#ABC Accuses #Government of Violating #FirstAmendment

[nonilex@masto.ai]

#ABC Accuses #Government of Violating #FirstAmendment

The network’s argument, made to the #FCC, is the most aggressive [long overdue] posture taken yet by a television network toward the #Trump admin.

#law #constitution #FreeSpeech #FreePress #media #entertainment #authoritarianism #autocracy #dictatorship #fascism #tyranny
https://www.nytimes.com/2026/05/08/business/media/abc-fcc-first-amendment-the-view.html?smid=nytcore-ios-share

[nonilex@masto.ai]

#ABC has accused the #FCC of violating its #FreeSpeech rights, potentially setting the stage for a protracted, high-stakes legal battle between the network & the #Trump admin.

The company said in a filing with the agency that regulators had a “chilling effect” on free speech by punishing #political #content they disagreed with. The filing, made public Friday, is the most aggressive defense from any TV network since Trump kicked off an extended campaign last year to bring media to heel.

#law

[nonilex@masto.ai]

It represented a striking departure for #ABC. The network, under the corporate stewardship of the Walt #Disney Company, set an early tone of compliance toward #Trump when it settled a defamation lawsuit with him for $15 million in December 2024. Many legal experts considered Trump’s case unlikely to succeed in court.

#law #constitution #FirstAmendment #FreeSpeech #FreePress #media #entertainment #authoritarianism #autocracy #dictatorship #fascism #tyranny

[nonilex@masto.ai]

The filing was registered on behalf of a single #ABC station in Houston & involved a minor regulatory dispute over the talk show “#TheView.” But in a signal of its importance, the company’s paperwork was signed by one of the most experienced Supreme Court litigators in the country, Paul D. Clement, a solicitor general under President George W. Bush.

https://www.fcc.gov/ecfs/document/10507899614175/1

#law #constitution #FirstAmendment #FreeSpeech #media #Trump #authoritarianism #autocracy #dictatorship #fascism #tyranny

[varx@defcon.social]

@Nonilex are large companies finally realizing that placation doesn't make the demands go away? That it actually legitimizes them and costs everyone more in the long run? Don't get my hopes up!

[nonilex@masto.ai]

The filing responded to action the #FCC took earlier this year questioning whether “#TheView,” the longtime #ABC morning talk show, fell under old federal rules requiring entertainment programs on broadcast television to grant equal airtime to political candidates for the same office. The show features a mix of political & celebrity interviews, led by a panel of hosts who are often highly critical of #Trump.

#law #constitution #FirstAmendment #FreeSpeech #authoritarianism #dictatorship #fascism

[nonilex@masto.ai]

Trump’s appointed chair of the #FCC, #BrendanCarr, has strongly suggested in public that “#TheView,” which is technically part of ABC’s news division, should not qualify for an exemption that the equal time rules allow for so-called “bona fide” news programs. But the filing from #ABC revealed for the first time the intensity of the agency’s efforts against the network, which have included extensive requests for documents & information about its operations & editorial approach.

#law #Trump

[chrisholladay@mastodon.social]

@Nonilex
It's sbout fucking time mass media fought for 1A rights.