Trump's Trials - FCC orders early license renewal for eight ABC stations

Episode Date: April 29, 2026

The Federal Communications Commission has ordered The Walt Disney Company's ABC to seek early broadcast license renewals for the eight TV stations it owns. The move follows criticism from first lady Melania Trump who objected to a joke about her made by late night comedian Jimmy Kimmel. President Trump followed up with a social media post calling for Kimmel to be fired, as NPR's Mandalit del Barco reports.Support NPR and hear every episode of Trump's Terms sponsor-free with NPR+. Sign up at plus.npr.org.See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.NPR Privacy Policy

I'm Scott Detrow, and this is Trump's Terms from NPR. Every episode, we bring you one story from NPR's coverage of the Trump administration, with the focus on actions and policies that take the presidency into uncharted territory. Here's the latest from NPR. The Federal Communications Commission has ordered Disney's ABC to seek early broadcast license renewals for the eight TV stations it owns. The news follows criticism by First Lady Melania Trump, who's upset about a joke about her, made by late-night comedian Jimmy Kimmel. President Trump has called for Kimmel to be fired,

and Pierre's Mandelit Del Barco reports. As the early license renewal order went out, FCC chair Brendan Carr went after ABC parent company Disney. On a podcast hosted by Katie Miller, whose husband is White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller, Carr said there are lots of options for how to handle broadcast licenses. You can accelerate when a license come due and say, hey, we have significant concerns about you conducting your operations.

we want to review your license now and decide it from the public interest. If we find that a broadcaster hasn't been doing that, then the statute requires us to issue a hearing designation order. Carr called out Disney for its DEI policy and didn't specify Jimmy Kimmel live. But the FCC's order is happening after Kimmel made a jab during a sketch on his late night show, a mock speech for an alternative White House correspondent's dinner. Our first lady, Melania, is here. Look at it. So beautiful. Mrs. Trump, you have a glow like an expectant. Widow. Kimmel's sketch ran three days before the real White House correspondent's dinner, when an alleged would-be assassin tried to storm the ballroom. In a post on ex-Melna Trump called Kimmel's joke about her hateful and violent, and she asked Network ABC, which airs his show, to take a stand.

President Trump then called for ABC and Disney to immediately fire him. That prompted Kimmel on a show Monday to defend himself. Obviously was a joke about their age difference. and the look of joy we see on her face every time they're together. It was a very light roast joke about the fact that he's almost 80 and she's younger than I am. It was not by any stretch of the definition a call to assassination. And they know that. I've been very vocal for many years speaking out against gun violence. This is not the first time Kimmel's been called to task for something he said that the Trump's didn't like.

In September, Disney briefly suspended Kimmel's show after he commented on the MAGA response to the killing of conservative activist Charlie Kirk. That comment prompted backlash, and FCC's car threatened to pull the licenses of ABC affiliates that continued airing the show. Here's Carr on a podcast by Benny Johnson. I mean, look, we can do this the easy way or the hard way. These companies can find ways to change conduct to take action on Kimmel or there's going to be additional work for the FCC ahead. After concerns over free speech and censorship were raised, Disney lifted the suspension of Kimmel's show six days later. Now the FCC is directing Disney and ABC to file applications for its TV stations within

30 days. They weren't scheduled for renewal till between 2028 and 2031. In a statement, a Disney spokesperson said the company received the FCC order and has always complied with its rules. They added, Disney has continually demonstrated its qualifications to be a license holder. This latest move by the FCC is again being scrutinized by First Amendment defense. This is all an exercise to intimidate broadcasters. Andrew J. Schwartzman is a longtime telecommunications lawyer. He says calling for early license renewal can take years and could end up with broadcasters being shut down. A harassment. Brendan Carr knows full well that he lacks any legitimate legal basis for taking action against these broadcasters.

He's trying to harass and bludgeon them. Schwartzman is representing a group of former FCC chairs and the radio. Television Digital News Association. They filed a petition today in D.C. Circuit Court asking the FCC to repeal its news distortion policy, which Schwartzman says is being used against broadcasters, including Jimmy Kimmel, to influence talk about the administration. NPR's reached out to the FCC for comment. Mandalay Del Barco, NPR News. Before we wrap up a reminder, you can find more coverage of the Trump administration on the NPR Politics podcast, where you can hear NPR's political reporters break down the day's biggest political news with new episodes every weekday

afternoon. And thanks, as always, to our NPR Plus supporters who hear every episode of the show without sponsor messages. You can learn more at plus.npr.org. I'm Scott Detrow. Thanks for listening to Trump's terms from NPR.