Judge skeptical of FCC's move to scrutinize ABC station licenses

A federal judge in D.C. on Tuesday declined to immediately rule on whether the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) should be stopped from conducting an early review of broadcast licenses belonging to a handful of local ABC stations across the country.  

But U.S. District Judge Loren Alikhan appeared skeptical from the bench of the administration’s justification for initiating the process. 

“What is it that made this so different that you needed to call for an early license renewal?”  Alikhan asked a Justice Department lawyer during Tuesday’s two-hour hearing, getting to the heart of the administration’s efforts to scrutinize the Disney-owned broadcaster.  

The Trump administration contends that the FCC’s early renewal process, an unprecedented move for a media regulator to take against one of the nation’s largest broadcast networks, was necessary as part of the department’s probe into Disney’s diversity, equity and inclusion hiring practices.  

“The commission has an obligation to pursue these types of investigations,” Dimitar Georgiev, an attorney for the DOJ, said, framing it as a “core function” of the Brendan Carr-led agency. 

ABC sued the FCC in August, accusing the Trump administration of embarking on a “retaliatory campaign” to punish the network for unfavorable coverage and commentary about the Trump administration.

The sprawling media company that encompasses ABC News, ESPN and a massive movie studio is seeking a preliminary injunction that would block the early renewal process from moving forward.  

“There’s no doubt that this conduct is unconstitutional,” ABC attorney Beth Wilkinson said, likening possible license revocation to what she called the “corporate death penalty.” 

Wilkinson argued on-air employees at ABC on popular shows like “The View” have been “chilled” by the FCC’s move to scrutinize the network’s broadcast licenses and caused the company immediate and irreparable harm that is impacting its coverage of the coming midterm elections. 

“Our editorial decisions are being affected right now before the election,” she said, later citing ABC’s decision to pull a late-night interview with Texas Democratic Senate nominee James Talarico off the air and put it on YouTube instead. 

DOJ lawyers attempted to convince the judge that ABC’s lawsuit should be dismissed, arguing the district court does not have jurisdiction over the case.  

Georgiev pointed to a provision in the Communications Act that gives the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals authority to review license applications that are denied by the FCC, arguing that halting the process would “sidestep” Congress.  

But Wilkinson contended that would leave Disney with no recourse to pursue its First Amendment retaliation claims if the licenses are not revoked.  

“Our concern is we are chilled,” Wilkinson added. “That kind of immediate harm cannot be rectified by the Court of Appeals.” 

The Trump administration has also accused Disney of flouting its obligations that come with accessing public airwaves. 

Tuesday’s court proceeding was the latest episode in months of tensions between President Trump’s FCC and the Disney-owned broadcast network. 

Carr, an ally of Trump, has cast doubt on the agency’s independence and defended the president’s attacks on mainstream media outlets.  

He has repeatedly criticized ABC over its news coverage and called for the firing of the network’s top comedian, Jimmy Kimmel, over jokes he made about the Republican response to the assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk.  

During his time as FCC chair, Carr has questioned whether late-night and daytime talk programs like Kimmel’s and ABC’s “The View” are so-called “bona fide” news programs and should be able to use public airwaves.  

Licenses for the local stations — in major markets like New York, Los Angeles and Houston — were not scheduled to be up for renewal until between 2028 and 2031. 

ABC described that inquiry as “pretextual” and rejected the administration’s claim that it has not fully cooperated with demands for information.  

The judge did not issue a ruling from the bench, instead asking the Trump administration to answer in writing what other mechanisms it could use to compel ABC’s cooperation with its probe.