Disney's First Amendment lawsuit against the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) alleges "The View" has had to be "more circumspect" about the content that airs on the program amid the agency's crackdown on ABC stations.
The FCC, under chairman Brendan Carr, appointed by President Donald Trump, called for early renewal review of eight ABC-owned stations' licenses in April despite their license renewals being originally scheduled between 2028 and 2031. That came after the agency launched a probe into "The View" last February triggered by the appearance of Democratic Texas Senate candidate James Talarico.
In the lawsuit pushing back against the FCC's crackdown on First Amendment grounds, Disney acknowledged that "The View" has had to curb its bookings.
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"No candidate for public office has appeared on ‘The View’ since the Bureau’s February 2026 inquiry regarding Mr. Talarico’s appearance on February 2, 2026," the lawsuit stated. "Although there have been no changes in the program’s editorial standards regarding the newsworthiness of any candidate who might otherwise have been invited during this period the cumulative pressure from the FCC’s multiple actions against ABC has impacted the program’s decisions about which guests to invite."
"Those escalating pressures have led Plaintiffs to be more circumspect in booking political candidates on 'The View,' and have resulted in passing on further consideration of booking several political candidates," the lawsuit continued. "Those pressures have impacted not only potential bookings, but also the video clips that could constitute an 'appearance' on ‘The View’ under the FCC equal opportunities regulation: Plaintiffs have chosen not to air clips that it otherwise would have aired during the Hot Topics segment of 'The View' and also in the cold open of the program."
"The View" has only hosted a handful of political figures on the show since Talarico, including Democratic Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear, Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Conn., former first lady Jill Biden and former Chicago Mayor Rahm Emmanuel, none of whom are seeking office in the 2026 election cycle.
In an interview with Fox News Digital, Carr called the lawsuit "meritless" and vowed that the FCC will "follow the facts and the law wherever it takes us."
The FCC's year-long feud with ABC goes beyond "The View." Carr leveled a threat against Disney last September after ABC late-night host Jimmy Kimmel sparked outrage for his comments about the Charlie Kirk assassination.
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Disney insists Kimmel has been a motivating factor in Carr's call in April for early license renewal reviews of its eight ABC stations, which came after Kimmel's controversial "expectant widow" joke about first lady Melania Trump fueled calls for his firing. Carr said the FCC's DEI probe prompted the early review, not Kimmel.
"The pressure exerted by the Administration’s mounting campaign of retaliation against ABC has been deeply felt throughout the company. The campaign is also calculated to operate in terrorem upon the rest of the industry: ABC is the visible target and suffers the most immediate harm, but the message is addressed to every broadcaster in the country, and the ultimate cost is borne by the press as a whole," Disney wrote.
"Each day that the proceeding continues, ABC suffers continued First Amendment harm," the company added. "The FCC’s demand for early renewal applications reveals its intent to either hold a hearing to deny the applications or simply to subject Plaintiffs to months — and likely years — of onerous litigation and regulatory uncertainty. Either way, the agency succeeds at continuing to punish Plaintiffs."
KFSN-TV in Fresno; KABC-TV in Los Angeles; KGO-TV in San Francisco; WLS-TV in Chicago; WABC-TV in New York; WTVD in Durham, N.C.; WPVI-TV in Philadelphia; and KTRK-TV in Houston are the Disney-owned stations in question.
Fox News' Brian Flood contributed to this report.