There's at least the appearance of causation here, with the FCC Chairman publicly saying that broadcasters could get their licenses yanked if they didn't drop Kimmel, and later that suddenly occurring.

https://www.cnn.com/2025/09/18/entertainment/abc-jimmy-kimme...

I imagine a smoking gun will be demanded by this SCOTUS though, and this kind of stochastic "would be nice if someone..." pressure/threat will get a pass.

As I understand it, a jury will determine whether this was a coincidence or mafia-style doublespeak and the courts will typically respect their finding of fact.