Hi Reader,

Let me start here: I love Jimmy Kimmel. Always have.

Fun fact: I was almost invited onto his show once. I’d had conversations with his team about my parody project My Life with Bradley Cooper—but the timing didn’t work out. Sob sob.

So when Kimmel was suspended last week, it felt personal. Let me say up front that I’m super tuned into the distinction between freedom of speech and freedom from pushback or consequences. But right away, this was different. This wasn’t a legitimate ‘consequence’. This was political power being used to silence a voice. A certain powerful person and his supporters pushed to get him pulled off the air.

That’s not accountability. That’s censorship.

Last night, news broke that Kimmel will be reinstated. And whew! I’m relieved. But it also got me thinking about the voices that never get reinstated.

When powerful and famous men—those we like, those we don’t like, those we agree with and those we don’t—face silencing, there’s an outcry. There’s pressure. There’s a reversal.
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​But when women, independent journalists, or marginalized voices get shut down? Well, it can’t just be me that notices…crickets. Forget reinstatement, or press conference. Usually? It’s just silence.

And if you’re a woman discussing her body?!?! Good luck. You can’t even say the word vagina in an ad without getting censored.

That’s not freedom of speech. That’s selective freedom.

That’s why this moment matters. It’s a reminder that being on the right side of history isn’t just about cheering when someone famous regains their mic—it’s about noticing who never got one in the first place.

​It’s also why independent media matters. Podcasts. Newsletters. Platforms where we don’t have to wait for permission to speak, or for someone powerful to decide our voice has value. In a world where institutions are failing and faltering at an alarming rate, podcasts and other independent media are still places where truth can be spoken, without waiting for permission.

Season 3 of Roar launches October 7, and that’s what I’m holding onto: conversations where women are heard without asking, where their stories don’t depend on gatekeepers, and where truth doesn’t need to be reinstated. I hope you’ll join me.

See you next Tuesday,
​
Danielle

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