FCC chair puts ‘The View’ under the spotlight after Kimmel pressure

[Y2kTheNewOldies]

FCC chairman says the agency is investigating ABC's 'The View' over equal time rule

The Federal Communications Commission is investigating ABC’s “The View” over possible violations of the requirement that broadcast stations give equal time to political candidates when they appear on-air.

apnews.com

Here is more this time Chairman Carr directly respond to the FCC investigation on Colbert and The View. In this case WABC, WCBS, KTRK and KTVT would have their licenses questioned over the equal time rule.

 

[kevtronics]

And we thought Ajit Pai was a partisan hack...

 

[Y2kTheNewOldies]

Wait until Chairman Carr goes to "The next FCC investigation of the week". As always it will be guess which O&Os get targeted every time. Predictably the networks like ABC, CBS, and NBC's Los Angeles and New York affiliates will have their licensed questioned every time we hear Chairman Carr and Trump wants to go after networks.

 

[AbrahamJSimpson]

And we thought Ajit Pai was a partisan hack...

I mean….he was. But he tried to operate within the law and directives from Congress. Carr is, much like his colleagues in other agencies, untethered to any such trivial matters as laws.

 

[Y2kTheNewOldies]

https://thehill.com/blogs/in-the-know/5752873-fcc-complaints-jimmy-kimmel-charlie-kirk-abc-carr/

Here is more fallout and now Jimmy Kimmel responds to the latest Chairman Carr issue.

 

[Y2kTheNewOldies]

Texas-based ABC affiliates file equal time notices as FCC cracks down on ‘The View’ over Talarico segment

Many ABC affiliates in Texas quietly filed equal time notices after Texas Democratic Senate candidate James Talarico appeared on "The View."

www.yahoo.com

Here is more on the response to the Equal Time rules directed at ABC affiliates in Texas.

 

[Y2kTheNewOldies]

FCC Enforcement Chief Offered to Help Brendan Carr Target Disney, Records Show

Last year, as FCC chair Brendan Carr threatened ABC over a Jimmy Kimmel monolog, a civil servant overseeing West Coast stations privately pledged support, according to emails obtained by WIRED.

www.wired.com

Here is more on the leadup on How KABC-TV became the target of the FCC Threat in response to the Jimmy Kimmel segment on Charlie Kirk. Yes and as always anytime the FCC says they are going after networks they always mean targeting Network O&O's.

Later that day, Lark Hadley, the FCC West Coast enforcement director, emailed Carr and FCC chief of staff Scott Delacourt. The email, obtained via the Freedom of Information Act, was titled “personal note of support re Charlie Kirk ABC/Disney issue” and quoted Carr's remarks from an interview with conservative podcaster Benny Johnson: “This is a very, very serious issue right now for Disney. We can do this the easy way or the hard way,” Carr said during the interview.
Noting that he had been a broadcaster himself, Hadley wrote that the “absolute lack of accountability has always confused (and sickened) me,” telling Carr and Delacourt: “Please, do not let up, and let me know if I can help in any way.” It is highly irregular for a career civil servant and enforcement chief to express support for a politically motivated pressure campaign, or pledge services to a targeted retaliation effort against a broadcaster in their own jurisdiction. Federal ethics rules prohibit government employees from participating in matters where their impartiality could reasonably be questioned.
Carr’s office did not respond to a request for comment.
While FCC headquarters typically handles television content complaints, Hadley’s office holds direct enforcement authority over physical ABC-owned stations in its jurisdiction, including KABC-TV in Glendale, the broadcast origin for Jimmy Kimmel Live!

https://www.politico.com/news/2026/03/17/brendan-carrs-equal-time-curveball-crashes-the-midterms-00830210

Here is more on Chairman Carrs role in the midterm elections in this segment.

 

[Y2kTheNewOldies]

FCC splits as top officials take action over 'The View' segment

FCC Chairman Brendan Carr described the move as a procedural issue, but Commissioner Anna Gomez said it was a "way to harass broadcasters."

www.usatoday.com

Here is more on how the FCC responded to a segment on "The View."

Members of the Federal Communications Commission had conflicting perspectives at its March 26 meeting on whether its actions against ABC over an interview with Democratic Texas state Rep. James Talarico were a procedural matter or constituted press intimidation.

FCC Chairman Brendan Carr in February announced the commission had taken action against the network in line with its equal time rules after Talarico appeared on “The View” while running in the state’s Democratic U.S. Senate primary, which he later won over U.S. Rep. Jasmine Crockett, D-Texas.

Again everytime we have discussed this we always have to wait and see how it affects the ABC affiliates owned by Disney like KTRK, WABC and KABC. Also in this case Jasmine Crockett the member of congress representing Texas never contacted Disney or the FCC over this "Equal Time Rule" Chairman Carr is ranting about.

Federal law doesn't require networks to proactively offer broadcast opportunities to all candidates in any given election. Rather, they are required to provide such opportunities if legally qualified opposing candidates request it.
Crockett’s office previously told USA TODAY it had not made any such request to ABC, noting that Crockett appeared on the show weeks before Talarico.

In previous interviews with USA TODAY, experts said the FCC's action could have a chilling effect on television broadcasters’ speech.

 

[Y2kTheNewOldies]

In legal dispute over 'The View,' ABC argues Trump administration is trying to chill free speech

ABC is accusing the Trump administration of trying to chill free speech and hinder open political discussion.

apnews.com

As Kimmel mocks Trump, ABC's TV station licenses are under review — here's what that means

It isn't easy to suspend a TV station's broadcast license, but it's happened before.

www.latimes.com

ABC accuses Trump administration of violating free speech rights

The network accused the federal government of creating a “chilling effect on First Amendment-protected free speech” with a regulatory action focused on “The View.”

www.nbcnews.com

Yes this is one of the things where Disney owned stations are being targeted by the FCC not just because Chairman Carr is going after Jimmy Kimmel also stuff taking place on "The View" has also been the target of FCC over "Equal Time Rule."

The filing is Disney’s most pointed legal salvo against the Trump administration since the president returned to the White House last year and began sharply criticizing American broadcast networks over their on-air content.

In February, the FCC said it was looking into whether “The View” violated equal-time rules after an appearance by James Talarico, who was then running for the Democratic nomination for the U.S. Senate in Texas. (He went on to win the primary.)

“The FCC has an enforcement action underway on that,” FCC Chairman Brendan Carr, who was appointed by President Donald Trump, told reporters at the time.

ABC fired back in its filing this week, insisting that “The View” airs under an exemption to the equal-time rule “granted to it more than twenty years ago.” ABC said “it has never been disputed” that “The View” is a so-called “bona fide” news show, meaning it is not subject to the equal-time standard.

 

[gr8oldies]

In legal dispute over 'The View,' ABC argues Trump administration is trying to chill free speech

ABC is accusing the Trump administration of trying to chill free speech and hinder open political discussion.

apnews.com

As Kimmel mocks Trump, ABC's TV station licenses are under review — here's what that means

It isn't easy to suspend a TV station's broadcast license, but it's happened before.

www.latimes.com

ABC accuses Trump administration of violating free speech rights

The network accused the federal government of creating a “chilling effect on First Amendment-protected free speech” with a regulatory action focused on “The View.”

www.nbcnews.com

Yes this is one of the things where Disney owned stations are being targeted by the FCC not just because Chairman Carr is going after Jimmy Kimmel also stuff taking place on "The View" has also been the target of FCC over "Equal Time Rule."

Is seems preposterous to think the equal time rule means the opposition gets on the exact same show

 

[Y2kTheNewOldies]

FCC's Gomez: Agency is manufacturing controversy over "The View" appearance

FCC Commissioner Anna Gomez said the agency gave amnesty to nearly two dozen ABC affiliates who filed late political disclosures, then challenged an ABC-owned station for not doing the same.

thedesk.net

Here is more fallout over the FCC going after ABC affiliates over the equal time rule.

In a letter sent to the Walt Disney Company’s CEO Josh D’Amaro, FCC Commissioner Anna Gomez said the agency sent informal letters to nearly two dozen independently-owned ABC affiliates encouraging them to disclose Texas Representative James Talarico’s February 2 interview on The View in their public inspection files, but never gave the same consideration to the one ABC-owned TV station in Houston.

Nineteen ABC affiliates owned by Nexstar Media Group, Sinclair, Gray Media, News Press & Gazette and other broadcasters did update their public inspection files accordingly, Gomez said, pointing specifically to two Sinclair-owned stations — KVII (Channel 7) in Amarillo and KTXS (Channel 12) in Abilene — whose inspection files were updated in mid-Februray to disclose the appearance.

At the time of his appearance, Talarico was running for a seat in the United States Senate, having served as a state representative since 2018. His appearance on The View has been contested by the FCC as triggering the agency’s “equal time” rules, which require broadcasters to set aside equitable time to candidates upon request when a competing candidate appears on a licensed TV station.

While the 19 ABC affiliates were given a heads up about the matter, Gomez said KTRK (Channel 13), the ABC-owned station in Houston, was not. Then, in mid March, the FCC’s Media Bureau sent a letter of inquiry to Disney, noting that two dozen ABC affiliates had disclosed Talarico’s appearance in their public inspection files and questioning why KTRK had not.

 

[Y2kTheNewOldies]

Former ABC News journalists defend network amid FCC attacks

May 13, 2026 - Dozens of former ABC News journalists have signed an open letter defending the network from baseless attacks lobbied by the FCC in recent months.

thedesk.net

Here is more this time from former ABC News staff members who wrote in a letter in response to the “FCC Investigation” directed at Disney owned affiliates. Some of the names on this list includes Sam Donaldson and Lisa Stark.

 

[Y2kTheNewOldies]

Bipartisan legal group complaint against FCC's Brendan Carr

The Legal Accountability Center accused FCC Chairman Brendan Carr of abusing his authority and questioned whether he is still fit to hold a license to practice law.

thedesk.net

Here is more petitions directed at the chairman.

The complaints sent on May 18 ask Bar disciplinary officials to examine whether Carr violated professional conduct rules that prohibit dishonesty, conduct that interferes with the administration of justice and statements implying improper influence over a government agency or official.

The core issue at the center of both complaints is Carr’s demand that the Walt Disney Company renew the broadcast licenses of eight ABC-owned TV stations earlier than expected. Most of those stations have licenses that are valid for several more years, but Carr says the agency has the ability to call in those licenses for early renewal.

Carr justified the matter by pointing to a months-long investigation over Disney’s purported use of diversity, equity and inclusiveness (DEI) practices in its hiring and promotional initiatives. The company has not denied this, but has affirmed its employment and promotional practices follow the law. Last year, Disney said it was cooperating in the probe.

The Legal Accountability Center says the license renewal demand came shortly after late-night host Jimmy Kimmel delivered satirical remarks involving Trump and First Lady Melania Trump, prompting both to call for Kimmel’s ouster from ABC.

 

[Y2kTheNewOldies]

Jimmy Kimmel Fires Back After Trump Threatens Late-Night Hosts Again

Kimmel seized on the wording of the president's threat to remaining late-night hosts.

www.mediaite.com

Here we go again with Trump and Late night hosts.

 

[AbrahamJSimpson]

Good for Kimmel. And good for ABC for not caving, at least thus far.