UMVA has learned that Disney‑owned ABC has filed early license renewal applications for its eight television stations, sparking a fierce battle with the Federal Communications Commission.
The network’s filing blasted the FCC’s April 28 order as “unlawful, arbitrary, and unconstitutional,” arguing that the agency forced an unprecedented, simultaneous renewal process years before any licenses were due to expire.
ABC’s flagship station in New York warned that the commission’s demand, unseen in more than fifty years, serves no legitimate purpose and threatens the First Amendment by opening the door to a potential assault on the stations’ licenses.
According to information obtained by UMVA, the FCC’s move followed a probe into ABC’s diversity, equity and inclusion policies and arrived just after high‑profile calls from the President and First Lady for Disney to fire late‑night host Jimmy Kimmel.
ABC pointed to the timing, noting the order was issued the day after public demands for punitive action over Kimmel’s controversial joke about the First Lady, suggesting a retaliatory motive.
The network warned that forcing every station in a media group to file premature renewals creates a chilling effect, stifling independent journalism and silencing dissenting editorial voices across the country.
In a stark rebuttal, FCC Chairman Brendan Carr defended the action as a response to a year‑long investigation into alleged discriminatory hiring practices, claiming ABC’s applications were prompted by the agency’s finding that the company’s responses were “disingenuous, deficient, and improper.”
Meanwhile, the commission has also targeted ABC’s daytime talk show “The View,” enforcing the equal‑time rule after the program interviewed a Democratic candidate without offering a comparable platform to his opponents, fueling another legal showdown.
