The Hollywood Reporter: MyPillow CEO Mike Lindell to Appear on ‘Jimmy Kimmel Live!’ Despite Backlash

MyPillow CEO Mike Lindell is scheduled to appear as a guest on Jimmy Kimmel Live! Wednesday evening, despite an online backlash.

On Tuesday, a letter was posted to the website Common Cause, the political watchdog group, addressed to host Jimmy Kimmel and the production team of the ABC series. The letter noted that Lindell has been “a leading voice in spreading lies and disinformation regarding the 2020 election results, including producing several videos claiming that the 2020 elections were hacked.”

The letter went on to say, “Lindell’s work in pushing election disinformation has already had significant consequences for our nation, including the violent insurrection on January 6th at the U.S. Capitol that led to at least five people losing their lives. Lindell’s debunked conspiracy theories are also rooted in racism and white supremacy. The disinformation he is trying to sell is part of a larger narrative that essentially wants to throw out millions of votes from cities where people of color make up a majority or significant portion of the voting population, including Detroit, Milwaukee, Philadelphia, Phoenix, and Las Vegas.”

Making a case that Lindell should not appear on Jimmy Kimmel Live!, the letter stated: “We believe that having Mr. Lindell on your show will give him a bigger platform to spread his lies and disinformation, and knowingly mislead the public about the integrity of our election systems. To be clear, even joking about his conspiracy theories can lead to the spread of disinformation. In fact, disinformation actors such as Lindell often seek to get their lies and conspiracy theories debunked in national media in order to give their disinformation broader reach. Given the state of our nation and nature of Lindell’s lies, we are asking that you immediately cancel his scheduled appearance.” …

The Common Cause letter was additionally sent to The Walt Disney Company, other executives at ABC, the public, and the media.

Lindell was confirmed to appear on the show by Kimmel during Tuesday’s program, and via communication from the show’s representative, to the media.