Donald Trump · FCC · U.S. · Ars Technica
Trump FCC signals all broadcasters to follow orders or be punished like ABC
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The eight broadcast TV stations owned by ABC filed applications for early license renewals under protest yesterday, accusing the Federal Communications Commission of trying to suppress speech as part of “an unprecedented attack on a single company’s entire portfolio of broadcast licenses.”
Key facts
- ABC’s eight TV stations are scheduled for renewals between 2028 and 2031, and the FCC order to start the renewal process early doesn’t change those expiration dates
- The station “submits this license renewal application under protest in response to an unlawful, arbitrary, and unconstitutional Order issued on April 28, 2026, by the Media Bureau,” ABC’s filings said
- ABC submitted individual filings for WABC-TV in New York; WPVI-TV in Philadelphia; WTVD in Durham, North Carolina; WLS-TV in Chicago; KGO-TV in San Francisco; KFSN-TV in Fresno, California; KTRK-TV
- ABC said in its filings that the company produced over 11,000 pages of documents in response to a series of FCC requests
Summary
“The only plausible reason to issue the Order is to punish the Station for speech the government does not like,” ABC said in its filings. ABC said the order it received “sends a clear warning to every broadcaster in America.” If that warning wasn’t clear enough, the FCC yesterday issued a public notice to “remind” all broadcasters of “their public interest obligations.” The public notice was issued on the same day as the deadline the FCC set for ABC to submit its early license renewal applications, and urged all broadcasters to “review and modify their operations to ensure compliance.