FCC to Review ABC's Trump Speech Decision in License Case

The Federal Communications Commission will formally consider ABC's decision not to broadcast President Donald Trump's recent speech on election security as part of an ongoing license review, raising significant questions about broadcaster obligations and government pressure. The commission's chairman, Brendan Carr, said the matter would be examined within an existing proceeding to evaluate whether eight ABC-owned television stations are operating in the public interest.

Trump delivered the speech on July 16 from the White House, reiterating his unfounded claims that U.S. elections had been rigged and stolen. During the address, he criticized ABC and NBC for opting not to carry his remarks live on their primary broadcast channels and called for the revocation of their broadcast licenses, a threat he has made on several previous occasions. While the networks did not broadcast the speech on their main channels, they made it available on their streaming platforms and covered it through subsequent news reports.

At a press conference on Wednesday, July 22, Carr addressed the networks' decision. "I think that when you have the president of the United States standing inside the White...