The right has spent the past decade attacking “cancel culture.” Now, it’s using institutional power to coerce big media companies into undermining the editorial independence of their journalists and comedians. Free expression is under federal assault, from Hollywood studios to hometown papers.

Take the cancellation of ABC’s Jimmy Kimmel, which began with relatively tame comments made in a monologue on Monday, Sept. 15 following the assassination of Charlie Kirk. “We hit some new lows this week with the MAGA gang desperately trying to characterize this kid who murdered Charlie Kirk as anything other than one of them,” Kimmel said. By Wednesday, Sept. 17, his show had been suspended.

From a president who previously described cancel culture as “the very definition of totalitarianism,” the Kimmel suspension is a distressing example of the Trump administration punishing those who criticize him. In fact, Kimmel’s suspension is straight from the playbook of the new chair of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), Brendan Carr.

The FCC’s enormous power comes from the licenses it grants to networks, which authorize them to broadcast over the airwaves. After the Kimmel monologue, Carr publicly threatened ABC, saying, “We can do this the easy way or the hard way.”

In addition, Attorney General Pam Bondi drew criticism from both sides of the political spectrum after threatening to target those engaging in “hateful speech” in response to Kirk’s death. Bondi said that there is “free speech, and then there’s hate speech” as justification for her actions. This is false. Hate speech, however repugnant, is constitutionally protected under the First Amendment. The Attorney General has no authority to ‘target’ Americans for offensive speech.

There is a difference between popular movements of “cancellation” like the one that reinstated Kimmel by boycotting Disney or targeting J.K. Rowling for her views on transgender people, and organized, deliberate government suppression of opposing views. One is enforced by cultural norms; the other is a form of censorship, a direct attack on freedom of expression and democracy. The MAGA right has shown it does believe in the latter when it targets those it disagrees with.

Private companies have the right to fire their employees, but the government does not have the right to force them to. The FCC has set a dangerous precedent: the White House can bully media companies to eliminate dissent.

As legacy media consolidates into monopolies focused more on business interests than editorial independence, local news is declining, too. 2,500 local newspapers have collapsed since 2005, with newspaper revenue more than halving over that time period. 55 million Americans now live in news deserts with little access to information about their community.

With major broadcast networks left compromised and unable to resist executive overreach, and local news powerless to fend for itself, hyperlocal and student journalism may be the last frontier of the free press.

The Cypress, for example, is a nonprofit. Our staff prioritizes the public interest of truth and accountability. Our Opinions section serves as an open forum and platform for free speech. Contributing writers are encouraged to disseminate their views, even if a majority of staff may disagree with them.

If big media companies are unwilling to resist proto-fascist attempts to silence dissent, it is critical to support the student journalists and local outlets that do. Across the country, organizers need help to pass New Voices bills in state legislatures, which strengthen press freedoms for student journalists. With federal budget cuts and financial pressure, local and student outlets need reader support now more than ever.

At city council and school board meetings around the country, student newspapers are often the only outlets with the time and manpower to act as a watchdog in the room. As a climate of fear descends upon science, the press and the rule of law itself, readers must cultivate a media environment that will challenge authoritarianism, not bend its knee.