ABC has formally submitted license renewal applications for its eight local TV stations as the FCC previously requested, while simultaneously accusing the commission of posing a threat to the First Amendment. The Walt Disney Company-owned network described the FCC's actions as an 'extraordinary demonstration of power and coercion' aimed at suppressing disfavored editorial voices.
The request for ABC to renew its licenses came shortly after the FCC received a complaint against late-night host Jimmy Kimmel following his joke suggesting that First Lady Melania Trump had the glow of an 'expectant widow.' Days after the sketch aired, a gunman attempted to storm the White House Correspondents' Dinner.
In its filing, ABC stated: 'It is an extraordinary demonstration of power and coercion directed at disfavored editorial voices which sends a clear warning to every broadcaster in America. This is a threat to the First Amendment that this Commission and this proceeding must not be permitted to normalize.'
FCC Chairman Denies Political Pressure
Last month, FCC Chairman Brendan Carr denied that White House pressure over the Kimmel joke was behind the decision to order early license renewals. Carr claimed the move was based on an existing DEI investigation, stating: 'This was based on DEI conduct, not speech. The FCC has rules on the books. You can't discriminate based on race and gender, and there's evidence that have been submitted that that's what Disney was doing.'
However, ABC attached a legal filing to its renewal applications countering that the 'true purpose and inescapable effect' of the FCC's orders 'are to suppress speech—to ramp up toward possible license revocation.' The network believes the FCC intends to cause ABC 'and others to think twice before they say something the government might dislike.'
FCC's Own Rules vs. Chairman's Notice
The FCC's website states it 'is prohibited by law from engaging in censorship or infringing on First Amendment rights of the press.' Yet, in a public notice earlier this week, Carr reminded 'broadcasters of their public interest obligations,' adding that the commission will analyze ownership structures to ensure they provide diverse viewpoints reflective of local community needs.
In the aftermath of the Correspondents' Dinner shooting, President Donald Trump publicly called for ABC to fire Kimmel, accusing him of sharing violent rhetoric. Trump wrote on Truth Social: 'When is ABC Fake News Network firing seriously unfunny Jimmy Kimmel, who incompetently presides over one of the Lowest Rated shows on Television? People are angry. It better be soon!!!' Kimmel remains under contract with ABC until 2027.
