‘Jimmy Kimmel Live’ Fined $395,000 by FCC for Using Emergency Alert System Tones in Sketch

Jimmy Kimmel Live is among several shows that have been hit with Federal Communications Commission (FCC) fines for the use of emergency alert system tones.

The ABC late-night talk show must pay $395,000 for the use of such tones in a 2018 skit in which the presidential alert system of a certain dumbass purported POTUS was mocked, with the FCC stating in a press release that it has “repeatedly warned” against using “simulated or actual” EAS tones in unauthorized instances. According to the FCC, such uses (either commercial or entertainment-related) can inspired what they call “alert fatigue,” meaning the general public becomes accustomed to the alerts in such a manner that renders them not as effective.

The Kimmel usage in question saw the tone used three times in an Oct. 3-aired sketch, per CNN, the airing of which was preceded hours earlier by a test of the presidential text alert. “ABC takes regulatory compliance seriously and we are pleased to have resolved this issue,” an ABC rep told THR of the fine news overnight.

Similarly, AMC’s The Walking Dead has been hit with a $104,000 fine for using simulated EAS tones back in February. Discovery was also hit with a fine, this one in the amount of $68,000, for a Lone Star Law episode that included an actual emergency alert. Also, a $67,000 fine was sent Meruelo Radio Holdings’ way for using these sounds in promo materials.

Any unauthorized use of the EAS tone, the FCC said Thursday, “presents a substantial threat to public safety.”