In the United States, the war between certain media and the Trump administration took on a new dimension after this legal action taken by the ABC channel. As reported by New York Timesit in fact accuses the American telecoms regulator, the FCC, whose president Brendan Carr was appointed by Donald Trump, of violating its rights to freedom of expression.
In a document filed with the FCC, ABC asserts that the regulatory authority exerts a dissuasive influence on freedom of expression, by attempting to sanction political content with which it disagrees.
While Donald Trump launched a vast campaign last year to try to muzzle media that do not go his way – PBS and NPR in the lead – this is the first time that one of them has gone this far to defend themselves. Which could now pave the way for a long, high-stakes legal battle between ABC and the Trump administration. And the latter would have little chance of winning according to experts.
The case here is very symbolic since the complaint actually only concerns a minor regulatory dispute about the broadcast The View. It was also only filed in the name of one of the channel’s branches, ABC Houston.
The View is ABC’s historic morning talk show. An information program which benefits from an exemption allowing it to avoid the obligation to grant equal airtime to political candidates for the same office.
The Jimmy Kimmel episode
Earlier this year, the FCC questioned the compliance of this exemption for the show, hosted by presenters and columnists who are also often very critical of Donald Trump. Brendan Carr indeed suggests that The View seems more like a partisan and entertaining talk show, rather than a neutral news program.
Proof that the war is well underway between ABC and the FCC, in another case, the telecoms regulator ordered the Disney group at the end of April to submit a license renewal request for the local stations of its ABC channel, anticipating the planned schedule by several years.
This request came against a backdrop of controversy between the Trump and Jimmy Kimmel spouses, the presidential couple having requested the departure of the flagship presenter of ABC for a joke described as“A call to violence”.
She was referring to a joke from the late-night talk show host Jimmy Kimmel Live ! during the show broadcast on April 23. During a sequence parodying the press gala, which was held two days later in Washington, Jimmy Kimmel pretended to address Melania Trump, “Radiant like a widow in the making”according to his expression.
