FCC Chair Brendan Carr taunted Disney after the company sued the commission, alleging an unusually early review of the broadcast licenses for ABC’s eight stations amounts to retaliation and violates the First Amendment. The lawsuit cites public pressure from the White House, threats referencing Jimmy Kimmel, and an FCC probe into The View that followed a policy change. Commissioner Anna Gomez criticized the FCC and welcomed Disney’s legal challenge. Any attempt to revoke licenses would require the FCC to prove misconduct by the network.
FCC Chair Brendan Carr Taunts Disney After Company Sues Over Early ABC License Review
FCC's Brendan Carr Taunts Disney After Media Giant Files Lawsuit Over ABC Licenses
Federal Communications Commission Chair Brendan Carr publicly mocked The Walt Disney Company on Tuesday after Disney filed suit, alleging the agency violated First Amendment protections by launching an unusually early review of the broadcast licenses for all eight ABC‑owned stations.
Speaking to Reuters, Carr suggested the company was unsettled by the record the FCC has amassed:
“Disney seems to be a little nervous about what the record’s showing,”he said. Carr ordered the unprecedented April review following months of public disputes between ABC and the administration over programming that included criticism of President Donald Trump. Carr has said the review was also prompted in part by concerns about Disney’s diversity and inclusion practices.
The complaint, filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, accuses the administration and the FCC of retaliatory conduct aimed at censoring ABC’s speech. The suit argues that the timing of the review—demanding an examination of the stations’ licenses “extraordinarily early”—reveals a purpose of coercion and retaliation against a network that will not accede to the administration’s demands.
The filing cites repeated public pressure from President Trump to strip the network of its licenses and protests over late‑night commentary. It also points to a high‑profile exchange in which Carr warned late‑night host Jimmy Kimmel after Kimmel’s remarks about conservative influencer Charlie Kirk:
“We can do this the easy way or the hard way. These companies can find ways ... to take action ... on Kimmel, or there is going to be additional work for the FCC ahead.”
The FCC has additionally opened an inquiry into the daytime talk show The View, alleging the program violated equal‑opportunity rules by hosting Texas Democratic Senate candidate James Talarico. ABC’s lawyers say the probe came shortly after the commission reversed a long‑standing precedent that had exempted late‑night and daytime talk shows from those equal‑opportunity requirements.
Legal experts say the FCC would face a heavy burden to revoke broadcast licenses: the commission would need clear evidence that a licensee committed misconduct or abused rules. Anna Gomez, the commission’s only Democrat, welcomed Disney’s lawsuit and criticized the agency’s actions. In a statement she said she hoped the legal challenge would check what she described as the FCC’s "disregard for the Constitution," and praised Disney for pushing back rather than remaining silent.
The case raises broader questions about the boundaries between regulatory oversight and political pressure, and about how the government should address disputes with news organizations without appearing to punish protected speech.
Help us improve.
