On Friday, Democratic Texas Representative Jasmine Crockett stated that she was never invited to appear on CBS’s “Late Night with Stephen Colbert” after the network decided to pull an interview featuring Democratic Representative James Talarico. This action was taken to avoid potential violations of the FCC’s Equal Time Rule, which mandates that airtime be allocated to candidates running against each other—in this case, Crockett, who is Talarico’s primary opponent. Crockett shared on “Morning Joe” that she hadn’t received any invitations for an appearance on the show, neither before nor after Talarico’s segment.
Crockett remarked, “No, I was not invited before or after Colbert’s interview. Obviously, I’ve done Colbert twice in the past.” She explained that people questioned whether airtime was being treated equally, and she was advised to speak to Brendan Kerr to clarify her position regarding the interview. She mentioned a phone call she received after the situation unfolded but noted that the caller did not indicate that the interview couldn’t be aired. Rather, they simply advised that if it were to be broadcast, equal airtime for all representatives must be given.
Continuing, Crockett said, “Now, obviously, I wasn’t part of that conversation, so I can’t verify the contents of it. However, I can definitely say that I was never asked to discuss the Senate race.” Meanwhile, Colbert and Talarico suggested the interview’s omission might be tied to a warning issued by FCC Chairman Brandon Carr, which indicated that networks might not be exempt from equal-time rules moving forward. CBS News later clarified that while the segment wasn’t forbidden, it had received advice that these rules could potentially apply to candidates opposing Talarico.
On Wednesday, Talarico announced that his campaign raised $2.5 million in just 24 hours following CBS’s decision and made false accusations against the FCC for supposedly banning the interview. Kerr commented on the situation, expressing that he found the controversy surrounding CBS’s action amusing, suggesting that Talarico played with media rules for fundraising and publicity. On February 7, the FCC began an investigation into ABC’s “The View” for possible violations related to Talarico’s interview, following Disney’s inadequate response to document requests from the FCC.
