Q&A: Jimmy Kimmel is hosting the Oscars again. This time, it’s an election year

By JAKE COYLE
AP Film Writer

NEW YORK (AP) — Through one of the most tumultuous periods in Oscar history, through flub and slap, Jimmy Kimmel has emerged as the steadying hand and abiding face of the Academy Awards. When Kimmel hosts the 96th Oscars on Sunday, he’ll be emceeing the telecast for the fourth time. Only Bob Hope, Billy Crystal and Johnny Carson will have hosted more than him. This year’s Oscars comes in an election year, though in an interview with The Associated Press, Kimmel says talking politics “isn’t really the focus” of the Oscars. That hasn’t stopped Donald Trump from labeling Kimmel “a loser.” Says Kimmel: “Only one of us has lost.”