Sinclair, Inc. says it will end its week-long blackout of “Jimmy Kimmel Live” on its ABC affiliates after holding constructive conversations with the network and its parent company Disney.

In a statement Friday afternoon, Sinclair said its local ABC affiliates across the country will start airing the late night talk show starting later that evening.

The show has not aired on Sinclair-owned ABC affiliates since it returned from a temporary hiatus on Tuesday, which Sinclair and peer broadcaster Nexstar Media Group influenced. Nexstar has not committed to returning the program to its ABC affiliates as of Friday afternoon.

The two broadcasters say their decision was the result of a monologue aired earlier this month, during which Kimmel criticized President Donald Trump for his reaction to the fatal shooting of activist Charlie Kirk and wrongfuly implied the alleged assassin was aligned with Trump supporters.

Kimmel’s monologue was delivered on a Monday. Sinclair and Nexstar decided to pull the show two days later, hours after Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Chairman Brendan Carr criticized Kimmel’s remarks and encouraged local TV stations to pre-empt his show.

Sinclair and Nexstar both have pending business-related transactions that require FCC approval, and the timing of their blackout of Kimmel’s show led many to draw conclusions that the decision was intended to curry favor with regulators.

Both broadcasters have denied that to be the case, with a Nexstar spokesperson telling The Desk last week that its decision to pull the show was not connected to its pending deals — which includes a mega-merger with peer broadcaster TEGNA — and Sinclair saying the same on Friday.

“Our decision to pre-empt this program was independent of any government interaction or influence,” a Sinclair spokesperson said in a statement. “Free speech provides broadcasters with the right to exercise judgment as to the content on their local stations. While we understand that not everyone will agree with our decisions about programming, it is simply inconsistent to champion free speech while demanding that broadcasters air specific content.”

The affirmations are unlikely to quell criticisms of Carr and the broadcasters anytime soon. Several lawmakers from both major political parties condemned Carr for exerting irresponsible political influence in an effort to quash free speech, and several senators have demanded information from the CEOs of Sinclair and Nexstar on their decision to pull the show.

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Read more:

• Watchdog files bar complaint against FCC Chairman Carr over Kimmel controversy
• ABC pulls “Jimmy Kimmel Live” amid threats from FCC chairman
• Law firm files FCC complaint against TV station over Kimmel monologue
• Trump urges FCC to pull TV station licenses over negative coverage
• Broadcasters who criticized Jimmy Kimmel have deals pending before FCC