ABC Sues FCC, Alleging Retaliation Over License Renewals
The network says the Trump-appointed FCC chair is using license renewal reviews to punish it for its news coverage, threatening press independence.
ABC filed a lawsuit against the Federal Communications Commission on Tuesday, arguing the agency is retaliating against the network for its journalism by forcing an unusually early and threatening review of its broadcast licenses.
The suit, filed in federal district court in Washington on behalf of ABC's eight owned local television stations, comes after the FCC — led by Chairman Brendan Carr — required ABC to apply early for license renewal. The network is now awaiting word on whether the FCC will approve the renewals or, as ABC expects, open a formal hearing that could drag on for years or end in denial.
"Acting through the Federal Communications Commission, the Administration has waged a retaliatory campaign against ABC for a single reason: it disapproves of what ABC broadcasts," the network said in its filing.
ABC's lawyers argue the FCC cannot legally grant renewals this early in the license terms, meaning any outcome from a formal hearing would be adverse to the network. They called the threatened process a "charade" designed either to force ABC "to fall in line" or to "silence" it through prolonged litigation.
A group of former FCC officials from both parties warned last month that the agency's early-renewal demand sent a "chilling message" to broadcasters. Separately, conservative groups including the Center for American Rights and the Media Research Center have petitioned the FCC to deny ABC's renewals, alleging biased journalism. The FCC is also still investigating ABC's "The View" over potential equal-time rule violations.
An FCC spokesperson defended the agency's actions, saying broadcasters have a legal obligation to serve the public interest and that the commission has examined claims of "illegal DEI discrimination" by Disney, ABC's parent company, for more than a year.
Anna Gomez, the FCC's lone Democratic commissioner and a named defendant in the case, praised ABC for suing. "For months, the FCC has waged a campaign of censorship and control against Disney's ABC stations," she said, calling the lawsuit the possible "beginning of the end" of the administration's disregard for the law.
The network is asking the court to block the FCC from taking or threatening any further action against it.
This article was produced with the assistance of artificial intelligence (AI), in accordance with our editorial policy.
