion merger with Tegna ( TGNA )

.

PRESSURE FROM ALL CORNERS

ABC suspended Kimmel's show on September 17 over comments he

made about the assassination of conservative activist Charlie

Kirk. Hours before the suspension, Federal Communications

Commission Chairman Brendan Carr warned that local broadcasters

who aired Kimmel could face fines or loss of licenses and said

"it's time for them to step up."

The decision by the companies of whether to resume

broadcasting Kimmel's show has been the focus of a national

debate between President Donald Trump and his supporters, who

said the comedian should be taken off the air for comments that

did not serve the public interest, and Kimmel supporters who

said the government was muzzling free speech.

The Nexstar and Sinclair reversals followed Disney's ( DIS )

decision to restore Kimmel to the airwaves after the ABC parent

was hit with a torrent of criticism from across the political

spectrum for caving to the White House.

Sinclair and Nexstar must also weigh financial issues tied

to their relationship with the government, which approves

pending and potential acquisitions, and possible financial

contract penalties if they did not restore network programming.

Disney ( DIS ) faced pressure from Hollywood creators and talent who

vowed not to work with the company, and a public campaign for

people to cancel their Disney+ streaming service.

It is unclear what prompted Friday's Nexstar and Sinclair

decisions just days after Kimmel came back to late night TV,

though it is notable that Sinclair's previous demands, including

donations to Kirk-founded Turning Point USA and apologies to his

family, were unmet.

"Nexstar remains committed to protecting the First Amendment

while producing and airing local and national news that is

fact-based and unbiased," the company said on Friday. "Our

commitment to those principles has guided our decisions

throughout this process, independent of any external influence

from government agencies or individuals."

Disney ( DIS ) and Carr did not comment on Sinclair or Nexstar's

decision.

Typically, local broadcasters' agreements with networks for

affiliation allow for some ability to preempt programming, but

they could face penalties or potential renegotiation of their

underlying contract for an indefinite suspension.

SINCLAIR PROPOSALS TO ABC

Sinclair said it had proposed measures to ABC to strengthen

accountability, viewer feedback, and community dialogue,

including a network-wide independent ombudsman, but added ABC

and Disney ( DIS ) have not yet adopted these measures.

A person familiar with the matter said Disney ( DIS ) made no

editorial or content concessions for the show's return.

As part of a deal approved by the FCC in July, Skydance

agreed to have an ombudsman in place for at least two

years to evaluate complaints about bias in CBS News programming

as part of its acquisition of Paramount.

A number of Republicans have criticized the FCC's pressure

on broadcasters.

"This isn't an area that I think the FCC ought to be

wandering into," Senate Majority Leader John Thune told CNN this

week.

Democratic U.S. Senator Maria Cantwell had urged Sinclair to

return Kimmel to the air in Seattle on its KOMO-TV affiliate

serving 5 million households given his popularity in the market,

while Senator Bernie Sanders had urged Nexstar to return the

program to Vermont viewers.

Kimmel, who usually broadcasts from Los Angeles, is taking

"Jimmy Kimmel Live!" to Brooklyn, New York, for a week of shows

starting on Monday.