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FCC Chairman Carr warned ABC that not airing Trump's speech would factor into its ongoing broadcast license review

On July 22, 2026, FCC Chairman Brendan Carr publicly stated that ABC's decision not to air President Trump's prime-time White House address on its broadcast network would be considered as part of the FCC's ongoing license renewal review of Disney's eight ABC-owned television stations. Carr made the statement at an FCC press conference, framing the network's editorial choice as a potential violation of broadcasters' public interest obligations. Both ABC and NBC declined to carry the speech on their broadcast channels, though both networks streamed it online.

Part of: Trump FCC Broadcast License Campaign Against Disfavored Media

Jurisdiction
Federal
Location
Washington, D.C.

Abuses documented

Actors

On July 22, 2026, FCC Chairman Brendan Carr publicly warned at a hastily-arranged FCC press conference that ABC's decision not to air President Trump's prime-time White House address on its broadcast network would be factored into the agency's ongoing license renewal review of Disney's eight ABC-owned television stations. Carr said, "I think that when you have the president of the United States standing inside the White House delivering an important speech, I think that's something that broadcasters should be carrying," framing the editorial choice as a potential failure of broadcasters' public interest obligations under federal communications law.

Trump's speech — a prime-time address from the White House devoted largely to claims about the 2020 presidential election and election security — was declined by both ABC and NBC on their broadcast networks, though ABC News and NBC News both streamed the address online. Sinclair, which owns ABC and NBC affiliates, chose to carry the speech. Carr noted Congressional interest in the decision, referencing a letter from Rep. Buddy Carter requesting an FCC investigation, and stated that "points raised in that proceeding" would include Disney's choice not to broadcast the address, directly tying the editorial decision to the already-open license review.

This warning is a discrete escalation within the FCC Chairman's sustained campaign of using licensing authority as leverage against ABC and its parent company Disney. The ABC/Disney license review was initiated in April 2026, the day after President Trump publicly demanded the firing of late-night host Jimmy Kimmel; prior licensing threats in September 2025 over Kimmel content drove Sinclair-owned affiliates to preempt his show. By stating that an editorial programming decision — declining to carry a presidential address — will be weighed in a licensing proceeding, Carr again conflated the FCC's regulatory authority with approval of the administration's preferred media coverage.

Why we recorded this

Broadcasting licenses are federal government permissions, and the First Amendment bars officials from using regulatory authority to coerce editorial choices. When the FCC Chairman signals that a broadcaster's decision not to air a presidential speech will be weighed against it in a license renewal proceeding, he is deploying licensing power to pressure coverage choices. Broadcasters that fear losing their licenses may air content they otherwise would not, or forgo editorial judgment about presidential addresses regardless of journalistic merit. This is government coercion of the press, and the First Amendment forbids it whether or not a license is ultimately revoked. This entry documents a discrete escalation in the FCC's sustained campaign to use licensing authority against ABC and Disney.

Sources

  1. FCC Chairman Warns About ABC's Decision Not To Carry Trump's Speech — Deadline investigative accessed July 24, 2026
  2. FCC Chair Says ABC's Decision to Not Broadcast Trump Speech Live Will Be Part of Agency's Review of Its Station Licenses — Variety investigative accessed July 24, 2026
  3. FCC Chairman Carr: ABC decision to skip Trump speech will factor into license review — The Desk investigative accessed July 24, 2026
  4. Brendan Carr says ABC's refusal to air a Trump speech could affect renewal of its broadcast licenses — Reason investigative accessed July 24, 2026

See also