ABC's legal team has launched a sharp counterattack against the Federal Communications Commission, accusing the agency of using its enforcement powers to punish the network for its political leanings. The accusation centers on an FCC investigation into whether the talk show "The View" violated equal time rules.
In a motion filed Thursday, KTRK-TV, a Houston ABC affiliate, called the FCC's probe an attack on free speech that "threatens to upend decades of settled law and practice and chill critical protected speech." The station's lawyers argued that the agency is crossing constitutional lines by targeting the show for political reasons.
The dispute traces back to February, when FCC Chair Brendan Carr confirmed the agency had opened an enforcement action against ABC. The trigger was an appearance by James Talarico, a U.S. Senate candidate from Texas, on "The View" without, according to the FCC's reading, affording equal airtime to his political opponents.
ABC contends that "The View" qualifies for an exemption to equal time rules because it operates as a bona fide news interview program. Carr has challenged that classification, which forms the core of the regulatory dispute.
The network's response, made public May 7 and first highlighted by the New York Times, struck a defiant tone. ABC argued that the equal time doctrine itself is outdated in an era when voters can reach candidates through cable, podcasts, and social media. Requiring broadcast airtime for every qualified candidate, the station wrote, would not expand speech but make coverage infeasible, ultimately reducing it.
The filing also took aim at what ABC sees as selective enforcement. The station accused the FCC of applying different standards based on ideology, suggesting that conservative programs have received gentler treatment despite airing their own political viewpoints. "Some may dislike certain or even most of the viewpoints expressed on 'The View' or similar shows," the lawyers wrote. "Such dislike, however, cannot justify using regulatory processes to restrict those views."
The timing of the FCC's scrutiny adds fuel to ABC's complaint. The network is also under investigation by Carr's agency into its diversity, equity and inclusion practices, an inquiry that began last year. Last week, citing findings from that probe, Carr issued an extraordinary order requiring ABC to renew its eight local station licenses ahead of schedule. The licenses were not originally due for renewal until 2028 at the earliest and 2031 at the latest.
That move prompted a quick response from Senate Democrats. On Thursday, a group of prominent Democrats sent Carr a letter urging him to rescind the accelerated renewal order.
The lone Democratic FCC commissioner, Anna M Gomez, publicly sided with Disney, ABC's parent company. In a post on X, she praised the network for fighting back rather than capitulating to the FCC's demands. "The days of the FCC as a paper tiger are numbered," she wrote. "What the public will remember is who complied in advance and who fought back."
Author James Rodriguez: "This looks like regulatory harassment dressed up in compliance language, and ABC's lawyers are right to push back hard."
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